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A white plate with cranberry chicken topped with sauce and cherries on a bed of rice, served alongside a green leafy salad with cucumber slices. A fork rests on the plate.
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Cranberry Chicken and Rice

This super easy Cranberry Chicken recipe uses basic ingredients — chicken thighs, whole berry cranberry sauce, and barbecue sauce — to create the perfect slow cooker dinner. Ready in just 4 hours, you'll sit down to a sweet, savory, and absolutely delicious meal!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time3 hours 10 minutes
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6
Author: Melissa Griffiths

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds chicken thighs boneless, skinless
  • 1 can whole berry cranberry sauce 15 ounces
  • ½ cup barbecue sauce
  • 3 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 1 onion chopped large
  • 2 cups wild rice blend

Instructions

  • Add the chicken to the slow cooker.
  • Add the cranberry sauce, barbecue sauce, vinegar, and onion to the slow cooker and stir a bit to combine and break up the cranberry sauce.
  • Cook on Low for 4-5 hours or High for 3-4 hours.
  • Cook the wild rice according to package instructions.
  • Add salt and pepper to taste to the chicken. It's also really good with a squeeze of fresh lemon over the chicken before serving. Serve over a bed of wild rice.

Notes

Slow Cooker Size: 6-quart
Recipe Variations & Tips:
  • I like to use a barbecue sauce with a little spice for this recipe.
  • I also like to cut up the onion really small so that it kind of disappears as it cooks. 
Cranberry Sauce: Make sure you are finding the whole berry cranberry sauce, it's a little different than the jellied kind.
Perfect Texture: I like to make sure I don't over cook this chicken. If you do it will just shred apart and it's still great, but I like the texture a lot better when the chicken is still intact when serving. 
Serving Suggestion: Spoon the extra sauce in the slow cooker over the chicken and rice, so delicious!

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 6 servings | Calories: 685kcal | Carbohydrates: 81g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 148mg | Sodium: 370mg | Potassium: 615mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 33g | Vitamin A: 213IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 3mg

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