Let this Tarragon Chicken simmer away in your slow cooker all day, and you will be in for an incredible dinner.
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room. The big boxy, low priced, convenient, and oh so guilt inducing Walmart….
There is a big giant super Walmart a few minutes from my front door and I hate it. I fell into the Walmart trap and found myself going there often for things. The produce was decent and so inexpensive. The dry goods and canned foods were unbeatable. The cream cheese was priced to make me do a happy dance in public. But, I have never been one to like shopping at a Walmart. Something about it just made me feel guilty. Was my purchase of 47¢ black beans robbing a local mom and pop shop of health care? Does that cheap toothpaste shrink a local farmers dinner plate? ‘ employ a lot of people, but do they put other local shops out of business? The guilt gets to be so much.
The more I get into food the more I need to pinch my pennies but become more conscious of the purchases I make. Better ingredients really isn’t a joke. Problem was I didn’t have a local market to fit my needs and the local stands are hit and miss. There are three grocery stores withing 2 miles from my house. One is just sad. The produce section is so tiny you could walk right past it. Bananas…That’s it? The meat doesn’t look fresh and there’s really not much variety. The second had moldy ginger… and no one cared. Their prices are obscene and they don’t carry what I consider common staples for an every day cook. To top it off, the employees just don’t care. I get that, but it can be really annoying when you need to tell someone that the ginger had mold. At least Walmart’s ginger wasn’t moldy.
Recently I got lucky and discovered another market just around the bend, and to take a line from Goldilocks, it seems to be just right. The store is cleaned, well stocked, the staff personable. I find myself driving past all of the others and willing to spend the extra bit, and push comes to shove, I really don’t feel like I’m spending that much more. I still occasionally find myself thinking, I bet this would be cheaper at Walmart, but I’m working on it.
Weening myself off the need for cheap, making moolah compromises and enjoying my trips to the market a little more.
Some days I just want to let my slow cooker do the work for me. These are some of my favorites!
Slow Cooker Lemon Artichoke Dip
Slow Cooker Loaded Hash Browns
Slow Cooker Asian Lettuce Cups and Thai Chicken Wings
If you’ve tried my Slow Cooker Tarragon Chicken recipe or any other recipe on passthesushi.com please don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know where you found it in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also follow along for more good eats and travel tips on Instagram @passthesushi & @girlcarnivore, Twitter & Facebook.
Slow Cooker Tarragon Chicken
AmericanIngredients
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tbs chicken broth
- 4 tbsp dijon mustard
- salt & pepper
- 4 lbs bone-in chicken parts - breasts. drumsticks, and thighs skin, discarded***
- 3 cloves garlic - finely chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
- 1/3 heavy cream
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 lemon - finely zested and juiced
- 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
Instructions
- Pour the broth into a 6-7 qt slow cooker.
- In a small bowl, combine the mustard, 1 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper; rub the chicken with the mustard.
- Place the chicken in the slow cooker and top with the garlic and 2 tbs tarragon.
- Cover and cook on low heat until the chicken is tender and an instant read thermometer inserted into a thigh away from the bone registers 165 degrees F, about 5 hours.
- Transfer the chicken to a serving plate and cover to keep warm.
- Strain the pan juices into a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over high heat.
- In a small bowl, combine the cream and cornstarch.
- Whisk the cream mixture into the saucepan and cook until the sauce is thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the lemon zest, parsley, and 1 tbs tarragon.
- Top the chicken with the zest-herb mixture.
- ***I didn’t discard the skin,but rather, working in batches, seared the chicken 2-3 minters per side in a skillet over medium high heat before placing it in the crock pot.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional informations provided as a courtesy and is only an approximatation. Values will changes based on ingredients used.
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Belinda @zomppa says
Glad you found a local store to support! It might be a few cents more, but its employees probably are also being compensated more fairly. This chicken is oooooooo ooooooo good. What flavors – bet the house smells good!
Laurie {Simply Scratch} says
Sounds fabulous Kita! I love chicken and tarragon together annnnnd it’s in a slow cooker with out a cream-of-anything soup! LOVE THIS!
amanda @ fake ginger says
I searched everywhere for tarragon last week! It’s nowhere to be found around here! Alas, I did not check Walmart. I’m sure they have it.
I stay away from Walmart for the most part but honestly? They seem to have all the “weird” things that other stores don’t, like fresh tarragon.
Susan says
I hear you regarding Walmart. We, too, try to stay away as much as possible. Now, this Chicken Tarragon looks incredibly delicious! I love the intensity of tarragon!
Rachel @ Baked by Rachel says
I refuse to go to walmart unless I absolutely have to. They’re dirty and smell up here. I’m not even remotely kidding. I feel gross when I leave there. Thankfully for the everything store – there are a few Targets in the area that have small grocery selections.
Jaime @ Jaim's Kitchen says
Such a great recipe! I might just unpacked my recently put away slow cooker 🙂
Erin says
I don’t enjoy shopping at Walmart simply because the store near mean has incredibly unhelpful and uncaring workers. I have a hard time finding some things, and when I ask for help they say they have never heard of such a thing (and it won’t even be anything that uncommon) and don’t carry it. I of course end up spending an hour scouring every shelf in every aisle and eventually find it. I had to resist the urge to hunt down the person who told me they don’t have it to show them they in fact do. I usually go to the Kroger on the way home from the gym because it has a better produce section than the Kroger closer to my apartment. But at the same time have noticed that some things are cheaper at Target but their produce and meat section is very minimal. Ah!!! Where is Wegmans when I need them? #missingRochesterNY
Anyway enough with my rant… one of these days I will not be working 12 hour days and will remember to take out my slow cooker to make this.
Jenn and Seth (@HomeSkilletCook) says
this is such a great slow-cooker recipe!
Kiri W. says
This looks fantastic – and makes me want a slow cooker once more. This must be the most tender chicken ever!
I agree on the quality of ingredients. I am a devout coupon clipper and love to save money, but sometimes it’s just not worth trying to save money by sacrificing flavor.
Julia says
I’m scared to ever move from where I live because I have such great local markets. If 1 store doesn’t have _____, then a store 1 block down will. With my recent crockpot obsession, I MUST make this recipe!
Danguole says
This looks great and perfect for spring! I made something like this in the summer with corn and poblano peppers, and have been looking for a winter or spring version of braised chicken.
Also, congrats on finding a new store! I looooaaathe Wal-Mart and haven’t set foot in one since I was stranded and needed tire chains years ago, but it’s a big privilege to have other options–I’m thankful I have them.