This recipe is almost too easy to be considered a recipe. It has only 5 inexpensive ingredients, cooks in the crockpot, is extremely versatile and has a lot of flavor. It is also paleo, gluten free and low carb friendly.
Slow Cooked Chicken with Salsa
3 lbs chicken legs (approximately 9-10 chicken legs) You could the same amount of chicken thighs or breasts, but your cooking time may vary depending on the cut of meat.
1 cup 505 medium hatch chili salsa (or your favorite salsa)
1 tsp oregano
Salt and pepper
For the sauce:
2 tsp arrowroot starch (aka arrowroot powder), or cornstarch
Reserved sauce after cooking chicken
1. Place chicken legs in the base of slow cooker so that they cover the bottom, it’s okay if they overlap or if they don’t all fit on the bottom. Give them a sprinkle of sea salt and pepper. Pour the salsa and oregano on top to cover the legs. If they are not all perfectly covered, that’s okay.
2. Set your crockpot for 6 1/2 hours on low. If you get your chicken out of the fridge and let it come to room temp (around 30 minutes) before you add to the crock pot, they will cook in about 6 hours.
3. Check your chicken at the end of the cooking time, it should be falling off the bone and cooked through. Give it more time if needed or if you are making a larger batch.
4. Carefully remove the chicken legs from the crock-pot and reserve the leftover sauce. Allow the legs to cool slightly and then remove the skin, bones and cartilage (pretty much remove anything you don’t want to eat). You can keep the bones in a Ziploc bag in the freezer for later use in bone broth, if desired. Break the chicken meat into chunks and set aside.
5. Warm up a non-reactive skillet over medium heat. Cast iron and copper pans are reactive, so don’t use them here. Stainless steel,enamel or a non-stick pan would be best. Add the reserved sauce from the crock-pot. In a clean bowl, add the 2 tsp of arrowroot starch. When the sauce begins to simmer, add a little bit of the sauce to the bowl of arrowroot and whisk until it is smooth and no clumps remain, it will be a bit thick.
6. Pour arrowroot sauce mix into the cooking pan of sauce. Stir it to incorporate and allow it to continue to cook for up to 10 minutes more, turning down heat as needed until it begins to cook down and get thick.
7. When the sauce is your desired thickness, add the chicken and stir to cover with the sauce. Allow it to warm up and serve with the braised cabbage recipe below. It is also great on a salad, over rice or in a tortilla.
Maria's Clean Plate 