Crockpot Chicken Breasts stuffed with feta cheese, spinach, roasted red peppers, olives, artichokes, and black olives are a truly special meal that's surprisingly easy to make.
My mind was blown last week. Did y’all know it was possible to stuff a chicken breast and then cook it in the crockpot? Literally stuffing it with anything and a few hours later, deliciousness. And in case you were thinking what I was, this isn’t like bad wedding food stuffed chicken breasts. These are delicious, moist, slow-cooked stuffed chicken breasts that are full of flavor.
The other thing I love about this recipe is that it takes what can be a boring chicken breast and turns it into something really special. It looks like a lot of hard work but is actually super easy and impressive. Once you learn the base recipe, you can experiment with all kinds of different fillings.
When you are making these stuffed chicken breasts, there are a few tricks to keep in mind to make the stuffing process easy.
- Use a sharp knife to butterfly the chicken breasts. Then season the outside and inside with salt and pepper. Seasoning the chicken will ensure there is lots of flavor.
- Don't overfill the chicken breast. It's tempting to adds tons of filling but that will just lead to it falling out.
- If needed, you can secure the chicken breast closed with a toothpick. This will hold the contents inside better.
- For extra flavor, brown the breasts before putting them in the slow cooker. This leads to extra flavor and a prettier presentation.
- Another trick for a prettier presentation. When you stuff the chicken breasts, seal them closed with toothpicks. Then slice the chicken breasts horizontally right before serving to show off the beautiful stuffing.
Recipe Ideas for Slow Cooker Greek Chicken
This recipe is delicious as written but like all recipes, there are lots of ways you can customize it and make it your own. Here are some ideas.
- For added flavor and color, quickly brown the chicken breasts in a hot pan before adding them to the slow cooker. This gives you a nice, browned exterior.
- Not a fan of olives? Just leave them out. You can always serve them on the side for those who enjoy them.
- Frozen spinach will work if you don't have fresh. Just defrost first and squeeze out the extra moisture. And remember you will not as much since fresh spinach has a lot more volume than frozen spinach.
- If you don't have roasted red peppers, you can use a fresh diced bell pepper.
- If feta cheese isn't your favorite, use mozzarella instead.
- To add some extra flavor, brown the chicken breasts in a skillet before placing them in the crockpot.
- Play around with the fillings and swap in different vegetables, spices, or cheese. For example, if you don't love spinach, you could use diced zucchini instead. Not a fan of artichoke hearts, use sundried tomatoes. Like heat? Add some harissa or red pepper flakes.
- To add some extra flavor, add a can of diced tomatoes to the slow cooker instead of the chicken broth.
Side Dishes for Greek Stuffed Chicken Breasts
You can go simple or complex when it comes to side dishes. I like to reach for something that will catch any yummy filling that falls out of the chicken. Then I grab some extra veggies. Here are some of my go-to options.
- Cook up a batch of brown rice, quinoa, or this creamy spinach polenta.
- Roast some vegetables while the chicken is cooking - Parmesan Cauliflower, Crispy Baked Broccoli, or Easy Roasted Potatoes.
- Stick with the Greek theme and make this Chopped Chickpea Greek Salad.
- Keep things low carb and serve this over a bed of Parmesan Zucchini Noodles.
Can I use chicken thighs?
This recipe won't really work with chicken thighs since they aren't thick enough to stuff. For a version with chicken thighs, you could simply add everything to the slow cooker except the feta cheese. Cook on low for 4 hours and then serve with feta cheese on top. If you use that option, only use about 1/2 cup of chicken broth. This would also work with the chicken breasts if you don't want to take the trouble of stuffing them.