Want to know a fun fact... my favourite food growing up was chicken. Is that a little strange, for a 7 year old to request chicken for dinner multiple times a week. In fact, I loved chicken so much that when we had to draw our favourite food in class, mine were chicken legs. Most kids would draw candy or pizza, and then there were my chicken legs with mashed potatoes. But can you blame me? Crispy chicken is my favourite, especially, bone-in and skin on... yes please! This slow cooked chicken and potatoes is a weeknight dinner dream. It's made in one pot and because you sear it after for a few quick minutes, you are rewarded with crispy skin.
Is there anything better than a one pot meal? I don't think so. And during a busy week, getting dinner on the table in under one hour, in one pot with minimal prep is so ideal. Although this dinner takes just a little longer than an hour, you're not doing a thing while its cooking in the oven. You'll have minimal clean up from making this meal, so you can relax with a glass of wine. Or you know, do whatever it is you need or want to do.
You may be wondering about slow cooking chicken or how to do it. So allow me to explain first off why you want to do this. When you slow cook chicken it really does result in tastier chicken. So even though you can cook chicken at a higher temperature (which you may do because you want to speed things along), it ends up being drier. This is especially true when you bake chicken breast at a higher temperature. Also why I don't personally love chicken breast. To be honest, the only thing I like chicken breast for is making these paleo chicken tenders with hot honey. But, slow cooking chicken means tastier chicken in my opinion.
As for how to slow cook chicken, you'll want to place it in an oven safe baking dish along with a good amount of oil, seasonings and whatever else you want with it. The temperature for slow cooking should be around 325ºF to 350ºF (or even as low as 300ºF). This is a lot lower than many people are used to cooking chicken in the oven.
You can also slow cook chicken in a slow cooker as well. But that option takes a lot longer, which is why I prefer the oven method for slow cooking chicken.
When you are deciding how long to slow cook chicken for, you'll want to aim for about 90 minutes for bone-in chicken thighs. This recipe is slightly less because you are searing the chicken after. This simple step will result in crispy chicken skin and a lot more flavour.
If you are cooking a whole chicken in the oven and want to slow cook that (and you should, it's delicious), that would take about 3 hours at 300ºF. Obviously, that's not a quick weeknight meal, but one that you can make easily on the weekend. Or if you're working from home, prep it and place it in the oven as well. Ahhhh, the perks of working from home, right?!
If you want to make a whole chicken quickly, (like in under an hour) try my whole chicken in a skillet recipe with crispy thin potatoes. It's slathered with a delicious anchovy butter (nope, you don't even taste the anchovies) and dry brined ahead of time. It's one of my favourite ways to cook a whole chicken! See the photo below for what it looks like.
The ingredients for this slow cooked chicken and potatoes is actually pretty simple. Here is what you'll need:
Skin-on and bone-in is my personal favourite cut of chicken thighs. For this recipe, you want that crispy skin, so searing after it's done cooking is ideal, although if you're short on time, not absolutely necessary.
Another reason I love chicken thighs besides the taste is that they're actually a lot cheaper than chicken breast. So this is a budget friendly dinner too!
I used baby red potatoes for this recipe. Feel free to use any potatoes you like.
If I'm going to slow cook anything in the oven, I'll pretty much always want to add a head of garlic and roast that too. It's just SO GOOD.
Fresh oregano is great in this dish. You can substitute that for another fresh herb such as thyme or marjoram. Dried will work as well, just reduce the amount.
I also used some fresh chives on the potatoes and in the Greek yogurt dip, this is optional.
Yes, you'll want to add lots of olive oil to this dish. It's what provides sooooo much flavour. But, don't worry, you won't be wasting any of it. I keep the leftovers in a sealed jar in the fridge along with the chicken fat from the pan after you sear the chicken. Use this to cook anything, like eggs, potatoes or veggies.
Jammy lemon slices are a thing and they're delicious. Plus, the acidity that lemon brings is needed to balance all the flavours and brighten the meal.
Another jammy option are shallots. They taste delicious when cooked low and slow with the chicken, all you need to do is slice them in half (or quarters if large) and throw them in the baking dish.
I love serving this with a side of a Greek yogurt dip. It just tastes good! For this, all you need is some Greek yogurt, lemon juice, and some of that roasted garlic once it's done. This is optional of course, but I do really like it!
This one pot meal couldn't be easier to make, which is exactly why you'll love it.
Preheat your oven to 350.
Add your chicken to a baking dish and season with salt and pepper.
Then add the potatoes, garlic, lemon, shallots and oregano. Drizzle all that olive oil on top. Season the potatoes and shallots with a little more salt and pepper.
Place it in the oven to bake for about 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Right before it's finished in the oven, heat up a cast iron pan over medium heat. Then remove the chicken and carefully add it to the cast iron pan, skin side down. Sear for about 4 minutes. You can leave the baking dish in the oven to keep the potatoes warm.
If you're making the dip, pop out about 3 cloves of roasted garlic and add to a small bowl with the Greek yogurt ingredients.
Serve your chicken with greek yogurt dip on the side, or on the plate along with the veggies.
Marvel at how easy (but fancy) dinner looks.
Don't throw away that olive oil, keep it in a sealed container in your fridge and use it for cooking. Drizzle extra on your plate of course!
Store any leftover chicken thighs in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
When you want to reheat them without drying them out, here is what to do:
You can also enjoy this leftover chicken cold too, either way it's good!
If you make this slow cooked chicken and potatoes, I'd love to hear from you. Feel free to tag me on Instagram, and/or leave a comment, rating or review below.
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This slow cooked chicken and potatoes is easy and completely hands off as you let the oven do all the work. Maximum flavour, minimal effort!
Don’t throw away that olive oil, keep it in a sealed container in your fridge and use it for cooking.
And I’m so grateful you’re here! Have a look around at some of my favourite recipes and stay a while.
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