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5-Ingredient Italian Chicken Dinner

This 5-ingredient Italian chicken dinner can be made in the slow cooker or Instant Pot. Chicken, potatoes, and veggies cook together in this easy one-pot recipe.

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Updated 2020 with Instant Pot instructions

Only 5 Ingredients

It doesn’t take much to make a healthy, slow cooker or pressure cooker recipe. Chicken, potatoes, vegetables, diced tomatoes, and Italian seasoning…that’s it. I don’t count salt & pepper in the ingredient tally. If you do, then technically it’s 7 ingredients. If you want to add additional ingredients to this recipe be my guest. I suggest adding some garlic or perhaps more vegetables.

chicken thighs, green beans, potatoes, diced tomatoes in separate bowls & a bottle of Italian seasoning

the 5 ingredients

If you don’t have an Italian seasoning, you can use my homemade blend that’s at the bottom of this blog post. You can also substitute a single herb like parsley, oregano, or basil.

before pic of 5-Ingredient Slow CookerInstant Pot Italian Chicken (Paleo, Whole30) in the slow cooker

before (slow cooker)

after pic of cooked 5-Ingredient Slow CookerInstant Pot Italian Chicken (Paleo, Whole30) in the slow cooker

after (slow cooker)

What Cut Of Chicken To Use

Any cut you want! Dark meat works better in the slow cooker because it’s less likely to dry out. I usually use chicken thighs when making this but like as with the majority of my recipes, it doesn’t matter what cut of chicken you use.  If you do choose to use white meat, lower the cooking time by an hour or more in the slow cooker and 2-3 minutes for the electric pressure cooker. This is so the chicken doesn’t overcook.  When I use my electric pressure cooker (Instant Pot) and skinless chicken, I don’t brown the meat first. I just add it in to the appliance raw. I pretty much only saute my chicken in my pressure cooker if it’s skin-on chicken. You can use anywhere between 2-3 pounds of chicken without having to modify any measurements. I used 2.8 pounds of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.

plated Italian skin-on chicken thighs


Other 5 ingredient or less recipes you might enjoy:

Ham (Paleo)

Spicy Honey Mustard Chicken (Paleo)

Pot Roast (Paleo, Whole30)

Chicken Fajitas (Low-Carb, Paleo, Whole30)

Corned Beef & Cabbage (Paleo, Whole30)

Roasted Tomato Soup (Paleo, Whole30)


close up pic of cooked potatoes & green beans

What Type Of Potatoes To Use

Waxy potatoes always work best because they hold their shape better than other forms of potatoes. Having said that, like most of my recipes, I encourage you to use the ingredients you have & like. Meaning, you can use your preferred potato whether it be a waxy potato like red or yellow potatoes, or a non-waxy potato like russet or sweet potatoes. If you use a non-waxy potato, I suggest you cut them into larger chunks than you usually would. This will help them hold their shape during the cooking process and not turn mushy on you.

plated pic of 5-Ingredient Slow Cooker Instant Pot Italian Chicken Dinner(Paleo, Whole30) on a big white plate

What Type Of Vegetable To Use

Even though this recipe as written to use green beans, I understand that’s not everyone’s favorite vegetable. If you don’t want to use green beans, I encourage you to use your favorite vegetables but some work better than others. Asparagus is a great substitution for the green beans. If you’re going to use a more delicate vegetable like zucchini squash, cut the veggies into larger chunks than you normally would. This will help them hold their shape. I like to use fresh vegetables.  If you want to use frozen, for the slow cooker wait until the last 30 minutes of cooking time before adding them. For the pressure cooker, they go in at the same time fresh vegetables would.

close up of 2 chicken thighs & a few scoops of potatoes & green beans.

Broiling The Skin

When I use a cut of chicken that has skin on it, I almost always remove the chicken from the slow cooker to broil it. What can I say, I like crispy skin. I do this whether I use the slow cooker or pressure cooker. It’s an optional but recommended step.

another pinterest pin for 5-Ingredient Slow Cooker_Instant Pot Italian Chicken Dinner (Paleo, Whole30)

PIN FOR LATER

I highly recommend you pour the leftover tomato juice from the slow cooker or pressure cooker on top of the chicken before serving. To make this recipe, I use a 6-quart slow cooker /or Instant Pot.

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italian chicken dinner on a big white plate

5-Ingredient Italian Chicken Dinner

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 1 review

  • Total Time: 3 hours 10 mins
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 23 pounds chicken (any cut, see blog post)
  • 1 1/2 pounds potatoes, chopped
  • 1 pound green beans, trimmed & chopped
  • 15 ounces diced tomatoes
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth (for pressure cooker)
  • 1 tablespoon oil

Instructions

Slow Cooker

  1. Add potatoes and green beans to the slow cooker. Stir to mix.
  2. Season chicken with salt & pepper. Add chicken on top of potatoes & green beans.
  3. Season all the food with the Italian seasoning.
  4. Pour the diced tomatoes on top of the chicken.
  5. Cook HIGH 2-3 hours or LOW 4-6.

Instant Pot

  1. Season chicken with salt & pepper.
  2. Turn the pressure cooker to saute. Once hot, add the oil and chicken skin-side  down and sear, few minutes until browned. If you are using boneless, skinless chicken skip this step and add the chicken directly to the pressure cooker. 
  3. Pour in broth and add potatoes on top of chicken. Sprinkle Italian seasoning on top of chicken & potatoes. Add diced tomatoes on top of the potatoes and do not stir. Close lid and seal valve. Set high pressure and cook 10 minutes. Quick release pressure.
  4. Add vegetables and cook another 3 minutes on high pressure. Quick release pressure when done. Make sure internal temperature for the chicken is 165° Fahrenheit).
  5. Season with more salt, pepper, or Italian seasoning if needed.
  • Author: Shannon Epstein
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 3 hours

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 322
  • Sugar: 9.5 g
  • Sodium: 666.8 mg
  • Fat: 5.4 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 42.7 g
  • Fiber: 9.1 g
  • Protein: 28.1 g
  • Cholesterol: 105 mg

Looking for an Italian seasoning? Here’s my homemade blend:

italian seasoning

This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on one of the product links, I’ll might receive compensation. For more about my disclosure policy see heres: https://fitslowcookerqueen.com/about/disclosure-policy/.

5-Ingredient Italian Chicken Dinner5-Ingredient Italian Chicken Dinner5-Ingredient Italian Chicken Dinner
Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

Jessa

Sunday 9th of August 2020

This sounds so good! Quick and easy is a must with 2 young boys! ❤️

Camille Kyle

Thursday 30th of July 2020

I made this recipe years ago! I'm excited to see Instant Pot instructions have been added. I'll be making this again soon, thanks.

Michael Troy

Monday 12th of December 2016

How would you alter this recipe and use chicken thighs?

Fit SlowCooker Queen

Wednesday 14th of December 2016

You don't need to alter a thing other than swap out the breasts for approx 2-2.5 lbs thighs. If you're gonna use skin-on thighs then I suggest browning them first or broiling after to crisp up the skin. Enjoy! xShannon

Susan Evans

Wednesday 21st of September 2016

Love all of your recipes! I recently converted to Paleo and needed to find a quick and easy way to set myself up for success. Paleo crockpot is the way. Thanks and keep the yummy recipes coming!

Fit SlowCooker Queen

Thursday 22nd of September 2016

Thank you so much for the kind words. I'm so glad to hear you've been enjoying my recipes! I'll try not to disappoint you:-) xShannon