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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!
This was fantastic! I used the cooktop option. I did need to add quite a bit more liquid. And the pasta needed 11 mins to be done. But wow. So good!!
Hey Tammy,
I appreciate you giving this dish a try and sharing your feedback! Love to hear that it was a winner:) x
Hi, for both the Instant Pot and Stovetop options, you do not mention to remove the chicken before cooking the orzo and broccoli. When I got to the step that said “serve the chicken over the orzo” I was like” it’s all one mixture already….” I kind of recovered and separated everything before adding the cheese and cream, but everything burned to the bottom of the instant pot and probably could have turned out better if I had read the slow cooker directions as well.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! Sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed. You do not need to remove anything for the instant pot and stove top methods:) Please let me know if I can help with anything else! xx
Pretty awful. The chicken was so dry and not much flavor; I thought it was going to be delicious. Unfortunely I read the reviews AFTER making this. I should’ve read the reviews first because clearly I wasn’t the only one that had issues. Maybe this should be removed from your site.
Hi Jen,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed. While there are some people who had issues, there’s a lot of positive feedback on this dish as well. Did you use apple cider or vinegar? Please let me know how I can help troubleshoot! xx
I made this tonight for a Fall Sunday supper. Used the slow cook function on my instant pot. I didn’t top the chicken with butter but instead just did a quick sear in a pan on the stove. I found this recipe to be very flavorful, delicious, and so easy. Will definitely make again!
Hey Katy,
Wonderful!! I am so glad that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for giving it a go! xx
This was a really awful recipe. I am a huge hbh fan but the orzo in the crockpot turned everything chalky and starchy.
Hi Jenna,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear it did not turn out for you. Please let me know if there is something that I can help with! xx
Truly awful!
I am a home chef of 25 years, and no novice to following new recipes. I’ve loved many of HBH recipes, but this one is getting chucked in the bin on top of the food I had to throw out!
Flavorless bricks of chicken floated on the broth at the end of cooking time, and no broiler could resuscitate. The orzo, al dente when I turned off the heat, became a paste with undercooked broccoli pieces drowning sadly.
This recipe had good flavor profiles, but it was a complete disaster in my slow cooker!
Hi Jamie,
So sorry to hear that this recipe did not turn out for you. Please let me know if there is something specific that I can help with! xx
The chicken sadly came out so dry in the crockpot, I’m not sure what I did wrong. The orzo also didn’t cook all the way through – some did some didn’t. :/
Hi Alyssa,
Thanks for trying this dish and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear you had some issues with the chicken and orzo. Was there anything you may have adjusted in the recipe? Your orzo might have needed a bit more time to cook. Please let me know how I can help! xx
I had to make quite a few adjustments here. The chicken needed to cook longer in the crockpot and a few minutes longer in broiler. When the orzo was done I tasted and it needed a significant amount more seasoning, as it was bland. I guess it depends on your crock pot, however the high setting was not sufficient in the times listed to cook the chicken. I would adjust recipe and cook in Dutch oven next time.
Hi Maddie,
Thanks so much for giving this dish a try and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear you didn’t love it. I definitely think the variety of slow cookers could cause slightly different results. Let me know if you try the dutch oven! xT
Hello
Can this recipe be made with salmon?
Hi there,
So sorry, I have not tested this recipe with salmon. I would just be super careful when it comes to cooking the salmon so it is not over-cooked. Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xx
This was pretty tasty! I used the IP version but had to finish the orzo on the stovetop cause it was burning. Typical of trying to cook pasta or rice in the IP without pressure. I used all chicken broth with about a 1/2c of the apple cider vinegar. It had just the right amount of tang from the vinegar. The chicken was very flavorful and I did cook it longer (20min). Overall a great weeknight recipe! Will make again.
Hi Jackie,
I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your notes! Glad to hear it was enjoyed:) You will want to use apple cider next time, I didn’t use vinegar here! xx
This is my first stab at a HBH recipe — would highly recommend cutting down on the wine, at least for the crockpot version. It doesn’t reduce the same as stovetop cooking methods (apparently, who knew?!) It made the dish come out too sour and tangy.
Still looking forward to trying out a few other recipes that might be more of a hit. They all look so tasty (:
Thanks for trying this recipe Victoria!! I appreciate your feedback:) Just want to be sure you used apple cider and not vinegar! I hope this helps! Let me know what you try next. xx
I was following the crockpot directions for this recipe and the orzo wasn’t even close to being done in the amount of time the recipe said. I had to move all of the orzo and broccoli into a pot on the stove to finish cooking in time for dinner, and then all the pasta ended up tasting mostly of broccoli. The finished meal wasn’t bad, but I won’t be making it again.
Hi Evelyn,
Thanks for trying this dish and sharing your feedback! Sorry to hear you had some issues with the orzo! Was there anything you adjusted in the recipe? Let me know how I can help! xx
I did the same and used apple cider vinegar! I even went out and bought it and have cider in my fridge…very tart 😬 my bad!
Ahh so sorry to hear this Betsy!! Let me know if you give this recipe another try! xx
I did the same an and used acv the first time. I thought it was odd but went with it. Made it tonight with chicken broth and and it was fine. It needs some kind of underlying umami. Not sure how to say it.
Love this one! Made it in the crock pot and it was such a great flavor. We might add even more veggies next time we make it!
Hey Cory,
That’s fantastic to hear! Thanks for trying this dish and your comment, love that it was enjoyed! xT
Everything burned at the bottom of the instant pot. It was too sweet with the cider. Overall it was meh.
So sorry to hear this Amanda! Thanks for trying the recipe and sharing your comment! xx
Had a near disaster with this one! Had everything in the Crockpot but then discovered my Crockpot died (RIP, my slow cooker). I transferred to the Instant Pot and used the slow cooker function. Cooked the chicken according to the Crockpot instructions and the orzo according to the Instant Pot instructions. It worked and was a very tasty dinner!
Hey Bree,
Thanks for your comment and trying this recipe! I am so glad it turned out well for you! Sorry to hear about your slow cooker! Have a great day:)