Next Post
Apple Cinnamon Rolls with Brown Butter Maple Icing.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
Slow Cooker Mustard Herb Chicken and Creamy Orzo. Turning a classic dinner recipe into an easy slow cooker meal using white wine, creamy Dijon mustard, fresh herbs, parmesan cheese, and orzo. I even added in some vibrant broccoli for veggies and color. This slow-cooked chicken dinner is a hearty and delicious meal to come home to at the end of a busy day. And the best part? It’s the easiest dinner to prepare. You simply can’t go wrong with a dinner like this herby chicken and creamy orzo.
Breaking out a slow cooker recipe today and it’s not even October. Yes, it may be a bit early. But I’m pretty sure that most of us appreciate a good slow cooker dinner almost any time of the year. They’re just so easy!
This is one of those dishes that I’ve been wanting to make for the longest time now. But I told myself to hold off until the autumn days started to set in. It’s just so cozy and perfect for fall. It’s creamy, herby, a touch buttery, and has the BEST flavor. I love the fact that the chicken and orzo are cooked together in the slow cooker. It makes everything come together effortlessly.
It’s loosely inspired by my French wine and mustard chicken, but it’s made with a few additions…that I think, make it even better!
This is perfect for this time when the days might be warmer, but the nights are cooler. It’s going to be great all fall and winter long.
Here are the details
As you can imagine, this is really simple. Just place the chicken in the crockpot and rub it with olive oil and that mustard. Then add a ton of fresh thyme, sage, and garlic.
Now, pour in the wine and apple cider, then add some shallots.
I love to use apple cider in this for a slight air of warming fall flavor. It pairs so wonderfully with the white wine, herbs, and mustard. I know it sounds odd, but trust me, the apple cider adds such a nice flavor.
At this point, just cover the crockpot and cook. You can speed things up by cooking on high, or go low and slow. Alternately, you can use the instant pot, but I do prefer the crockpot method.
When the chicken has cooked, pull it out and set it on a small sheet pan.
Now the orzo
Here’s where the orzo comes in. Add the orzo to all the yummy broth in the crockpot along with some broccoli. Now simply cover and cook a few minutes longer, until the orzo is al dente.
Meanwhile, I love to add a little butter to the chicken. Then throw it under the broiler for a couple of minutes to crisp up. This is totally optional, but I do think it adds to the dish.
When the orzo is finished, add in a touch of cream and parmesan too.
And now serve it up!
So simple and quick with barely any clean-up and minimal hands-on time.
The simplest dinner, and so great for busy weeknights…hearty, creamy – and so freaking good!
Looking for other slow cooker meals? Here are a few ideas:
Slow Cooker Saucy Sunday Bolognese Pasta
Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken and Rice Pilaf
Crockpot Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Bolognese
Lastly, if you make these Slow Cooker Mustard Herb Chicken and Creamy Orzo be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Check out our How-To Video:
Slow Cooker Mustard Herb Chicken and Creamy Orzo
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 641 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped sage
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 shallots, quartered
- 1 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
- 1 cup apple cider or chicken broth (do not use vinegar)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 cups dry orzo pasta
- 1 1/2 cups chopped broccoli
- 1/3 cup heavy cream or canned full fat coconut milk
- 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
Slow Cooker
- 1. In the bowl of your slow cooker, rub the chicken with the olive oil, mustard thyme, sage, garlic, salt, and pepper. Pour over the wine, cider and lemon juice. Add the shallots. Cover and cook on low for 3- 4 hours or on high for 1-2 hours. 2. Preheat the broiler to high. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker place it on a baking sheet. 3. Crank the heat on the slow cooker to high. Stir in the orzo, broccoli, and 1 cup water. Cover and cook 20-30 minutes, or until the orzo is al dente. If the orzo needs more liquid, add additional water. Stir in the cream and parmesan.4. Place the butter on the chicken, then broil 1-3 minutes, until crisp. Serve the chicken over the orzo. Enjoy!
Instant Pot
- 1. Set the instant pot to sauté. Rub the chicken with the olive oil, mustard thyme, sage, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken to the instant pot and sear until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Pour in the wine, cider and lemon juice. Add the shallots and butter. Cover and cook on high pressure for 6 minutes.2. Once done cooking, release the steam. Set the Instant pot to sauté. Stir in the orzo, broccoli, and 1 cup water. Cook 6-8 minutes, until the orzo is al dente. Stir in the cream and parmesan.3. Serve the chicken over the orzo. Enjoy!
Stove-Top
- 1. Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Rub the chicken with the olive oil, mustard thyme, sage, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken to the pot and sear until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Reduce the heat to medium. Pour in the wine, cider and lemon juice. Add the shallots and butter. Cover and cook 10 minutes. 2. Stir in the orzo, broccoli, and 1 cup water. Cook, stirring often, another 6-8 minutes, until the orzo is al dente. Stir in the cream and parmesan.3. Serve the chicken over the orzo. Enjoy!
It’s just a bad recipe. I love most of HBH’s recipes but this is just not a good one. Save yourself some time and pick a different one to make ?
Hi Beth,
So sorry to hear the recipe was not enjoyed. Thanks for making it. xTieghan
This dish is worth trying. My original plan was the crock pot, but decided on the Dutch oven recipe instead. I assumed you took the chicken out (which I did)! But, it’s confusing for sure. I will make this again!
Hey Shannon,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am thrilled to hear that it was enjoyed! Have a great day:) xxT
The chicken was a bit overdone…I made the stove top version…the recipe does not state to take the chicken out when cooking the orzo and sauce part…wondering if that’s where the mistake was. Flavors were amazing though! Btw…I used white cooking wine since I didn’t want to open a whole bottle of pinot for 1 cup.
Hi Suzanne,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try, so sorry to hear about the chicken, yes you want to remove it!! Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
This is a great recipe! I was looking for a faster crock pot meal, so I did the 2hr on high. The chicken was perfect, esp after broiling for brown. I didn’t chop the broccoli small enough and I used too much, but I will adjust that next time. The orzo did take longer in my crock, but did you know most crock pot inserts can go right in the microwave? I sped up the orzo and broccoli that way tonight. In future, I know which tweaks to make.
Overall, the kids and guest went back for 2nds, so that’s a win. My hubby said you can’t ever have too much lemon, and while I’m not sure I agree with that… It does depend on the size of your lemon! 😉
It’s good to keep in mind that all our kitchens are different… Crockpots run hot or less so, some use gas burners, some use convection! When I use recipes, I try to figure out where I might be having user error… I think it’s very kind of Tiegan not to mention that, tho. :).
Yum!! Great flavors!
Hey Noelle,
Awesome!! Love to hear this recipe was a winner, thanks for making it. Thanks for sharing your feedback. Have the best week:) xT
Incredible! So delish, and took as much time and effort as a tired weeknight spaghetti dinner. Do the stove top version, it’s perfect
Hi Roxanne,
Awesome!! Love to hear this recipe was a winner, thanks for making it. Have the best week:) xT
Incredible! So delish, and took as much time and effort as a tired weeknight spaghetti dinner
Hey Roxanne,
Awesome!! Love to hear this recipe was a winner, thanks for making it. Have the best week:) xT
Just like the other comments. The chicken was dry the orzo took forever to cook and no flavor. Second recipe I have made today from your site, snowed in with a blizzard and both flopped. Idk we made a recipe last week and it was delicious. I will try a couple more recipes. Today was a disappointing day as I cooked all day and couldn’t eat either one. The second recipe was the pretzel had to throw the whole thing out. ?
Hi there,
Sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! xTieghan
I’m always looking for easy diners for the family and this one seemed like a good one to try! I was a little nervous after reading a few negative reviews, but the dish turned out absolutely delicious! I followed the instructions for the slow cooker almost exactly. I cooked the chicken (I used chicken stock and substituted onion for shallots) for 3.5 hours, removed, added the orzo and cooked for 30 minutes. Also, instead of broiling the chicken breasts (we have a 1940’s Wedgewood and the broiler is broken!) I pan seared them in butter until they were perfectly brown and crispy. The perfect, easy, comfort food recipe!
Hey there,
Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am glad to hear that it was enjoyed. Have the best weekend!! xTieghan
This recipe was a hit! Went back for seconds 🙂 I cooked the orzo separate on the stove top and didn’t add the extra water to the crockpot because of that. Then I tossed the orzo in the crockpot once it was done cooking. Otherwise, I followed the directions and I found it to be delicious. Thank you, Tieghan! Yum!
Hi Laura,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! xxT
I so wanted to like this dish! 🙁 I followed the IP instructions, but chicken was flavorless and overcooked, and orzo took a lot longer to cook than recipe states. There was some confusion that I saw from others’ comments on whether or not to take the chicken out before making the orzo part. I did take the chicken out, but it was cold by the time orzo was done.
Hi Anne,
So sorry this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! xTieghan
This was ok but a little too lemony and one note tasting for me. I used chicken thighs and they came out perfectly done and tender.
Hi Amy,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, sorry to hear it was not enjoyed! xTieghan
This was such a tasty, perfect, cozy recipe! I did it with the stove top directions. LOVED IT!
Hey Rachel,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! xTieghan
Unfortunately I have to agree with the other comments that this one didn’t turn out great 🙁 first we made the apple cider nistake (which is totally on us), but then the orzo did not cook well in the Instant Pot. I ended up taking it out and putting it on the stove just to cook it. Pretty sad since your pictures look AMAZING 🙁
Hey there,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try. Next time, be sure to use the apple cider and then just extend your cooking time slightly for the orzo. xTieghan
For the apple cider is it vinegar or the alcohol apple cider drink?
Have been making some of your recipes lately all have been fabulous and so easy!
Thanks!!
Hey Nicole,
You will want to use apple cider, not apple cider vinegar. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
This was delicious! I did cook the orzo for double time, but I don’t like al dente pasta and the recipe does say 20-30 minutes to al dente 🙂
I’m so glad I found your website, I’ve been using it 3-4 times a week. My 2 year old loves the leftovers for lunch too, and her daycare teachers are jealous of her lunches!
Thank you for such flavorful recipes!
Hi Emily,
Wonderful!! I am so so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed. Thanks a bunch for making it! Thanks for your kind message:) xT