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This easy and delicious crockpot chicken and rice recipe is the perfect comfort food for a busy weeknight. Just set it and forget it for a warm and satisfying meal that the entire family will love!
Throw everything in the crock pot and in a few hours you have a delicious, creamy, tender chicken dish that can be served over rice, noodles, or potatoes!
Yup, this Crockpot Chicken and Rice is the classic you grew up loving! It is an amazing recipe that feels so nostalgic!
Our Crock Pot Whole Chicken recipe is a reader-favorite. It is so popular that we’re always on the hunt for new crockpot chicken ideas. But sometimes the classics get forgotten, so it was time to bring this one back to the spotlight.
Ingredients for Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice
My favorite thing about this recipe, besides how ridiculously good it tastes, is that it uses just 5 simple ingredients you probably already have on hand. Plus, it’s perfect for kids who are picky eaters. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Cream of Chicken Soup: Use store-bought or make your own from scratch (see section below).
- Butter: Unsalted is best, so you can control the saltiness.
- Italian Dressing Seasoning Mix: Find it near the salad dressings or other seasoning packets.
- Chicken Breasts: Boneless, skinless is ideal, and you can even use them frozen—it still works perfectly.
- Cream Cheese: Full-fat gives the best flavor, though reduced-fat works too; avoid fat-free.
- Rice: Serve this creamy chicken over white rice, brown rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes.
All the exact measurements are in the recipe card at the end of the post, so keep scrolling for the full details.
How to Make Crockpot Chicken and Rice
If you’re looking for the easiest dinner recipe ever, then you have come to the right How to Make Crockpot Chicken and Rice
If you’re looking for the easiest dinner ever, you’ve found it. This crockpot recipe is the ultimate set-it-and-forget-it meal. Prep takes literally 2 minutes, then just start the slow cooker and walk away.
- Mix: Add cream of chicken soup, butter, and Italian dressing seasoning mix to the crockpot and stir. Place the chicken breasts on top.
- Cook: Set the slow cooker to low for 5–6 hours or high for 3–3½ hours.
- Shred: Remove the chicken and shred with two forks, then stir in cream cheese.
- Stir: Mix everything together until smooth. If it’s too thick, thin with a splash of milk or chicken broth.
Rice: About 30 minutes before serving, cook the rice. white, brown, or your favorite variety. (Keep in mind, you’ll need a longer cook time for brown rice.) - Serve: Spoon the creamy chicken over rice or pasta and enjoy!
The complete recipe can be found in the recipe card where it can also be saved or printed.
Tips For Crockpot Chicken
Prep: Spray the inside of your crockpot with cooking spray before adding ingredients for easy cleanup.
Veggie Boost: Add broccoli, carrots, frozen peas, or green beans to sneak in extra nutrition.
Creamy Swap: If you’re not a big fan of cream cheese, try stirring in a bit of sour cream or plain yogurt for a creamy finish.
Homemade Soup: Skip the can of cream of chicken soup and make your own with milk or cream, butter, flour, and simple seasonings. Our Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole post has an easy recipe, just omit mushrooms and add a few dashes of poultry seasoning.
Can You Make Chicken and Rice In The Instant Pot?
Want to make this creamy shredded chicken and rice recipe in record time? The Instant Pot has you covered.
Start by using the sauté function to cook the butter, cream of chicken soup, and Italian seasoning with the chicken breasts until everything is aromatic and slightly browned. Then lock the lid in place and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes. Quick release the pressure, shred the chicken right in the pot, and stir in the cream cheese until the sauce is velvety and smooth.
This method gives you rich, flavorful chicken with minimal hands-on time, perfect for busy weeknights or meal prep.
Extra Add-Ins and Sides
We usually serve this over brown rice or whole wheat angel hair pasta, but it would be delicious over mashed potatoes, too. I also love adding a vegetable to lighten up the meal! Roasted veggies or a fresh spinach salad are both perfect choices.
For extra flavor, try mixing in Montreal chicken seasoning, lemon pepper, onion powder, or your favorite spices while the chicken cooks. Depending on your taste, use anywhere from 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon along with a pinch of salt and pepper.
Top the finished dish with fresh herbs like parsley or a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese for an extra flavor boost. This shredded chicken is also perfect for Hawaiian haystacks, making it a super versatile recipe!
Storing and Reheating Crockpot Chicken and Rice
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can keep the chicken and rice together or separately.
Normally, dishes with a lot of cream or cream cheese don’t freeze well because they can curdle or separate, but this recipe works thanks to the soup base. Store the chicken separately and make fresh rice when ready to eat. Using a vacuum-sealed bag extends freezer life up to 1 month; freezer bags work for 2-3 weeks.
To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge, then warm on the stovetop over medium heat, adding a splash of milk if needed. For single servings, the microwave works perfectly.
It’s up to you, and isn’t normally part of the recipe, but it’s a great addition. Sprinkling a fresh herb on top before serving would also amp up the flavor. Fresh parsley would be my first choice. Shredded cheddar cheese also makes a great topping for an added punch of flavor. This chicken can also be used for tasty Hawaiian haystacks too! It’s so versatile!
This easy and delicious crockpot chicken and rice recipe is perfect for a family-friendly weeknight dinner. It is such an easy slow cooker recipe that makes for an amazing meal! Simply throw all the ingredients in your slow cooker and let it cook for a flavorful and comforting meal in a breeze!
More Crock Pot Recipes:
- Asian Slow Cooker Ribs
- Grape Jelly Slow Cooker Meatballs
- Crock Pot Cafe Rio Chicken
- Slow Cooker BBQ Beef
- All our CROCKPOT and SLOW COOKER recipes here!
Crockpot Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
- 1/4 Cup Butter
- 1 Italian Dressing Seasoning Dry Mix
- 4 Chicken Breasts
- 1 Cream Cheese, 8 Oz Pkg
- White Rice
Instructions
- In a crock pot, mix together the soup, butter and italian seasoning packet.1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup, 1/4 Cup Butter, 1 Italian Dressing Seasoning Dry Mix
- Add the chicken breasts.4 Chicken Breasts
- Cook in crockpot on low for 5-6 hours or high 3 – 3 ½ hours.
- Shred chicken and add cream cheese to the sauce.1 Cream Cheese
- Mix until smooth. If it seems too thick add a little milk or chicken broth.
- Serve over rice or pasta!White Rice
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I only have dry ranch dressing do you think that would work? Also how much chicken I have 2lbs.
Ranch would be totally delicious! You want 4 chicken breasts. It depends on how big the chicken breasts are but I’d say 4 chicken breasts is probably pretty close to 2lbs…maybe a little more.
Looks yummy! I’m wondering if you could estimate how many lbs of chicken four breasts would be? I’m trying to cut the recipe in half but my chicken breasts are huge! Since they vary in size it would be helpful to know how many pounds. Thank you!
I can’t wait to try this! If I wanted to make it a little more Thai, do you think I could replace anything with a yellow curry sauce, or add it at any point?
Oh yum! Great question! We’ve never tried it, but it would be worth experimenting! I would add the yellow curry sauce or paste right from the beginning so the flavors get into the chicken. Maybe even adding a little coconut milk too! If you try it, let us now how it goes!!
I bet this would b great as sandwiches??
Yum! That’s a great idea!
Oh my goodness! My fiancé and I LOVED this! It was super easy to make and tasted absolutely DELICIOUS! We were skeptic over only one can of soup because the recipe doesn’t specify the can size and we thought it wouldn’t be enough, but it turned out great either way. Will definitely make it again! Thank you! 💕
Yay! I’m so happy you both enjoyed it! It is one of our favorite dinners!
What size crock pot would you recommend using for this recipe? I have a 4-quart and a 5.5-quart and I wasn’t sure if I should stack the chicken breasts on top of each other in the smaller crock pot or try to spread them out in the bigger crock pot.
Thank you!
We use a 6qt so I’d probably go with the 5.5 🙂
New to cooking and first time cooking chicken in crockpot-am I removing chicken to shred and then adding cream cheese to sauce while chicken it out or am I shredding chicken IN crockpot/sauce and then adding cream cheese?
Either way works fine as in the end you stir it all back together again anyway.
I have to watch my cholesterol, can I use less butter and it taste just as good!!?
Hi, you definitely can!
When would you add the broccoli and about how much?
You could add broccoli the last 30 minutes and 1/2 a head would be good
I was wondering if I could replace the Italian Dressing Seasoning Dry Mix with regular Italian seasoning? If not, what would you suggest I should replace it with?
The Italian Dressing has a bit more zip with the spices and herbs used in it. Poultry Seasoning, Italian Seasoning etc would all still be great options but you may need to increase the measurements