300 Low-Carb Slow Cooker Recipes (14 page)

When the chicken is just touched with gold on either side, lay it on the vegetables in the slow cooker. Pour the broth mixture over everything, put on the lid, set it to low, and let it cook for 5 to 6 hours.

To serve, place a serving of chicken on each plate and scoop some of the vegetables on top. Thicken the liquid in the pot just a touch with your guar or xanthan shaker and spoon that over, too. Now scatter a few capers and some basil over each plate and serve it forth.

This would be a perfect dish to serve over tofu shirataki angel hair!

Yield:
6 servings, each with: 296 calories, 10 g fat, 38 g protein, 12 g carbohydrate, 1 g dietary fiber, 11 g usable carbs.

Lemon-White Wine-Tarragon Chicken

This is similar to Chicken with Thyme and Artichokes (
page 82
), except, of course, that tarragon is very different from thyme and there are no artichokes.

3 pounds (1.4 kg) skinless chicken thighs

1/2 cup (120 ml) dry white wine

1/2 cup (120 milliliter) lemon juice

1 teaspoon Splenda

1 tablespoon (5 g) dried tarragon

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon chicken bouillon concentrate

Guar or xanthan

Put the chicken in your slow cooker.

In a bowl, mix together the wine, lemon juice, Splenda, tarragon, pepper, and bouillon, stirring until the bouillon dissolves. Pour the mixture over the chicken. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 6 hours.

Remove the chicken to serving plates and thicken the remaining liquid with guar or xanthan to achieve the texture of cream.

Yield:
6 servings, each with: 176 calories, 5 g fat, 26 g protein, 3 g carbohydrate, trace dietary fiber, 3 g usable carbs.

Chicken with Apples and Rosemary

This happened because our darling friend Keith Johnson, the Organic Gardening God, showed up at the door with an incredibly fragrant branch of fresh rosemary.

2 pounds (900 g) cut up chicken—legs, thighs, or breasts, whatever you like

1 Granny Smith apple

1 onion

1 cup (235 ml) chicken broth

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon chicken bouillon concentrate

1 tablespoon (2 g) fresh rosemary leaves

1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream

Guar or xanthan

Lay the chicken in your slow cooker. Slice the apple and onion both about 1/4-inch (6 mm) thick and lay them on top of the chicken.

Mix together the broth, pepper, and bouillon concentrate until the concentrate is dissolved and pour it over the whole thing. Scatter the rosemary needles evenly over everything.

Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.

When time is up, use a slotted spoon to fish the chicken, apples, and onions out and put them on a platter. Now whisk the cream into the juice in the pot and use your guar or xanthan shaker to thicken the whole thing to a heavy cream consistency. Serve the gravy with the chicken, apples, and onions.

Yield:
5 servings, each with: 385 calories, 28 g fat, 25 g protein, 7 g carbohydrate, 1 g dietary fiber, 6 g usable carbs.

Mom's 1960s Chicken, Redux

Back in the 1960s my mom would make a dish for company with chicken breasts, wrapped in bacon, laid on a layer of chipped beef, topped with a sauce made of sour cream and cream of mushroom soup. It tasted far more sophisticated than it sounds and never failed to draw raves from dinner party guests. This is my attempt to de-carb and slow-cooker-ize the same dish—without the carb-filled cream of mushroom soup.

2 1/4 ounces (62 g) dried beef slices (aka “chipped beef”)

6 slices bacon

2 pounds (900 g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 cup (70 g) sliced mushrooms

1 tablespoon (14 g) butter

1 cup (235 ml) heavy cream

1 teaspoon beef bouillon concentrate

1 pinch onion powder

1 pinch celery salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Guar or xanthan

1 cup (230 g) sour cream

Paprika

Line the bottom of your slow cooker with the dried beef.

Place the bacon in a glass pie plate or on a microwave bacon rack and microwave for 3 to 4 minutes on high. Drain the bacon and reserve. (What you're doing here is cooking some of the grease off of the bacon, without cooking it crisp.)

Cut the chicken into 6 servings. Wrap each piece of chicken in a slice of bacon and place it in the slow cooker on top of the dried beef.

In a big, heavy skillet, sauté the mushrooms in the butter until they're soft. Add the cream and bouillon and stir until the bouillon dissolves. Stir in the onion powder, celery salt, and pepper and then thicken with guar or xanthan until the mixture reaches a gravy consistency. Stir in the sour cream.

Spoon this mixture over the chicken breasts and sprinkle with a little paprika. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 5 to 6 hours.

To serve, scoop up some of the dried beef and sauce with each bacon-wrapped piece of chicken.

Yield:
6 servings, each with: 472 calories, 32 g fat, 41 g protein, 4 g carbohydrate, trace dietary fiber, 4 g usable carbs.

Slow Cooker Chicken Mole

Chicken mole is the national dish of Mexico, and I'm crazy about it. On my honeymoon in Mexico, I bought a container of chicken mole at the deli at the local grocery store and kept it in the hotel room fridge to heat up in the microwave! Here's a slow cooker version.

1 can (14 1/2 ounces, or 410 g) tomatoes with green chiles

1/2 cup (80 g) chopped onion

1/4 cup (28 g) slivered almonds, toasted

3 cloves garlic, crushed

3 tablespoons (18 g) unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tablespoons (18 g) raisins

1 tablespoon (8 g) sesame seeds

1 tablespoon (1.5 g) Splenda

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 pounds (1.4 kg) skinless chicken thighs

Guar or xanthan

2 tablespoons (14 g) slivered almonds, toasted

Put the tomatoes, onion, 1/4 cup (28 g) almonds, garlic, cocoa powder, raisins, sesame seeds, Splenda, cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander, and salt in a blender or food processor and puree coarsely.

Place the chicken in your slow cooker. Pour the sauce over it. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 9 to 10 hours.

Remove the chicken from the slow cooker with tongs. Thicken the sauce to taste with guar or xanthan. Serve the sauce over the chicken. Top with the 2 tablespoons (14 g) almonds.

Yield:
8 servings, each with: 284 calories, 12 g fat, 37 g protein, 8 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 6 g usable carbs.

Mediterranean Chicken

This recipe, bursting with classic Mediterranean flavors, originally appeared in
500 More Low-Carb Recipes
.

8 ounces (225 g) sliced mushrooms

1 can (14 1/2 ounces, or 410 g) tomatoes

1 can (6 ounces, or 170 g) artichoke hearts

2 1/2 ounces (63 g) sliced black olives

3 pounds (1.4 kg) skinless chicken thighs

1 tablespoon (6 g) Italian seasoning

3/4 cup (175 ml) chicken broth

1 teaspoon chicken bouillon concentrate

1/4 cup (60 ml) dry white wine

Guar or xanthan

Put the mushrooms, tomatoes, artichokes, and olives in your slow cooker. Place the chicken on top.

In a bowl, mix together the Italian seasoning, broth, bouillon, and wine. Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 7 hours.

When the time's up, thicken the juices a bit with guar or xanthan.

Yield:
6 servings, each with: 215 calories, 7 g fat, 28 g protein, 8 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 6 g usable carbs.

Mediterranean Pepper and Olive Chicken

Years ago, I had a great dish of chicken braised with pepperoncini; I've been trying to replicate it ever since. I actually think this is better. I mean, how could added olives make it worse?

3 pounds (1.4 kg) chicken parts—legs, thighs, or breasts, whatever you like