One of the best ways to eat a healthy dinner on a weeknight is to meal prep in advance and utilize your oven or slow cooker to do the work for you. That’s exactly what inspired this Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken recipe.
Known as a freezer dump recipe (because you simply dump the contents into a large freezer bag and store in the freezer until you’re ready to cool it), it’s simple and easy yet filling. Plus, it’s easily adapted if you want something animal-free!
So, let’s take a quick look at some of the health-promoting ingredients.
First, this Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken includes eight garlic cloves. As you may recall, garlic contains the organosulfur compounds allicin and diallyl disulfide, which are primarily responsible for its health benefits.
Garlic is known to support heart health, aid liver detoxification, support healthy blood sugar levels, and more.
For example, studies show that 600 to 900 mg of garlic powder supplements significantly lowered cholesterol. [1, 2]
And another study found that regularly consuming garlic can help people with diabetes manage high blood sugar levels. People with diabetes who supplemented their Metformin treatment with garlic had lower fasting blood sugar than people who only took Metformin. [3]
As noted in the name, this Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken also features lemon, which is known to help fight infections, inflammation, aging, cancer, and more!
According to one study, the bioactive compounds in lemon contain antibacterial properties. The study found that lemon juice extract was effective against the following bacteria: Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus pyogenes.
Specifically, the researchers found that lemon juice extract was most effective against Staphylococcus aureus, at a rate of 115 percent! [4]
Now, let’s take a moment and discuss one final detail of the ingredients—the fact that it contains chicken. If you’re vegan or you’re looking for an animal-free recipe for any reason, consider substituting the chicken with white beans for a protein-rich, nutritional alternative.
Well, there you have it! Keep scrolling to get the recipe for this Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken—a dish your whole family will love!
Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken (Freezer Dump Recipe)
Makes: 4 servings
Time: 10 minutes (+ 6 hours in slow cooker)
Ingredients
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into 2 inch cubes
¼ cup olive oil
8 garlic cloves, minced
? cup marinated artichoke quarters, drained
? cup capers, drained
2 lemons, cut in half
2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon pepper
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped (optional garnish)
Directions
1. In a large freezer bag, combine the diced chicken breasts, olive oil, garlic, artichoke, capers, lemon halves, balsamic vinegar, lemon pepper, and salt and pepper. Seal and shake to thoroughly coat. Open the bag, press excess air out, seal, and label. Freeze until ready to use.
2. Defrost the bag in the refrigerator at least 8 hours before use. Once defrosted, empty the contents into a slow cooker. Cook on low for 4-6 hours.
3. Serve warm, garnished with cooked lemons and parsley.
Note: You can make this recipe vegan by substituting the chicken with white beans.
