Nothing says Autumn more to me than getting the slow cooker on and making a creamy casserole that’s spooned over a big pile of buttery mashed potato. (excuse me a moment while I do some Homer Simpson-style drooling).
This one, with slow-cooked chicken thighs, tender baby carrots, and little button mushrooms, is divine.
The chicken pulls apart beautifully; the rich sauce has a very slight lip-smacking tang from the hint of lemon juice, and the veggies soak up that sauce, so you’ll find yourself marveling at how good a carrot can actually taste.
Ingredients swaps
- I love to use chicken thighs in casseroles, as they’re more tender and stand up well to slow cooking. They also shred up beautifully. However, you can swap out the chicken thighs for chicken breast or even bone-in chicken pieces.
- Add in extra veggies – such as baby potatoes, leeks, shallots, or cubes of butternut squash.
- Add crispy bacon or pancetta at the end of cooking for an extra hit of flavor.
- Brown the chicken in a pan with a little oil and then transfer to the slow cooker.
- Saute onions in a little butter in the same pan you cooked the chicken, then stir in garlic.
- Add in flour, salt, pepper, thyme, and celery salt. Cook for 2 minutes.
- Add chicken stock and lemon juice.
- Stir and bring to the boil.
- Pour into the slow cooker over the top of the chicken.
- Add mushrooms, carrots, and celery to the slow cooker and stir.
- Place the lid on and cook on a low heat for 5-6 hours or a high heat for 3-4 hours.
INGREDIENTS
-
- ▢ 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- ▢ Eight boneless chicken thighs – trimmed of fat
- ▢ 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- ▢ Two brown onions – peeled and diced
- ▢ Three cloves garlic – peeled and minced
- ▢ 3 tbsp plain/all-purpose flour
- ▢ 1 tsp salt
- ▢ 1 tsp black pepper
- ▢ 1 tsp dried thyme
- ▢ 1/2 tsp celery salt
- ▢ 2 cups (480ml) chicken stock
- ▢ 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ▢ 16-20 baby chestnut mushrooms
- ▢ 16-20 chantenay carrots
- ▢ Three sticks of celery – roughly chopped
- ▢ 1/4 cup (60ml) double (heavy) cream
- ▢ Small bunch parsley – chopped
INSTRUCTIONS
-
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the chicken thighs and lightly brown on both sides – this should take about 5 minutes.
- Once lightly browned, remove from the pan and place in the slow cooker.
- Add the butter to the pan and heat until melted.
- Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Add in the garlic, stir, and cook for a further minute.
- Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, thyme, and celery salt. Cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the stock and lemon juice. Stir and bring to a boil, then pour into the slow cooker over the top of the chicken.
- Add the mushrooms, carrots, and celery to the slow cooker and stir.
- Place the lid on and cook on a low heat for 5-6 hours or a high heat for 3-4 hours.
- Once cooked, shred the chicken a little with two forks, then stir in the cream.
- Serve topped with fresh parsley. I love to serve this casserole with mashed potato and green beans.