Crockpot Chicken and Mushrooms
This Crockpot Chicken and Mushrooms is a delicious slow cooker recipe, made with chicken thighs, mushrooms and orzo pasta. One of our favorite crock pot recipes for an easy weeknight dinner!
Chicken and Mushrooms
Chicken and mushrooms are a classic combination, conjuring up feelings of comfort food dinners at home. Crockpot chicken is a busy parent’s best friend for quick dinners, and this mushroom chicken recipe is no exception. Using your crockpot allows you to prep this easy meal ahead of time, so your dinner will be ready when you’re ready to eat on a busy weeknight.
Chicken thighs are perfect for cooking in your crockpot because they don’t dry out as easily as chicken breasts can – see my easy Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes and this slow cooker chicken thighs recipe for two more tasty examples. If you prefer to make this mushroom chicken with chicken breasts, see my tips below.
My family loves crockpot chicken recipes, and this crockpot chicken and mushrooms is one of my favorites because the chicken, mushrooms and orzo pasta all cook together in the slow cooker. Serve with a spinach salad or these roasted green beans for a healthy and easy meal.
How to Make Slow Cooker Mushroom Chicken
There are just a few simple steps to make this easy crock pot recipe:
- Brown the chicken. You might be tempted to skip this step, but I think it’s worth the effort to take a few minutes to sear the chicken in a skillet before adding it to your slow cooker. Browning the chicken adds flavor to the finished dish.
- Sauté the mushrooms and onions. Since you’ll already have a hot skillet on the stove, you’ll also sauté the mushrooms, onions and garlic before adding them to your slow cooker. Again, this adds depth of flavor to the crockpot chicken and mushrooms.
- Add ingredients to the slow cooker. You’ll season the chicken and mushrooms with salt, pepper, dried oregano, garlic powder and paprika. Finally, add one cup of chicken broth. The broth will be absorbed later when you add the orzo to the slow cooker.
- Slow cook. You can cook the chicken and mushrooms on low for 4 to 5 hours, or on high for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Different slow cookers can cook slightly differently, so use an instant read thermometer to check that your chicken is cooked through. Chicken should be cooked to 165 degrees F.
- Stir in the orzo during the last 20 minutes of cook time. Once the chicken is cooked, you’ll stir in uncooked orzo pasta. Make sure that all of the orzo is in contact with the broth in the slow cooker. Cook on high for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the orzo is tender.
Crockpot Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are perfect for this recipe because they stay moist in the crockpot. The recipe instructions below give the cook time for boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
Crockpot Bone-In Chicken Thighs
If you prefer to use bone-in chicken thighs, be sure to follow the recommended step of sautéing the chicken in a skillet before adding it to your slow cooker. This helps to brown and crisp the skin. You may need to add about one hour to the cook time if using bone-in chicken thighs.
Crockpot Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts will work well in this recipe. If using chicken breasts, you don’t need to brown the chicken before adding it to your crockpot. Since you don’t need a skillet for the chicken, you may want to skip the step of sautéing the mushrooms, onion and garlic to save time, although you will sacrifice some flavor. Use the same cook time as for boneless chicken thighs.
Cooking Tips for Crockpot Chicken and Mushrooms
- For the richest flavor, be sure to sauté the chicken, mushrooms and onions before adding them to your crockpot.
- Crimini (baby bella) mushrooms are my favorite in this recipe. Regular white button mushrooms also work well.
- I like to serve this dish with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.
- Want to make this recipe in your Instant Pot? Try my Instant Pot Chicken and Mushrooms!
More Chicken Crock Pot Recipes
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice
- Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
- Crockpot Chicken Fajitas
- Crockpot Chicken Tacos
- Crockpot Orange Chicken
- Crockpot Whole Chicken
- Crockpot Chicken Breast
Crockpot Chicken and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, see note below
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 8 ounces crimini mushrooms, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup orzo pasta
- grated Parmesan cheese and chopped fresh parsley, optional, for serving
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs and brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.
- Transfer chicken to slow cooker and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- To the same hot skillet, add the onion and mushrooms. Cook, stirring, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook until onions and mushrooms start to soften and onions brown slightly, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Transfer onions, mushrooms and garlic to the slow cooker.
- To the slow cooker, add the dried oregano, garlic powder, paprika and chicken broth. Stir gently.
- Cook on low setting for 4-5 hours or high setting for 2-2½ hours, until chicken is cooked through. (Chicken should register at least 165° F on an instant read thermometer.)
- Stir in the orzo, making sure it is all in contact with the liquid, and cook on high for 15-20 minutes, until orzo is tender. Orzo cooking time will depend on your slow cooker.
- Serve with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley, as desired.
Notes
- To use boneless, skinless chicken breasts: Skip the step of browning the chicken. Sautéing the mushrooms, onions and garlic is optional. Keep the cook time the same.
- To use bone-in chicken thighs: Be sure to sear the chicken in a skillet to brown and crisp the skin. You may need to add about one hour to the cook time for bone-in thighs.
Great dinner idea! Thanks for sharing!
How does this recipe change if done in an instant pot?
I’ve just shared a new Instant Pot version of this recipe. You can see it here: Instant Pot Chicken and Mushrooms.
Can this be done with rice or pasta instead of Orzo?
For a crockpot chicken and rice recipe, I recommend looking at this recipe for guidance about cooking rice in a slow cooker. To use other pasta shapes in this recipe, you would probably have to adjust the amount of liquid. Instead, I’d recommend reducing the liquid in this recipe to 1/2 cup, omitting the orzo, and cooking the pasta separately on the stove if you want a different pasta shape.
It is in my slow cooker right now…smells yummy!
I made this today and added a 1/2 can of diced tomatoes drained and a handful of peas… it turned out amazing. Great recipe, super easy!
Thank you for the recipe. Made dinner so easy.
Made this tonight, super easy and good. I added extra seasoning though because it tasted a little bland. I upped the salt, pepper, garlic powder and added some crushed red pepper also. Delicious!
I agree, it definitely has a bland taste to it. I decided to do exactly what you did with the extra salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. It made ALL the difference! Thank you!
I agree as well. I think if I used regular and not low sodium broth it might’ve made a difference. I ended up putting a teaspoon on all the seasoning listed but it still was kinda bland. I added more salt at the end and it was pretty tasty.
I agree re: the blandness. Making this today by browning the chicken, cooking the mushrooms, onion & garlic, and measuring out the spices this morning. Storing cooked items in covered glass containers in the fridge until I’m ready to assemble the dish in the crockpot later this afternoon. Spices stored in a tiny plastic storage container on the counter. Because hubs is on a low-salt diet, I do use unsalted chicken stock (not broth!) and then add salt to taste after cooking. Spice changes: Omit garlic powder. Increase minced garlic to 5 large cloves. Increased pepper and dried oregano to 1 teaspoon. Added: 1 teaspoon red pepper, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, and two bay leaves. Also, I’m not a fan of orzo, so I will cook basmati rice in my rice cooker using the chicken stock instead of water and time it so it is ready when the chicken & mushrooms are ready. Then planning to serve the chicken & mushrooms over the rice. Just another option for folks. This is a great base recipe for people to change and make their own. 🙂
If I’m making it earlier for my kids but my husband will not be home for a few hours will the orzo over cook while on the warm setting? Should I cook is separate and shock the pasta?
I try not to leave food on warm for more than 2 hours, for food safety. This dish may dry out if left on warm for longer than that. If it’s under 2 hours, this should be fine on warm, even with the orzo. If longer than that, I would just refrigerate and then rewarm the leftovers. I hope that helps. 🙂
Can you swap the orzo for rice? My daughter is gluten free
Hi Lillian, It’s not an easy swap because rice takes longer to cook than orzo in a slow cooker, and you may need a different ratio of rice to broth. I would suggest omitting the orzo, reducing the broth to 1/2 cup, and cooking rice separately to serve with the chicken and mushrooms. I hope that helps!
Hi I dont have any chicken broth so not putting rice in that but do i need to add water ?
We are having sticky rice with this
You don’t need to add water if you aren’t using the orzo. Without the liquid, the chicken may cook even faster so you might want to check it early.
I want to make this for meal prep. Is it able to be frozen?
I haven’t tried freezing this, so I can’t say for sure how it will be after freezing and thawing. I think it is worth a try! Let me know how it turns out. 🙂
How much orzo do you use?
Use 1 cup of orzo.
This dish was so delicious! Everyone in my family enjoyed it, including my toddler! Thank you for sharing! ❤
I made this chicken and mushroom recipe yesterday… but left out the pasta… couldn’t buy it at the moment….
It is very yummy I froze some for later and added some cornflour to thicken had it with veges..
A big hit for me.. thank you…..
I’ve made this weekly since I discovered the recipe and it is so, so good! I double the spices and then add frozen peas at the end when I’m cooking the orzo. Gives it a pop of green and added taste/texture. Thanks for this recipe!!
So I take the chicken out before adding the orzo?
Hi Rebecca,
The chicken stays in the slow cooker in Step 6 when you add the orzo.
So I add the orzo the last 15-20 minutes Of cooking?
Yes, that is correct.
This is one of my favorite recipes ever! My husband agrees and had three servings leaving me very little for leftovers for lunch. Thanks so much for sharing an awesome easy crockpot recipe!
Kristine I have a very basic question…I have a 7at Wolf crockpot and am having a hard time finding/converting recipes because of this. Any ideas?? I would rather not have to get a smaller version.
Thanks!
I believe that most of my recipes should work in a 7 quart crockpot, even though I test them in a 5 quart. The only time you might have to make adjustments would be if you were cooking a small amount of food, it might cook much faster in your larger crockpot.
I made this today and it was so good! I added some cream of mushroom soup, some roasted red peppers, a few small pieces of artichoke and some spices as others suggested. I added rice in at the end and let a few pieces of Swiss melt over it before serving. Delicious!!!
Can this be done in a ninja foodi?
If it cooks like a regular slow cooker it would work. I do not own a ninja foodi.
Made this tonight in a 4-qt crock pot. Only change was I browned the thighs in bacon drippings and sautéed the mushrooms, onions, and garlic in same.
I used gluten free orzo (available on Amazon). The orzo took longer to cook and probably needed a little more liquid, probably because of it being GF.
We did not find this bland in the least!
So yummy! It’s a keeper!
Can this recipe be doubled? How long would u cook? I would double broth and orzo too….
You can double the recipe as long as your crockpot is big enough to fit a double recipe. You might need to increase the cook time by 30 minutes to an hour because of the greater volume of food. Enjoy!
Made this yesterday & it was delicious. Thank you for sharing.
This is the first crock pot recipe I’ve ever done. This was all very simple and so easy to follow along. I still can’t believe how amazing it turned out. I made 18 servings worth and the only thing I cut back on due to having less chicken at home than I thought I did was the chicken. 18 servings called for 7 lb I believe I used five. Definitely use what the recipe calls for no matter the amount of servings you’re making. It came out amazing but definitely could have used some more chicken fault on me.
This was so good!! I didn’t have a white onion so I used a bunch of green onion (green and white pieces) and it still turned out amazing!! I added more than the recommended spices and some Italian and trader joes green goddess spice as well. It was very tasty and so easy! Going to have this on our regular dinner rotation!
I just made this the other night and we really enjoyed it!! I’ve seen some comments about the recipe being bland… here is my suggestion and what I did… I believe this made all the difference. You must season as you go. Season your chicken with a couple pinches of salt and pepper before you brown it. When you are sautéing your onions and mushrooms add another pinch or two of salt and pepper. Then after you throw everything into the slow cooker, add as much of the spices as you like, I never go by measurements when I cook, I add as much as I think the dish needs and to my own tastes. So add what you like of the garlic, paprika, and oregano! I also used a regular chicken broth not a low sodium but I do believe you can use a low sodium and add a pinch of salt to your orzo and it’ll come out just as good! Hope this helps those who needed a bit more flavor in this dish! The orzo comes out almost like a mushroom risotto! Delicious!
Instead of orzo how would you change it to use gnocchi. I don’t have orzo but I do have gnocchi
The two can’t be substituted easily so I’d recommend waiting to make this when you have orzo.
Am I able to make this with risotto rice?
That may require a different amount of liquid and/or cook time, so I recommend sticking to the recipe as written unless you’re willing to experiment. 🙂
My slow cooker says high is 4 hours. Do you think it will be okay to cook it at the 4 hours or should I do the 8 hours which is low.
Hi Katie, Can you adjust the cook time on your slow cooker? Most models allow you to adjust the time (it may default to 4 or 8 hours but allow you to change it?). The chicken may be overcooked/dry out if you cook it for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low. Or you can always set it for 4 hours on high and then just turn the slow cooker off once the chicken is done. 🙂
Can you add cut up zucchini with it or would it get too watery?
I think the zucchini would get pretty mushy. I’d suggest cooking a side of sautéed zucchini or roasted zucchini instead.
If I wanted to add fresh spinach leaves, would I add them at the end with the orzo?
Yes, that would be the perfect time to add them. I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Can you use chicken tenders
Yes but you will need to test a shorter cook time as tenders are smaller and will cook faster.
Not mid-week, l made it today! Really tasty and filling, just had to adjust the seasoning a bit to pep it up, as it was a tad bland, but that’s an individual taste thing.
This has become one of my favorite meals.
Super easy dump and go recipe. 4/5 because I did a handful of adjustments based on personal taste.
I used 3T garlic powder, and everything but the oregano (realized last min I was out), and a full pound of mushrooms.
I added 4oz baby spinach with/after the orzo for a veggie boost. I think a can of diced tomatoes would also be good. Have to try next time.
Overall I do recommend as a good base/starter recipe. Will make again with further personal taste adjustments.
Can you make this with frozen chicken breasts?
For food safety reasons, it is not recommended that you cook frozen chicken in the slow cooker.