Tender chicken in a flavorful sauce with gooey cheese on top? The only thing that makes it even better is the fact that it's so darn easy!
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❤️ Why you'll love it
- Easy dinner recipe to switch up the usual routine
- Full of mouthwatering French onion flavor, just like your favorite soup
- Juicy chicken breasts topped with gooey melted cheese = perfection
Hearty and satisfying, slow cooker French onion chicken is one of our favorite recipes for busy weeknights.
Don't forget some crusty bread to soak up all the flavorful sauce—it's the best part!
🧾 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
🔪 Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Add boneless skinless chicken breasts and onions to the crock pot.
- Cover with onion soup mix and condensed soup.
- Cook on the low heat setting for eight hours.
- Sprinkle with swiss cheese, cover, and continue to cook until cheese is melted.
🥫 Storage
Extra crockpot French onion chicken? No worries! Store leftovers in an airtight container, refrigerated for three or four days.
You can reheat the leftovers in the microwave or heat them in the oven until warm. This is one of those easy recipes that heats up quickly but stays nice and moist!
You can also prep crockpot French onion chicken in advance to make an easy freezer meal. Simply place all the ingredients (except the cheese) into a freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to three months.
Let the bag of ingredients thaw in the fridge for a day or so before you plan to make it. Then, when you're ready to cook, empty the bag into your crockpot and go!
📖 Variations
- Swap boneless chicken thighs for white meat chicken breasts. Dark meat adds extra moisture—yum!
- Have leftover homemade French onion soup? You can definitely use that in place of the can in this recipe.
- I love the flavor that sweet onions add to the dish, but you could also use Vidalia, white, or yellow onions. Avoid red in this recipe.
- Splurge on the more classic gruyere cheese if you're in the mood. Of course, I'm a firm believer in cost-effective ingredients, so that's why we use swiss instead. Or, in a pinch, you can go for mozzarella cheese.
- Add some fresh thyme leaves to the top of the crockpot before cooking.
- Enhance the rich broth with a splash of red wine—a good reason to open a bottle up!
- For a creamier crockpot French onion chicken, whisk a few teaspoons of cornstarch into the onion soup before cooking. It'll help the sauce thicken a bit more.
- Swap the crockpot for a casserole dish. Combine all the ingredients in a baking dish and bake at 400 degrees F for around 25 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Or course, a large chicken breast will need a longer cook time than a thin one.
💭 Things to know
Expert Tip: If you've got an extra few minutes, transfer the cheese-topped chicken to an oven-safe dish or large skillet and broil it under high heat. This will give the cheese a toasty, golden-brown, bubbly finish!
- You can also use a kitchen torch on the cheese topping instead of broiling it.
- When handling raw chicken, always be careful of cross-contamination. After touching the chicken, wash your hands (and anything that touched the chicken) very well.
- The French onion soup mixture is seasoned well, so the recipe has enough salt already. You don't have to season your chicken before cooking it.
- The meat will be really tender, so you can easily shred it if you want and mix everything together before topping it with the cheese.
- If you don't want to shred the chicken (I prefer not to) you can cut the chicken breasts in half (before cooking them) to make serving easier.
👩🍳 FAQs
It's a condensed soup made with hearty beef broth and onions, simmered for optimal flavor. It really makes the difference in this French onion chicken recipe, so I wouldn't recommend swapping it with another stock or broth on its own.
In theory, you could, but I don't recommend it. Chicken drumsticks only take about 5-6 hours to cook on low, and you'd have to carefully eat around the bones afterward. Slow-cooker French onion chicken is best enjoyed with boneless, fork-tender chicken breasts or thighs.
I probably wouldn't. If you replace the French onion soup you'll lose some of the delicious onion flavors! If you prefer a more creamy French onion chicken dish, garnish with a spoonful or two of sour cream before serving, or use the cornstarch tip from earlier!
I love to spoon it over rice or these southern mashed potatoes to sop up the soupy sauce. If you're a low-carb lover, mashed cauliflower is good, too. It's great alongside a quick veggie, like green beans, or a side salad! Don't forget some bread rolls!
📚 Related recipes
- French Onion Chicken Bake is a crispy version of everyone's favorite soup! It's coated in crisp French onion mix and baked 'til tender. Prepare for plenty of "mmms" and "ahhhs."
- When pasta night gets a little repetitive, try out this French Onion Chicken Casserole, instead! Tender chicken, flavorful onions, and noodles are all baked in a creamy, oniony sauce and topped with buttery breadcrumbs!
- Buy an extra soup mix because you'll be craving this Lipton Onion Soup Burger recipe! It's so easy and delicious, these burgers will quickly become a dinner "souper" hero!
🍽️ Serve with...
📞 The last word
I love this recipe because it just reminds me of crisp fall days and cozy nights! Honestly it's good all year, though.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need. Don't forget that you can click on "add to collection" to save it to your own, private recipe box!
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Slow Cooker French Onion Chicken
Print Pin Recipe SaveEquipment Needed
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, or thighs
- 1 cup onion, sliced
- 10.5 ounces French onion soup, condensed
- 1 ounce onion soup mix
- 1 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Spray the inside of the slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray.
- Add the chicken in a single layer.
- Cover with the chopped onions.
- Sprinkle on the onion soup mix and add the condensed French onion soup.
- Cover and set slow cooker to low for 8 hours.
- 30 minutes before you're ready to serve sprinkle on the Swiss cheese. Put the cover back on and continue to cook until the cheese is melted and chicken shreds easily with a fork.
Notes
- When handling raw chicken, always be careful of cross-contamination. After touching the chicken, wash your hands (and anything that touched the chicken) very well.
- The French onion soup mixture is seasoned well, so the recipe has enough salt already. You don't have to season your chicken before cooking it.
- The meat will be really tender, so you can easily shred it if you want and mix everything together before topping it with the cheese.
- If you don't want to shred the chicken (I prefer not to) you can cut the chicken breasts in half (before cooking them) to make serving easier.
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