My Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken with Couscous is an easy, delicious, hearty dinner idea for the family! Made by simply adding everything to the slow cooker, this recipe makes dinner simple and full of cozy flavors. Save this to Pinterest now so you can always find it!
School starts for us again next week and I am looking for all the ways to make dinners easy. Roman begins soccer, Keira has already started cheer and next week games for both will begin. Not to mention orchestra, homework and life around the farm. Even though it is back to busy season, I really love this time of year. But I personally need to be better at thinking about our evening schedules and what that means for getting a good dinner on the table. To make it easier, this season I’m going to be building up my slow cooker recipes. I’m starting with this flavorful, earthy and delicious Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken with Couscous.
Making the meal
I have been craving these cozier flavors and meals for a few weeks now. As summer winds down I started seeing what I could create. I really wanted things I could just dumb in and go. I didn’t sear this chicken (more on that later) and I really just kind of nicely layered everything in the slow cooker and cooked. The Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken is made with a base of dried spices for the chicken, broth, lemon juice, white wine, garlic, shallots, fresh herbs, lemon zest and butter. I mean, that is a hard combination to beat, right?
The Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken is perfect for those days when it still feels like there is a touch of summer in the air, but the temperature starts to dip at night. It works so well for the days when you are busy after work and when the schedule is packed with one too many extra circular activities.
Using chicken thighs
I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs in this meal because I enjoy them more. Dark meat retains its moisture better than white meat and when using the slow cooker I believe that can be important. If you want to use breasts, you can. Just make sure to pound them with a tenderizer beforehand and make sure they are all about the same thickness.
Making the couscous
The Couscous for the Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken is made after the chicken itself. You will be using the broth created from cooking the chicken to cook the couscous. Add the cous cous to a separate pot that can be heated on the stove. The broth from the slow cooker chicken will be enough flavoring that you do not need to add anything else. This will give you about 4 servings of couscous. If you want more, add another cup of couscous and another cup of slow cooker liquid. If you do not feel like there is enough liquid left in the slow cooker, you can add a cup of water instead.
I did not add this straight to the slow cooker because it is easy to overcook couscous and I did not want it to become mushy. Making this is very fast and only takes about 10 minutes. It is a delicious add to the Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken!
How much chicken?
You may notice there is a lot of chicken in my pot. I do this mostly for photos and leftovers. Even if you have fewer people and decide cut the chicken (the recipe indicates 5-10 thighs), do not cut the other ingredients. You need all those other ingredients for the flavoring and to get enough sauce for cooking the cous cous.
Also, thighs are fairly small cuts so if you have anyone in your family with a hearty appetite, they might want two. There are two thighs pictured on my plate in the photos. I have a hearty appetite myself so I get it.
To sear or not to sear
If you like, you can sear the chicken for 2 minutes per side before adding it to the slow cooker. Or you can sear it in your slow cooker if you have that capability. Then remove it to add the broth mix and add it back to the slow cooker once all the liquids are in it. I did not do that originally in this recipe because I wanted to see if I could really just make this as easy as possible by dumping everything in the pot. My family all loved this one just the way I made it. Kevin and Keira both ate seconds. So if you do not feel like you have time to sear, skip it. The chicken will still turn out tender and flavorful with all the herbs, juices and cous cous.
What to serve with Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken
I served this with cous cous (clearly), but this will work lovely over rice too. Also, I added arugula under mine to give it another later of flavor and a little green. You can use arugula, spinach or even broccoli if you are wanting more green in the meal. Asparagus or green beans would pair well too!
Tips for making the Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken with Couscous
- Again, even if you cut the chicken, do not cut the dried herbs you use or anything else.
- Make sure to use that fresh rosemary, thyme and the fresh lemon slices. They all really add to the flavoring.
- If you do not want to use wine, you can add more chicken broth or try something like an apple cider in place of the wine.
- Make sure to use that fresh pepper and coarse sea salt. Using table salt and table pepper you will not need as much.
- To save the leftover, you can combine the chicken and the couscous in an airtight container. It will keep for about 48 hours before the couscous just starts to get a little mushy.
- You can reheat it in the microwave for about two minutes. Drizzle about 1-2 tablespoons of water over the top to re-hydrate it. If you want to use the stove, I would add it to a pan and reheat it over medium flame for a few minutes. Add about 2 tablespoons of chicken broth for reheating in this way.
Looking for more easy recipes?
If you love a good, easy recipe, try these!
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup {HERE}
- Savory Dijon Pork Tenderloin {HERE}
- Bacon and Mushroom Smothered Chicken {HERE}
- Guinness Irish Stew with Braised Beef {HERE}
- Instant Pot Turkey Breast {HERE}
- Sheet Pan Italian Sausage and Peppers {HERE}
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Thank you so much for visiting today, friends! I hope that you love the Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken. You can find the full, printable recipe below. Happy eating.
Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken with Couscous
Equipment
- Slow cooker
Ingredients
- 5-10 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1/2 tbsp onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp dried rosemary
- 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 3/4 tsp paprika
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 1 small shallot, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 tbsp butter, sliced
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 3-4 slices of fresh lemon
- 1 tsp coarse sea salt
- 1/2 tsp fresh cracked pepper
For the Cous Cous
- 2 cups cous cous pearls
- 2 cups broth from the slow cooker
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan
Instructions
- Pat the chicken dry and combine all the dry herbs.
- Start the slow cooker on low for 6 hours. Add the chicken broth, lemon juice, white wine, shallots and garlic to the slow cooker. Lay the chicken on top of that and then use all the seasoning to cover the chicken. It is fine if some of it gets into the broth mix too.
- Add the butter to the top of the chicken. Add the fresh rosemary and thyme to the slow cooker. Sprinkle the lemon zest over the top of everything. Tuck the lemon slices in wherever there is room. Add the fresh pepper and sea salt and then cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Four hours will make it done, but 6 or hours will give you very tender, easily shreddable chicken.
- When the time is up, add 2 cups of cous cous to a separate pot. Add 2 cups of the broth from inside the slow cooker and heat per package directions for the cous cous. (This usually means bringing it to a light boil and then covering it to simmer for about 8-10 minutes.) You do not need to add additional butter water or olive oil. When it is done cooking, remove it from the heat and mix in the parmesan cheese.
- Serve the chicken over the cous cous with additional pan sauce and fresh thyme. You can also add a squeeze of lemon over the dish if you like.
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