Chicken
$2.29per plate
Prep
10 min
Chicken · Slow Cooker Chicken
Crockpot Marry Me Chicken
Crockpot Marry Me Chicken gives you the famous creamy sun-dried tomato and Parmesan chicken with almost no hands-on work: everything goes straight into the slow cooker, no searing, no skillet to wash. The chicken turns fork-tender while you are gone, and the cream and Parmesan stir in near the end for a sauce that stays silky instead of curdled. It tastes like a special-occasion dinner for about two and a quarter a plate. In a hurry instead? The stovetop Marry Me Chicken makes the same dish in 35 minutes, and the Marry Me Chicken Soup turns the flavor into a spoonable dinner. The sauce is rich rather than sweet, so a serving lands at 8g of carbs and joins our low-carb dinners.
$2.24per plate
Estimated recipe total
$8.96 · serves 4
Cook
3 hr 50 min
Total
4 hr
Serves
4
Recipe from Budget Plates · https://www.budgetplates.com/crockpot-marry-me-chicken
Equipment
- Slow cooker
- Instant-read thermometer
Variations
- Swap in boneless chicken thighs for even more forgiving, tender results.
- Stir in a couple handfuls of fresh spinach with the Parmesan to wilt in at the end.
- Finish with a pinch of extra red pepper flakes for more heat.
1 How to make it
1
Load the crockpot
Season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, paprika, and the Italian seasoning and lay them in the slow cooker. Scatter the garlic and chopped sun-dried tomatoes over the top and pour in the broth. No searing needed; the point of the crockpot version is that everything goes straight in.
2
Cook LOW and slow
Cover and cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours or HIGH for 2 to 2.5 hours. Lean breasts overcook fast in a slow cooker, so do not stretch to 6 or 8 hours; they are done the moment the thickest part reaches 165 F.
3
Hold the dairy until the end
Cream and Parmesan curdle if they simmer for hours, so they wait. About 30 minutes before serving, whisk the cornstarch into the cream until smooth, then stir the mixture into the cooking liquid around the chicken.
4
Melt in the Parmesan
Stir in the Parmesan, re-cover, and cook on LOW for the final 20 to 30 minutes, until the sauce is smooth and lightly thickened. Keep the lid on and the heat on LOW; a hard bubble is what breaks a cream sauce.
5
Check the sauce
If the sauce is thinner than you like, leave the lid off for the last 10 minutes so it reduces; if it tightens up too much, loosen it with a splash of broth. It should coat a spoon without turning pasty.
6
Serve
Add the red pepper flakes, taste for salt, and spoon the sauce generously over the chicken. Serve over pasta, rice, or mashed potatoes, or with bread for the sauce.
2 Cheaper ingredient swaps
- Chicken thighs for breasts. Boneless skinless thighs are cheaper and even more forgiving in a slow cooker. Cook LOW 4 to 5 hours; they stay juicy past the point where breasts dry out.
- Half-and-half for the heavy cream. Half-and-half works with the same cornstarch trick, though the sauce is a little lighter. Add it at the end just like the cream and keep the heat on LOW.
- No sun-dried tomatoes?. A few tablespoons of tomato paste or chopped roasted red peppers give a similar sweet-tangy depth for less.
- Stir in spinach. A couple of handfuls of fresh spinach stirred in with the Parmesan wilt in the last few minutes and stretch the dish.
3 Budget tips
- The slow cooker turns the cheaper, thicker family-pack breasts fork-tender without any extra fat or effort.
- Skipping the sear saves oil, butter, and a pan to wash, and the sauce still gets its flavor from the garlic and sun-dried tomatoes.
- Sun-dried tomatoes are the priciest item; one jar covers this and the other Marry Me dinners on the site.
- Serve it over cheap pasta, rice, or potatoes to turn four portions into a full dinner for pennies more.
- See more recipes priced per serving in the Budget Plates Index.
4 Storage, freezing & reheating
Fridge
Refrigerate the chicken in its sauce in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Keeping it in the sauce is what keeps slow-cooked breasts moist.
Freezer
The cream sauce can separate a little when frozen, but it freezes for up to 2 months. Cool completely, freeze in portions, and stir well as it reheats.
Reheating
Reheat gently, covered, on the stovetop or in the microwave at half power, stirring in a splash of broth or milk to bring the sauce back together. High heat makes it greasy or grainy.
5 Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
455
Protein
42g
Fat
28g
Carbs
8g
Estimates per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not a substitute for medical advice.
6 Frequently asked questions
How long does marry me chicken take in the crockpot?
On LOW, 3 to 4 hours; on HIGH, 2 to 2.5 hours, plus a final 20 to 30 minutes after the cream and Parmesan go in. Lean breasts are done at 165 F and dry out if they go much longer, so this is not an all-day recipe.
Why add the cream and Parmesan at the end?
Dairy curdles and separates when it simmers in a slow cooker for hours. Stirring the cream, cornstarch, and Parmesan in for only the last 20 to 30 minutes on LOW keeps the sauce smooth and silky.
Do I need to sear the chicken first?
No. This version is built for ease: everything goes straight into the crockpot and the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and seasoning carry the flavor. If you want a seared crust and a faster dinner, make the stovetop Marry Me Chicken instead.
How is $2.24 a plate figured?
About $8.96 for the whole crockpot, four servings, so roughly $2.24 each. The chicken, cream, Parmesan, and sun-dried tomatoes are the main costs. Pasta, rice, or bread to serve are figured separately.
Helpful Tools for This Recipe
As an Amazon Associate, Budget Plates may earn from qualifying purchases.
- 7-quart slow cooker. A large slow cooker batch-cooks cheap cuts, beans, and soups hands-off, so leftovers stretch across the week. Best for pot roast, chili, bean soups, and set-it-and-forget-it dinners.
- Chef's knife. One sharp chef's knife handles almost all the chopping, from onions to chicken, and replaces a drawer of gadgets. Best for all-purpose prep in essentially every recipe on the site.
- Cutting board. A large, stable cutting board makes prep faster and safer, which matters when you cook most nights. Best for everyday chopping of onion, garlic, and vegetables across nearly every recipe.
- Measuring cups and spoons set. A basic set of measuring cups and spoons keeps amounts consistent, which keeps budget recipes reliable. Best for rice, liquids, and any recipe where the ratio matters.
Cook next
All recipes Related recipes
From other tables
All recipes 
