I know, I know. The thought of cinnamon and chicken didn’t sound very appetizing to me either at first.
But man am I glad I tried it! In fact, I only got a small bowl of it because everyone around here scarfed it down so fast. You’ll have to trust me on this. It’s good!
And I should also mention that it is “Mini Chef Approved” which is saying something around here! It was simple to put together with easy-to-find ingredients and made enough for leftovers the next day. I enjoyed the last of it for lunch and can’t wait to make it again. Give it a try!
Clean Eating Slow Cooker Cinnamon Chicken
Author: Tiffany McCauley | The Gracious Pantry.com
Yield: Approximately 20 servings
Ingredients
- 5 raw, skinless, boneless chicken breasts (approximately 2 pounds)
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 (15 ounce) can light coconut milk
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 6 medium carrots, peeled and sliced thin
Instructions
- Place the sliced carrots in the bottom of the slow cooker's ceramic insert.
- Place your raw chicken on top of that.
- Put everything else on top and turn on the pot.
- Cook on low for 4-6 hours, or until the chicken easily falls apart when poked at with a fork. (Internal temperature should be a minimum of 165 degrees F.)
Hope you enjoy it!
Erica – The serving size is 1/2 cup. It makes approximately 10 cups including the liquid. But it will vary based on ingredients used. My nutrition data is only an estimate.
Hope you enjoy it!
So was this more like a stew/soup consistency? Would it be good with brown rice?
Julie – It did have a bit of broth. Yes, it would be good over rice. Enjoy!
Talisha – Yes, you can leave it out. Enjoy!
Yay!!! Glad you enjoyed it!
Mindy – Let me know how you like it!
Manesseh – Yes, a salad would be lovely. Some clean eating naan would be good too.
Dgreg – You could try unsweetened cocoa powder. If they are sweet enough, the bitter from the cocoa will be offset. You could also try dried coconut flakes.
Rachel – Haha! Well, however you found my blog, welcome!
Arlene – I have a great recipe for naan that would go well. Brown rice would be yummy too.
Hope you enjoy it!
Erica – Not sure what you mean. I buy the frozen chicken breasts at Costco if that helps.
You’re welcome! Hope you enjoy it!
Nicole – It could work. It will change the flavor, but I’m guessing it would still be tasty.
Jane – About 32 oz.
Mindy – No, but you just gave me a great idea for tomorrow’s dinner! Hang on to that bottle!
Catherine – Haha! Enjoy!
Shelby – Hmmm…. let me know how it turns out!
Holly – Wonderful! I’m glad you both enjoyed it!
I’m a cinna-holic. I love cinnamon and put it on almost everything! I can’t wait to try this!!
Mira – Hope you enjoy it!
Kelly – Glad you both enjoyed it!
So…would regular fat free milk work okay with this? I cannot wait to make it…it sounds like a great freezer meal as well to make for lunches!! Thanks!
Jenn – regular milk would alter the flavor a lot.
Rayna – Fabulous!!!
Actanksley – That would be a wonderful switch! Glad you both enjoyed it!
Please do!
Sbroverman – Glad you enjoyed it!
Nosnhojjennifer – I wouldn’t recommend it. You might want to try a different recipe all together.
Gkrecklow. If you don’t mind putting some in the freezer, you could remake the recipe without the cinnamon and then combine the two. Otherwise, yes, adding extra tomato sauce will help.
Penny – Wonderful! I’m glad everyone enjoyed it!
Jenng – Congrats! That’s wonderful!
Did you get 20 servings?
Sounds delicious
Aunt2 – Let me know how you like it!
Sounds delicious.I will have to try it
Sandy – I hope you enjoy it!
Christa – There are a lot of reasons for dry or tough meat in the slow cooker. I’m going to redirect you to the Skinny Ms. web site. They have an article specifically on this topic. You can find it here: http://skinnyms.com/avoiding-dry-or-tough-meats/
Micaela – Great! I hope you enjoy it!
Micaela – Wonderful! It’s yummy over brown rice too! Enjoy!
Many of my family are allergic to coconut. What can I use as a substitute?
Strappyt – I’m not sure there would be a suitable substitute for this one.
I am going to make this tomorrow night. I remember in an episode of Little House on the Prairie, Almonso (Laura’s future man) said his favorite dish was cinnamon chicken. I was intrigued and always wondered if that was a real recipe and now I know. By the way, the episode is a funny one, if you like Little House. I can’t wait to try this.
buggin – Loved the books, never got into the show very much. Enjoy the chicken!
Emma – It has the consistency of thick tomato soup. You can purchase it in a can, usually in with the other canned tomato products at the store. Just watch the sodium content.
Glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I hope you enjoy it!
Made this for dinner this evening – whole family loved every bite!
Awesome!
The coconut milk really makes the flavor on this. I wouldn’t put almond milk in the slow cooker. It doesn’t hold up well. I’ve never tried rice milk but it might be worth a shot.
This was SO GOOD! I was hesitant to try it because it just sounds different. My boyfriend liked it too!
What is cardamom and do I have to have it? Can I use regular coconut milk ?
Cardamom is a spice, like curry or basil. You find it in the spice aisle at the store. Yes, you can use regular coconut milk.
Would you recommend using frozen chicken, or thawed for this recipe? I’m making it right now and have frozen chicken breasts. Thank you!
They should be raw, not frozen.
I have this in the slow cooker right now for dinner tonight! I had everything except the cardamom and cloves. I’ve never used cardamom before & was surprised that a small shaker was $12! I’m glad I picked it up though. It will last me forever. It has a nice aroma…it has a sort of citrus smell to it. I’m sure I will be experimenting with it more!
I only had bone-in chicken breasts so, I decided to kill 2 birds with one stone and, I cut the breast meat away and I am using the bones to make some chicken stock. I’m excited about the stock too!
All in all, I’d say this has been a successful day…..minus my son losing his new DS, that he received for Christmas, at Walmart today. I’m not holding my breath that an honest person found it and turned it in (but, I’m praying it happens!)
BTW- I want to say that I LOVE your website! I’ve been trying to get my family on board to eat healthier but it never lasts because they don’t like the “healthy food.” I always end up getting discouraged and quitting because it’s hard when everyone doesn’t eat the same things. Your site is filled with delicious recipes that my whole family can enjoy…thank you so much for all of your work!
My pleasure! 🙂 Sounds like a good day to me!
I stand corrected….there are honest people left….Walmart just called and said they found my sons DS!
Wow! Lucky you!!
I just found your website and am loving looking through the recipes. I have this one in the slow cooker right now. I’m interested to see if my fussy kids will eat it.
Clare – Let me know how they like it!
Both kids ate this with out too much fussing which means I can make it again, which is good news because I really enjoyed it. I also loved the smell of cinnamon in my house while it was cooking. Thanks for the recipe.
Clare – Glad you all enjoyed it!
Do you think I could try it with onions at the bottom instead of carrots?
Tracy – Sure. It’ll taste different, but it should work fine.
Was skeptical about this recipe, must admit. But wow, oh my goodness, holy smokes. It was amazing!! And so easy. Yet again, another dinner victory, thanks to the Gracious Pantry!!!!
Lori – Yay!! So glad you liked it! 🙂
How big of a slow cooker would be necessary? I have a 1.5qt one, and I’ve never made anything in it before so I’m a little apprehensive of starting the recipe and then it not all fitting.
Kara – My slow cooker is 4 quarts. You could try cutting the recipe in half.
Oh My Gosh and How Fabulous!!!! I made this recipe with pork and it was delicious!!! My house was smelling so wonderful yesterday while it was cooking. Thank you so much for such a great recipe!
Cheryl – My pleasure!! 🙂
Am I the only one who thought this dish completely lacked flavor? I only post because I always read other cooks comments to determine if I want to make the dish or not, so I figured I would post my opinion of this dish. I had high hopes but in the end was very disappointed that I wasted 2 lbs of chicken breast. I had to add about 1/2 a cup of BBQ sauce as well as some BBQ seasoning to even make this taste like anything other than boiled plain chicken. Sorry gracious pantry, but for readers sake, I do not recommend making this recipe 🙁
Kendall – I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you. But this dish is very flavorful. I’m wondering if something went wrong?
just made this tonight for the 1st time and it was delicious! we thought this was flavorful without being over tge top. we enjoyed this ver much.
Steph – Fantastic! 🙂
Can I use crystallized ginger instead of cardamom?
Amber – I’ve never used crystallized ginger so I’m not sure. Does that have sugar in it?
I have an obsession with cinnamon!! This sounds AMAZING. But I definitely don’t need that many servings. There is only 2 of us 🙂 if I cut the recipe in half, do I still cook it for the same amount of time? Thanks!!!
Michelle – That depends on the size of your slow cooker. If you have a smaller one, you could probably go almost the entire time. If it’s bigger, it will cook very quickly. It could also end up being dry. It’s always best to have your slow cooker be at least 1/2 full. If you do end up with leftovers, this freezes pretty well.
I found you through Foodie and I too saw the Little House on the Prairie episode about the cinnamon chicken and have been looking for a cinnamon chicken recipe for 35 years!! Thank you! I cannot wait to try it!
Kat – Awesome! Let me know how you like it! 🙂
Can I use a whole chicken?
Carol – I haven’t tried it that way. The chicken would not turn out exactly the same though because it would not be cooking completely in the sauce. But it would definitely cook, so it might be worth a shot.
I can’t wait to try this, im thinking back to my favorite show, Little house on the prairie, Laura Ingalls always made cinnamon chicken, and it always sounded so good to me, so im very excited to make this, tonight!!
Tracy – Really? I don’t remember that from those books, but I sure did love them. Let me know how you like it! 🙂