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A blue bowl filled with mashed potato, broccoli and tender apricot chicken.

Apricot Chicken | Slow Cooker

A simple 4 ingredient Apricot Chicken family dinner that's cooked in the slow cooker until fall-apart tender and completely delicious!
5 from 66 votes
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Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Slow Cooker Recipe
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Total Time: 6 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 6 serves
Calories: 278kcal
Author: Lucy - Bake Play Smile

Equipment

  • slow cooker (crock pot)

Ingredients

  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 800g skinless chicken thighs approx 6 thighs
  • 40 g French onion soup mix packet dried
  • 410 g apricot halves drained
  • 405 ml apricot nectar
  • 1 tbs cornflour optional (see notes)

Instructions

  • Heat the oil in a frying pan over high heat. Brown each side of the chicken thighs before transferring to the slow cooker. (Note: if you have a searing slow cooker you can do this step in the slow cooker bowl).
    Chicken thighs in the base of a slow cooker.
  • Sprinkle over the french onion soup packet.
  • Add the drained apricot halves and the apricot nectar.
    Apricot halves and apricot nectar, chicken and french onion soup in the base of a slow cooker.
  • Cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 4 hours.
    Chicken in a apricot sauce in a crockpot.
  • Serve with your choice of vegetables, mashed potato or pasta.

Video

Notes

RECIPE NOTES & TIPS
Ingredients Info:
  • skinless chicken thighs – or substitute with chicken drumsticks or chicken breasts. Chicken thighs or drumsticks are the best option as they will be more tender and the meat will quite literally ‘fall-apart’ when cooked. You can increase the amount of chicken up to 1kg if you like.
  • apricot nectar – apricot nectar is a sweet thick liquid that is made by mixing apricot puree with water. It can sometimes be tricky to find at the supermarket as it tends to be kept in the juice aisle (not the canned/tinned fruit aisle).
  • apricot halves – ensure the apricot halves are drained before adding to the slow cooker.
  • French Onion soup mix – this is a powder that can be bought in packets from the soup aisle of the supermarket. I generally use Continental brand (which is popular here in Australia), but you can use any brand you like. It is also known as simmer soup mix.
More Recipe Tips
Searing the chicken (optional but HIGHLY recommended) - this step caramelises the outside of the chicken, locks in the moisture and adds the most delicious flavour to the dish.
Thickening the sauce (optional) - I like to thicken the sauce at the very end of cooking using 1tbs of cornflour that’s been dissolved in ¼ cup water. This makes it the perfect consistency for serving on top of mashed potato or pasta.
Doubling - this recipe can easily be doubled.
Storing and freezing - consume any leftovers within 1 day or freeze for up to 3 months. 

Nutrition

Calories: 278kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 127mg | Sodium: 156mg | Potassium: 610mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 2236IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 2mg