Name: Slow-Cooker Chicken With “Roasted” Garlic Sauce
Total time: 3 h
Ingredients: 4 (12-ounces) split bone-in chicken breasts , trimmed; Salt and pepper; 1 tablespoon vegetable oil; 15 garlic cloves , peeled; 1 shallot , peeled and quartered; 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or 1/8 teaspoon dried; 2/3 cup dry white wine; 1/2 cup chicken broth; 1 tablespoon soy sauce; 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives

Why This Recipe Works

It's often the simplest meals that are the hardest to recreate in the slow cooker; tender bone-in chicken with a garlicky gravy is no exception. For a richly flavored and satisfying gravy, we turned to 15 whole cloves of garlic plus a shallot to lend a roasted flavor and body to our sauce. To end up with aromatics soft enough to puree into a smooth gravy, we found it necessary to jump-start their cooking by sautéing them on the stovetop until lightly browned. Giving the shallots and garlic time to brown also added to the subtle roasted taste and deepened their overall flavor, which became sweeter and mellower after hours in the slow cooker. With the aromatics already in the skillet, adding a small amount of flour was a quick and easy way to thicken the sauce, and deglazing with wine and broth ensured that the flavorful browned bits in the bottom of the pan ended up in the slow cooker. The addition of soy sauce helped to round out the overall flavor of the sauce. Rosemary and chives enlivened the gravy with fresh flavors.

Before You Begin

You will need an oval slow cooker for this recipe. Check the chicken's temperature after 2 hours of cooking and continue to monitor until it registers 160 degrees.

Instructions

1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown chicken, 3 to 4 minutes per side; transfer to plate and discard skin.

Add garlic and shallot to fat left in skillet and cook over medium-low heat until lightly browned and fragrant, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in flour and rosemary and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in wine, broth, and soy sauce, scraping up any browned bits and smoothing out any lumps; transfer to slow cooker.

Arrange chicken, skinned side up, in even layer in slow cooker, adding any accumulated juices. Cover and cook until chicken registers 160 degrees, 2 to 3 hours on low.

Transfer chicken to serving dish. Process cooking liquid in blender until smooth, about 30 seconds. Stir in chives and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve chicken with sauce.