Name: Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 6 h
Total time: 6 h 30 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1/3 cup white wine; 2 tablespoons brown sugar; 1-1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar; salt and pepper; 6 garlic cloves, smashed; 1 tablespoon capers; 1/2 cup prunes; 1/3 cup pitted green olives; Optional: 1 (13.75 ounce) can whole artichokes; 4 small chicken legs and 4 thighs (about 2-1/2 pounds); 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped; 1 cup long-grain white rice

Jump to Recipe

Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken | Great flavor with little effort. This one pot wonder is extremely tasty and perfect for a weeknight dinner. Plus…BONUS! This Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken only has 302 calories including rice! Scroll down for an Instant Pot option. Still all the great flavors but made in less then 30 minutes.

The perfect ending to a busy day. I love coming home from a hard day, knowing dinner is waiting for me. You may not think of this Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken as comfort food but it TOTALLY IS! This is one of my families favorite recipes. With the tangy flavors of white wine and red wine vinegar along with great ingredients like capers, prunes and green olives. Almost every ingredient packs a punch of flavor!

Instant Pot Mediterranean Chicken

When it comes to one pot meals this Instant Pot Mediterranean Chicken is on the top of my family’s list. Not only is it the perfect weeknight dinner and easy to make but this recipe is also full of flavorful ingredients that really pack a punch, like white wine, red wine vinegar, green olives and dried plums. Click here for the recipe—->>>>Instant Pot Mediterranean Chicken.

If you’re looking for more chicken recipes here are a few of my favorites! ARTICHOKE LEMON CHICKEN FILLETS, SPICY ASIAN BOURBON CHICKEN and BAKED CHICKEN CHILI RELLENO. Did you know I have a whole category dedicated to slow cooker recipes? Click here for over 40 recipes—->>>>SLOW COOKER RECIPES.

Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken

Yield: Serves 4

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 6 hours

Total Time: 6 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

1/3 cup white wine
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
salt and pepper
6 garlic cloves, smashed
1 tablespoon capers
1/2 cup prunes
1/3 cup pitted green olives
Optional: 1 (13.75 ounce) can whole artichokes
4 small chicken legs and 4 thighs (about 2-1/2 pounds)
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup long-grain white rice

Instructions

To a 5-6 quart slow cooker, add wine, brown sugar, oregano, vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper; whisk together.
Add garlic, capers, prunes, olives, and, optional artichokes; mix.
Add chicken, nestling it among olives and prunes.
Cover slow cooker with lid, and cook on low 5 to 6 hours or on high 3 to 4 hours.
Gently stir in parsley.
Thirty minutes before serving, cook rice according to package directions.
Serve chicken, prunes, olives, and sauce over rice.

Notes

This recipe is at Lady Behind The Curtain

MORE SLOW COOKER RECIPES

1. SLOW COOKER SAVORY WAFFLE BREAD PUDDING 2. SLOW COOKER BERRY COBBLER 3. SLOW COOKER COUNTRY STYLE PORK RIBS

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More Mediterranean recipes you might like. MEDITERRANEAN PASTA and ONE SKILLET MEDITERRANEAN CHICKEN AND RICE.

Comments

Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken — 103 Comments

Aimee @ ShugarySweets on January 28, 2013 at 3:39 pm said:

Oh Sheryl, this looks amazing! PINNED.

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christina haller on January 29, 2013 at 11:05 am said:

could you use chicken breasts instead? i’m not a real fan of chicken thighs and legs.

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- Sheryl on January 29, 2013 at 11:36 am said:
  
  Hi Christina,
  Yes, you can use chicken breasts. In fact that’s what I did. I’m not a fan of brown meat but my husband is so I used half thighs and half breasts. NOTE: Make sure you use chicken breasts with bones otherwise they will be dry. Thanks for visiting! 🙂
  
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Brenda @ChattingOverChocolate.blogspot.com on January 30, 2013 at 10:05 pm said:

This looks absolutely DELICIOUS!! Pinning … thank you!!

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Diane Balch on January 31, 2013 at 5:51 am said:

Great mixture of Mediterranean ingredients… love it’s a crock pot recipe.

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Miz Helen on February 2, 2013 at 4:48 pm said:

Sheryl,
This chicken looks delicious, can’t wait to taste it. Your recipe is awesome and thank you so much for sharing it with Full Plate Thursday.
Have a great weekend and come back soon!
Miz Helen

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Laura on February 8, 2013 at 6:11 am said:

I made this dish last night and it was great! It was super easy to make with excellent flavor. We replaced white rice with quinoa. Will definitely make again. Thank you for sharing.

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- Sheryl on February 8, 2013 at 11:12 am said:
  
  Hi Laura,
  That’s wonderful news! Thanks for letting me know. 🙂
  
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Miz Helen on February 8, 2013 at 12:31 pm said:

Congratulations!
Your recipe is a Readers Top 10 Pick for this week on Full Plate Thursday. Enjoy your new Red Plate and have a great weekend.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen

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JudyH on April 11, 2013 at 7:15 am said:

In the picture, it doesn’t look like there is skin on the chicken…but the instructions don’t say to remove it.
I’m afraid it will be too greasy with the skin. Did you cook it with or without the skin? Thanks!!

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- Sheryl on April 11, 2013 at 8:47 am said:
  
  Hi Judy,
  No, I didn’t remove any skin. I did trim off the fat. 🙂
  
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Katie on October 7, 2013 at 10:44 am said:

What type of green olives do you recommend? The salty green olives typically used in a martini?
Thank you for posting this dish!

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- Sheryl on October 7, 2013 at 2:06 pm said:
  
  Hi Katie, Yes the salty green olives. 🙂
  
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Jenny T on January 12, 2014 at 1:54 pm said:

Did you use white cooking wine or just regular white wine?

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- Sheryl on January 12, 2014 at 10:08 pm said:
  
  Hi Jenny,
  I never use cooking wine. To get the best flavor you should cook with wine you would drink. 🙂
  
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Melissa on January 14, 2014 at 8:51 am said:

Hi! No need to brown the chicken? Everything looks so beautiful and browned in the photo. Can’t wait to try it out for my dinner party.

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- Sheryl on January 14, 2014 at 10:16 am said:
  
  Hi Melissa,
  The chicken is brown from cooking in the sauce for so many hours.
  
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Patty on February 18, 2014 at 9:42 am said:

I don’t use wine with in my cooking. Would I be better off to substiute chicken broth or apple juice or some other type of liquid?

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- Sheryl on February 18, 2014 at 3:28 pm said:
  
  Hi Patty,
  Using chicken broth or apple juice are great options. 🙂
  
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Samantha on July 13, 2014 at 9:03 am said:

Hi there!
If I leave the prunes out is there anything I should substitute it with or add more of ?
Thanks so much!

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- Sheryl on July 13, 2014 at 9:19 am said:
  
  Hi Samantha, You don’t have to substitute anything but you will miss the sweetness from the fruit. If you don’t like prunes you could also use raisins or apricots. 🙂
  
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Samantha on July 13, 2014 at 9:24 am said:

Great! Thank you!

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Karen on October 2, 2014 at 2:51 am said:

H, I just found your blog, via Pinterest!b do you think you could double this recipe, using a six-quart crockpot? Thank you!

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- Sheryl on October 2, 2014 at 3:24 pm said:
  
  No Karen, the recipe calls for a 5 or 6 quart slow cooker already.
  
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Heidi Majewski on October 19, 2014 at 4:56 pm said:

Making tomorrow!! Went to Greece this summer and I am hoping this sparks our tastebuds 🙂
Will let you know…

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- Sheryl on October 19, 2014 at 10:50 pm said:
  
  Oh…the pressure Heidi. Enjoy the recipe. 🙂
  
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  - Heidi on December 17, 2014 at 8:58 am said:
    
    Hi, sorry I didn’t get back sooner. The dish was delicious…brought us right back to Greece!!! I threw a little feta on after it was plated, just because 🙂 thanks again!!!
    
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    - Sheryl on December 17, 2014 at 9:06 am said:
      
      Awesome Heidi! Thanks for letting me know. 🙂
      
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rita on January 4, 2015 at 4:57 pm said:

Your dish looks great. In fact i am making it as i text. My question is how did u get your chicken that brown? Mine looks nothing like that.

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- Sheryl on January 4, 2015 at 5:06 pm said:
  
  I don’t have any secrets Rita. I just cooked it and it turned out that brown. Maybe from the brown sugar?
  
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- Vanessa on January 6, 2015 at 7:33 pm said:
  
  I sprinkled paprika over mine for the last hour of cooking which gave it a nice looking crust. It was great!
  
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Vanessa on January 6, 2015 at 7:32 pm said:

To be honest, this didn’t look amazing to me, but I had some capers to use up so I thought I’d give it a try. It was soooo good!!! I didn’t use the prunes because I didn’t have any, and I sprinkled paprika over the chicken for the last hour of cooking. I will definitely make it again! Thanks!

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- Sheryl on January 6, 2015 at 9:05 pm said:
  
  I’m so glad you liked it Vanessa! 🙂
  
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debra on February 3, 2015 at 3:59 pm said:

I have a 4-5 quart slow cooker – and I want to double the recipe – will it fit?
thank you

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- Sheryl on February 3, 2015 at 5:17 pm said:
  
  Hi Debra, Yes, I think it will fit.
  
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Meghan on February 12, 2015 at 8:43 am said:

If I add apricots instead of prunes, do you suggest fresh or dried apricots?

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- Sheryl on February 12, 2015 at 10:42 pm said:
  
  Hi Meghan, At this time of year dried. During season if you can find some sweet fresh apricots I would use those.
  
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Zest to impress on July 3, 2015 at 8:39 am said:

This looks amazing! Can’t wait to try for my Slow Cooker Sundays! Think I’ll pair it with a lemon and oregano couscous salad.

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- Sheryl on July 3, 2015 at 9:22 am said:
  
  Hmmm….sounds delish!
  
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Anne on July 21, 2015 at 3:24 am said:

Hi there. I’m not a fan of white rice. Do you think I can use quinoa, couscous or brown rice? I know that might change cooking time? How would you suggest changing that?

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- Sheryl on July 21, 2015 at 8:54 am said:
  
  Sure Anne, I think any of those choices would be delicious. 🙂
  
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Jordan on August 26, 2015 at 3:15 am said:

Does anyone know how I can change the recipe for an oven? My slow cooker is broken so I’d like to make this in a heavy dish in the oven. Any idea how I can convert temperatures and times?

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- Sheryl on August 26, 2015 at 10:53 am said:
  
  Hi Jordan, I would suggest cooking it low and slow in the oven with a lid on your dish. I was thinking 350 degrees for a couple of hours? That’s just a guess…..
  
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madamdreamweaver on January 27, 2016 at 9:27 pm said:

Saw this on Google+. Thought it looked worth trying. Pinned it.

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- Sheryl on January 30, 2016 at 10:37 pm said:
  
  It’s super yummy!
  
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lindsay on March 3, 2016 at 5:36 pm said:

Question for you…not sure you’ll get in time before i make this tomorrow, but do you remove the skin on your chicken?

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- Sheryl on March 3, 2016 at 7:54 pm said:
  
  Hi Lindsay, Yes I do. It’s a preference you don’t have to.
  
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  - Ashley on April 8, 2016 at 7:48 pm said:
    
    Earlier in the thread, you said you did not remove skin… So, should I or should I not? ? TIA!
    
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    - Sheryl on April 9, 2016 at 7:49 pm said:
      
      Hi Ashley, That is totally up to you. If you like the skin then leave it …if you don’t then remove it. I left it because my husband likes it but when I ate it I removed it. 🙂
      
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      - Ashley on May 2, 2016 at 7:01 pm said:
        
        Thanks so much! Made it for a group and it was a HUGE hit… Going to make it again for my Mom and MIL for Mother’s Day. Do you think it would still cook well tripled in a crock pot? Or should I put it in the oven… if so how long and at what temp? Sorry for all the questions! 😉
      - Sheryl on May 3, 2016 at 7:31 pm said:
        
        That’s awesome news Ashley! If you want to triple the recipe….I think your idea of baking it is the way to go. As far as the temp and how long….this is a total guess. I would bake it covered for half of the baking time and uncovered for the remaining time. I think 375° about 1 hour.
Joanne on December 14, 2016 at 7:14 am said:

Sheryl, my husband & I loved this recipe. I made it last week & making again tonight. I used cooking wine & saw you mentioned it is best to use wine you would drink. I’m not a wine person so would Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay be good? Any recommendations would be helpful, please?

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- Sheryl on December 14, 2016 at 9:38 am said:
  
  Haha….I just made it again last week! Delish! Pinot Grigio would work well. I’m not a wine drinker either so I go for bottles under $10. HA!
  
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Mariola on January 20, 2017 at 5:10 pm said:

I made it last night- it was absolutely delicious !!! And easy to make.
I used Chardonnay and since I have almost entire bottle left, I am making another batch tomorrow for my parents. I am going to double the ingredients, this recipe may be for 4 people but the dish was so good that my husband and I, we ate it almost all of it. Thanks for sharing!

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- Sheryl on January 20, 2017 at 8:50 pm said:
  
  Thanks Mariola! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It’s one of my husband’s favorite recipes!
  
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DeeZee on April 26, 2017 at 11:05 am said:

Can I use boneless skinless chicken thighs and would it change the cooking time? If I doubled the chicken would I double the rest of the ingredients as well?

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- Sheryl on April 29, 2017 at 8:35 am said:
  
  Hi DeeZee, Yes, I would double the ingredients and no, I don’t think the cooking time would need to be adjusted if swapping out the breast for thighs. Adding double might change the time a bit.
  
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Deborah on July 16, 2017 at 8:06 am said:

Could you add artichoke hearts in oil?

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- Sheryl on July 16, 2017 at 12:03 pm said:
  
  Hi Deborah, I would be leery of combining Italian flavors with the Mediterranean. Maybe if you gave the a little rinse.
  
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Jo Ann Ashford on August 13, 2017 at 2:52 pm said:

My family LOVES this recipe!!!
Thank you

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- Sheryl on August 13, 2017 at 8:18 pm said:
  
  That’s awesome news Jo Ann. I love it too!
  
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Thomas on August 19, 2017 at 4:25 pm said:

Great post! Have nice day ! 🙂 gmime

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- Sheryl on August 19, 2017 at 7:36 pm said:
  
  Thanks Thomas!
  
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Lynne Lee on October 28, 2017 at 9:40 am said:

I am so excited! I just saw this recipie and am going to make it tomorrow!

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- Sheryl on October 28, 2017 at 10:11 pm said:
  
  Oh…you’re in for a treat Lynne! This is one of my families favorites! 🙂
  
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Karen on November 8, 2017 at 9:48 pm said:

Made it fir a friend snd her husband and they loved it! Dtligious blend of flavor!! It is a keeper!!

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- Sheryl on November 9, 2017 at 9:30 am said:
  
  Thanks Karen! It’s one of our favorites!
  
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Jess on November 11, 2017 at 12:29 pm said:

Instead of rice, can I throw in some red potatoes near the end?

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- Sheryl on November 11, 2017 at 6:22 pm said:
  
  Hi Jess, Sure you can serve red potatoes with the chicken. I wouldn’t wait until the end to put them in the slow cooker. Potatoes take awhile to cook. To make it easier on you (no guessing) you could boil the potatoes until almost done and then put them in the slow cooker at the end with all the yummy flavors.
  
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Nina on January 2, 2018 at 11:06 am said:

Made this last night and it was AMAZING!! Definitely making this one again. Thanks for sharing!

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- Sheryl on January 2, 2018 at 3:05 pm said:
  
  Hi Nina! I made it too! This time I made it in my Instant Pot…..only took 9 minutes! An Instant Pot Version is coming soon!
  
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  - Dawn on December 25, 2019 at 12:19 pm said:
    
    I am an IP fan (have 3 of them)….but when I stumbled on this recipe I knew I have to make it in my slow cooker for Christmas. It’s cooking now. Doubled the recipe, using only thighs, and threw in mushrooms on the top (we love mushrooms).
    Love a nice slow cooked meal occasionally, especially on a cold lazy Christmas Day. Merry Christmas!
    
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    - Sheryl on December 25, 2019 at 3:56 pm said:
      
      Enjoy your yummy dinner and Merry Christmas Dawn!
      
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Rachel A Seitz on January 20, 2018 at 11:11 am said:

First, thank you for your meditteranean CHICKEN crockpot recipe. When I was searching for meditterean crockpot meals most of them were beef, lamb or soup. My husband and I limit our dark meat consumption, so I bought chicken breast for this recipe. I shamefully, honestly admit I didn’t pay attention to how much liquid was in the recipe. Certainly not enough to keep boneless chicken breast moist for 6 hours! I didn’t notice any of this until the chicken was already in the bottom of the pot 🙁 My solution was to pour low sodium, low fat chicken broth over the breasts. Just enough to cover. My plan is to scoop out the chicken, pour the liquid into a pan and reduce until I have a sauce, maybe add some arrowroot to help the process along. I will let you know how well my “fix” worked – good or bad. Thanks again for a recipe that sounds delicious!

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- Sheryl on January 21, 2018 at 10:36 pm said:
  
  Hi Rachel, That sounds like a good plan! 🙂
  
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Estelle on February 14, 2018 at 2:04 pm said:

Any idea is i can make this in an instant pot. which is a pressure cooker and cooks quickly. Gonna try it tonight. wish me luck

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- Sheryl on February 17, 2018 at 7:56 pm said:
  
  Hi Estelle, I just made this recipe using my instant pot and wrote a recipe for it. It won’t be live for a while so here are the instructions….
  
  To an Instant Pot add the wine, brown sugar, oregano, vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper; whisk together. Add garlic, capers, prunes and olives; mix. Add chicken, nestling it amount olives and prunes. Tightly place on the lid. Select Meat button, high pressure. Adjust time to 8 minutes. Make sure the pressure nozzle is closed. Once the Instant Pot has come to the right amount of pressure and then cooked 8 minutes, let the chicken sit for an additional 15 minutes before releasing the pressure and removing the lid.
  
  ENJOY!
  
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JoAnn on March 5, 2018 at 9:35 pm said:

My family loves this recipe. Thank you for sharing.

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- Sheryl on March 6, 2018 at 7:19 pm said:
  
  You’re Welcome JoAnn! My family loves it too!
  
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Victor Adeniran on May 12, 2018 at 7:24 am said:

This is so delicious! Thank you for posting. I substituting dried Mediterranean apricots for the prunes, and put a picture of my results on Pinterest. Yum

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- Sheryl on May 12, 2018 at 10:12 am said:
  
  That’s awesome Victor!
  
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joy on June 15, 2018 at 8:32 am said:

Hi Sheryl,

Looks so delicious !
What can I substitute with red and white wine, my girls are 3 and 6 yrs old, that’s why.

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- Sheryl on June 15, 2018 at 9:53 am said:
  
  Hi Joy, If you’re worried about the alcohol it will evaporate during the cooking process. If there’s another reason you can also use chicken stock or broth. ♥
  
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Dkhiggin on September 3, 2018 at 8:12 pm said:

Love this recipe! I opt to chop the olives and prunes so my kids will eat it. Other than that,I follow the recipe to the letter and it never fails to impress. Amazing flavor.

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- Sheryl on September 4, 2018 at 9:26 am said:
  
  Thanks! This one of my favorite recipes! I also have an Instant Pot Version. INSTANT POT MEDITERRANEAN CHICKEN
  
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Jo on April 30, 2019 at 9:00 pm said:

My family loves this recipe . It is delicious ! One thing I changed is that I use chicken broth instead of white wine. Also, I always double the recipe . Thank you for sharing this great recipe.

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- Sheryl on May 2, 2019 at 9:23 am said:
  
  That’s awesome Jo! Thanks for the sweet comment. ♥
  
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Tanya on August 3, 2019 at 7:59 pm said:

Can I use chicken breast instead?

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- Sheryl on August 3, 2019 at 10:36 pm said:
  
  Hi Tanya, Because I only like white meat and my husband likes dark meat, I often combine the two….or you can only use chicken breast.
  
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Sherri on September 28, 2019 at 12:31 pm said:

Hi, I just put this together exactly according to the recipie and placed in crockpot. The chicken is barely covered with liquid, capers, olives & prunes. I have 8 pieces of chicken (4 thighs & 4 legs). I’m thinking there is no way the chicken is going to brown. Did I miss something?

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- Sheryl on September 29, 2019 at 4:17 pm said:
  
  Hi Sherri, The ingredients is what makes the chicken come out brown.
  
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Judy on January 26, 2020 at 8:24 pm said:

Great recipe! I used chicken breasts because that’s what I had. I did use a bit of cornstarch paste towards the end of the cooking time to thicken it a bit more. We used it as gravy on mashed potatoes and drizzled it over steamed veggies. Wonderful taste!!

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- Sheryl on January 26, 2020 at 9:07 pm said:
  
  That sounds delicious Judy!
  
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Debra L. Wilson on March 1, 2020 at 1:29 am said:

Could I add some chicken broth if I wanted sauce? This looks like a great recipe!

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- Sheryl on March 1, 2020 at 1:52 pm said:
  
  Hi Debra, Sure! This recipe already creates a lot of juice/sauce.
  
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  - Debra L. Wilson on March 4, 2020 at 5:35 pm said:
    
    Thanks!I’m planning on making it this weekend …..
    
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    - Sheryl on March 5, 2020 at 8:39 am said:
      
      Yum Debra! You’re going to LOVE it!
      
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Judy on July 15, 2020 at 6:46 pm said:

Delicious, easy and the house smelled wonderful.

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- Sheryl on July 16, 2020 at 7:26 pm said:
  
  Yay Judy!
  
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E Mckinney on January 13, 2024 at 5:48 pm said:

We loved this recipe. This time I cooked it i Noticed artichokes in the picture. How much do you normally put?

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- Sheryl on January 16, 2024 at 8:10 am said:
  
  Hi, I’m glad you liked the recipe. I added 1 (13.75 ounce) can of whole artichokes.
  
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tanya McGuire on April 9, 2024 at 1:27 pm said:

Are the thighs with bone or without? Thank you

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- Sheryl on April 10, 2024 at 9:30 am said:
  
  Hi Tanya, Either way works.
  
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Lady Behind the Curtain

Bringing the simplicity of entertaining into your life

Slow Cooker Mediterranean Chicken