Crock Pot Mississippi Chicken

Chicken mississippi in a serving bowl with fresh parsley on top

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5 from 2 votes

Crock Pot Mississippi Chicken

Crock Pot Mississippi Chicken is an easy dinner recipe with just 10 minutes of prep!

Course Dinner

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword chicken mississippi, crock pot mississippi chicken, mississippi chicken, mississippi chicken recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 4

Total Time 4 10

Servings - 8 people

Calories 347kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

Ingredients

1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
½ cup low-sodium chicken broth or water
3 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 (1-ounce) packet au jus gravy mix (such as McCormick brand)
1 (1-ounce) packet dry ranch dressing and seasoning mix (such as Hidden Valley brand)
¼ cup (half of a stick) unsalted butter, cubed
6 pepperoncini peppers (from a 12-ounce jar), plus 2 tablespoons of juice from the jar
Optional, for serving: chopped fresh parsley; cooked rice, noodles, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, cornbread, biscuits, or sandwich rolls

Instructions

Place onion in the bottom of a slow cooker. Add the chicken broth (or water). Arrange chicken on top of the onion.
Sprinkle au jus mix and ranch seasoning mix over the ingredients in the pot. Place butter pieces on top of chicken. Add pepperoncini and 2 tablespoons of juice around the chicken.
Cover and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.
Shred the chicken with two forks. Stir the meat back into the sauce. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley, and serve over rice, noodles, or mashed potatoes, tucked inside baked potatoes or sandwiches, or with a loaf of crusty bread, biscuits, or cornbread.

Notes

Do not add any extra salt to the chicken before it's cooked through and you give it a taste. The au jus gravy mix and the ranch seasoning mix both include a lot of salt, so you likely won't need any more. I also recommend unsalted butter and either water or low-sodium broth for the same reason.
Packets of au jus gravy mix are not the same as a packet of brown gravy mix. The brown gravy mix will be much thicker and will change the consistency of your dish, so make sure that you use au jus mix.
Be careful not to overcook your chicken. I find that the chicken breast or thighs have the best texture when cooked in my slow cooker on HIGH for about 2-3 hours (at the most -- sometimes they're done in just 90 minutes). That keeps them moist and juicy, and prevents them from drying out. The meat is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
Also remember — every slow cooker runs at a slightly different temperature (which is why the recipe gives you general time ranges, rather than exact times). Since my slow cooker tends to cook at a relatively high temperature, I find that the meal is best when cooked on HIGH for about 2 hours or on LOW for about 4 hours. Just get familiar with your pot and adjust accordingly.
Serving a larger group? Double all of the ingredients.
Make it spicy by adding some cayenne or crushed red pepper flakes to the seasoning in the pot.
Add some minced garlic to the Crock Pot for even more savory flavor.
Use either boneless, skinless chicken breasts or boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. We find that the dark meat thighs stay a bit juicier during the slow cooking process, but they are both great.

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