Slow-Cooker Chicken and Okra
This is an old favorite recipe for chicken thighs and drumsticks cooked in a slow-cooker with okra, peppers and rich tomatoes and red wine sauce. We’ve added in bell peppers, olives and parsley to make it full of veggies and flavor! The slow braising makes the chicken ultra-tender.
Table of contents
Why We Love This Chicken and Okra Crockpot Recipe
This recipe has been a favorite since a friend made it for me back in the late nineties. It consists of slowly braised bone-in chicken legs in a rich sauce of tomatoes, peppers, and okra with green olives and parsley. It is sort of a mash-up of Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore and Crockpot Chicken Gumbo!
When I used to work in the test kitchen at EatingWell Magazine, I was lucky enough to contribute this recipe to their Serves Two cookbook. Today I make it when I want a totally healthy yet comforting hands-free meal that can be set up in the crockpot and left to slowly tenderize and cook all day.
I just love the savory tomato sauce with the veggies and olives. We love it with cornbread, crusty homemade sourdough bread or Whole Wheat Bread. It is also great with rice or egg noodles.
More Southern-Inspired Favorites
Ingredients For This Slow Cooker Chicken and Okra Recipe
- 4 bone-in chicken legs
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
- 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 large onions, sliced (French cut)
- 1 ½ teaspoon dry Italian Seasoning
- ½ cup dry red wine
- 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1/3 cup chopped green olives
- 2 bell peppers any color, or 4 cubanelle peppers, cored and sliced
- 3 cups fresh or frozen sliced okra
- ½ cup chopped flat leaf parsley
Step-By-Step Instructions For Chicken and Okra
Cut The Chicken Pieces
Cut chicken legs into two pieces, along the fat line that runs between the thigh and drumstick.
Remove skin, trimming at the bottom of the drumstick if necessary. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
Brown The Chicken
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the chicken and cook, turning once, until browned, 2 to 4 minutes per side. (Note: The chicken will not be cooked through.) Transfer the chicken to the insert of a slow cooker. Repeat with the remaining chicken, reducing heat to medium as necessary to prevent scorching.
Saute The Veggies
Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil to the skillet. Add garlic, onion, Italian seasoning, the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and the remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring often until the vegetables are just starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer the onion mixture to the slow cooker.
Add the wine to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato and olives, increase heat to high and bring to a simmer. Pour tomato mixture over the onions. Add peppers to the slow cooker and cover.
Cook In The Slow Cooker
Turn slow cooker on low for 8 hours or high for 4. In last half hour of cooking, remove lid and layer okra on top. Cover and let continue to cook the remaining 30 minutes.
Serving Instructions
To serve gently remove chicken pieces to pasta bowls. Stir the vegetables together. Ladle the vegetable mixture around the meat and top with a generous amount of parsley.
FAQs and Epert Tips
Yes, but only if you have a large Instant Pot. Otherwise, the pressure cooker will be too full. Or you can do a half batch in a regular-sized Instant Pot. Cook on pressure cook for 40 minutes. Natural release for a 20 minutes.
You can use boneless chicken but note that it will fall apart and resemble pulled chicken more than whole pieces.
Chicken breast is lean and doesn’t take to braising as well as dark meat chicken does. It can be dry. That said if you do not like chicken leg meat, you can use the breast meat, just note that the texture will seem dry.
More Slow-Cooker Chicken Recipes To Try
If you are a fan of your slow cooker and you love chicken as much as we do here are a bunch more recipes to check out!
- Our White Chicken Chili is made a freezer to slow cooker recipe!
- This Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is full of veggies and has an easy meal prep freezer option too.
- This creamy Slow Cooker Thai Chicken Coconut Soup has lots of extra veggies added to it as well.
- This Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is a healthier version of the classic.
- Our Crockpot Ham and Bean Stew has tender shreds of chicken in it for added protein.
At Healthy Seasonal Recipes, we specialize in cooking with fresh veggies and creating weeknight meals. Sign up HERE to get more produce-forward dinner ideas for FREE! If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought! Happy Cooking! ~Katie
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Slow Cooker Chicken and Okra
- Total Time: 4 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
This is an old favorite recipe for chicken thighs and drumsticks cooked in a slow-cooker with okra, peppers and rich tomatoes and red wine sauce. We’ve added in bell peppers, olives and parsley to make it full of veggies and flavor! The slow braising makes the chicken ultra-tender.
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in chicken legs
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
- 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 large onions, sliced (French cut)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon dry Italian Seasoning
- 1/2 cup dry red wine
- 1 28–ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1/3 cup chopped green olives
- 2 bell peppers any color, or 4 cubanelle peppers, cored and sliced
- 3 cups fresh or frozen sliced okra
- 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
Instructions
- Cut chicken legs into two pieces, along the fat line that runs between the thigh and drumstick.
- Remove skin, trimming at the bottom of the drumstick if necessary. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
- Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the chicken and cook, turning once, until browned, 2 to 4 minutes per side. (Note: The chicken will not be cooked through.) Transfer the chicken to the insert of a slow cooker. Repeat with the remaining chicken, reducing heat to medium as necessary to prevent scorching.
- Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil to the skillet. Add garlic, onion, Italian seasoning, the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and the remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring often until the vegetables are just starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer the onion mixture to the slow cooker.
- Add the wine to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato and olives, increase heat to high and bring to a simmer. Pour tomato mixture over the onions. Add peppers to the slow cooker and cover.
- Turn slow cooker on low for 8 hours or high for 4. In last half hour of cooking, remove lid and layer okra on top. Cover and let continue to cook the remaining 30 minutes.
- To serve gently remove chicken pieces to pasta bowls. Stir the vegetables together. Ladle the vegetable mixture around the meat and top with a generous amount of parsley.
Notes
To make ahead, prepare through step 5. Cover and refrigerate up to 12 hours ahead. Continue with step 6.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 8 hours
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup vegetable 1 piece of chicken
- Calories: 368
- Sugar: 5 g
- Fat: 19 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 21 g
I might have to make this in my Dutch oven on the stovetop because my crockpot is too small. How long should it simmer?
Question –I want to make this–do you use leg thigh pieces and use just 4 of those for serving of 8? so each serving one piece of chicken -am I reading that right? Thank you.
You are correct. A serving is either a thigh or a drumstick. If you wanted to make this with all thighs that would work well too.
So delicious! I love okra but don’t use it nearly often enough in my cooking. This was a great change of pace with delicious flavors and easy to follow instructions!
I am glad you tried it and it came out well! Thanks for reporting back.