Dump Meals

Chicken Freezer bag

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken and Gravy

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Chicken breasts cooked in a creamy chicken gravy, then shredded. Serve over mashed potatoes, biscuits or noodles.

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken and Gravy, served
A computer-made picture of the finished dish, not a photo of this recipe.
Serves
6
Prep
10 minutes
Cook
Low 4 to 6 hours, or high 2 to 3 hours
Slow cooker
4-quart

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Shredded chicken and gravy comes together from a package of chicken breasts, a can of soup and two packets of gravy mix. The chicken cooks in cream of chicken soup, broth and chicken gravy mix, then gets shredded right in the pot, so every strand is coated in thick, savory gravy.

It is the kind of supper that stretches. Spoon it over mashed potatoes, split biscuits, egg noodles, rice or toast. Chicken breasts are lean, so start checking them at the low end of the time range. They are done at 165°F and shred easily once they get there.

Serve with peas, green beans or corn. Leftovers freeze well in portions, and they make a quick open-faced sandwich on toasted bread the next day.

Ingredients

Into the slow cooker

  • 2½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 (0.87-ounce) packets chicken gravy mix
  • 1 (10.5-ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper

To serve

  • mashed potatoes, biscuits or egg noodles, for serving

Directions

  1. If your meat is frozen, thaw it completely in the refrigerator first. Never put frozen meat in the slow cooker.
  2. Lay the chicken in a 4-quart slow cooker. Wash your hands and anything the raw chicken touched with hot, soapy water.
  3. Whisk the soup, gravy mix, broth, garlic powder and pepper together until smooth, and pour it over the chicken.
  4. Put the lid on. Cook on low 4 to 6 hours or on high 2 to 3 hours. Keep the lid on while it cooks.
  5. Check the thickest piece with a food thermometer. It must read at least 165°F.
  6. Shred the chicken in the pot with two forks and stir it into the gravy.
  7. Serve over mashed potatoes, biscuits or noodles.

It's done when the chicken reads at least 165°F in the thickest piece with a food thermometer, and it shreds easily with two forks.

Leftovers go in the refrigerator within two hours. Reheat them on the stove or in the microwave until hot all the way through (165°F), not in the slow cooker. Slow cooker safety

Make it a freezer dump bag

Whisk the soup, gravy mix, broth, garlic powder and pepper, then put it in one gallon freezer bag with the chicken. Press out the air, seal, label and freeze flat.

Bag: gallon freezer bag. Keeps: 3 months for best quality; safe indefinitely at 0°F in the freezer.

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken and Gravy

Frozen on:

Thaw in the refrigerator 24 to 36 hours, until no ice is left in the middle. Never cook it from frozen, and cook it within 2 days of thawing. Dump into a 4-quart slow cooker. Cook on low 4 to 6 hours. Check with a food thermometer that the chicken reads 165°F in the thickest piece. Shred the chicken and stir it into the gravy.

Best within 3 months of the date above.

Plan several bags at once with one shopping list and printable labels.

Cooking for two

Use 1 lb chicken breasts, 1 packet gravy mix, half the soup and 1/2 cup broth. Use a 2-quart slow cooker, so the food still fills it about halfway. Start checking at 3 hours on low.

More in Cooking for two in a slow cooker.

Tips

  • If the gravy is thicker than you like, stir in a splash of broth after shredding.
  • Boneless chicken thighs work too and stay moister. Cook them the same way and check them at 165°F.

Food-safety sources

More chicken

  • Salsa Chicken Low 5 to 7 hours, or high 3 to 4 hours Freezer bag Chicken thighs, salsa, beans and corn in one pot. Shred and serve in tortillas, over rice or on its own.
  • Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs Low 4 to 6 hours, or high 2 to 3 hours Freezer bag Boneless chicken thighs in a sweet, salty honey and garlic sauce, thickened at the end and served over rice.
  • Chicken Tortilla Soup Low 3 to 5 hours, or high 1½ to 2½ hours Freezer bag Chicken breasts, beans, corn and tomatoes with green chiles in a cumin-spiced broth. Top with crisp tortilla strips.
  • White Chicken Chili Low 3 to 5 hours, or high 1½ to 2½ hours Freezer bag Chicken and white beans simmered with green chiles and cumin, then finished with cream cheese for a creamy broth.