Crockpot Chicken Thighs
8 Comments Feb 17, 2024
Updated May 17, 2025
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These Crockpot Chicken Thighs are flavored with a homemade rub and cooked to tender perfection. Pair this with any side dishes of your choice. It’s a quick and easy main course you and your family are sure to enjoy!
If you’re looking for an easy, low-fuss summer meal, these crockpot chicken thighs are a great choice. Slow cooking takes all the guesswork out and leaves you with tender, flavorful chicken every time. This recipe is simple to prep but tastes like something you’d order at a restaurant. It’s a great go-to for busy weeknights, backyard dinners, or anytime you want a satisfying meal without turning on the oven. We also love to make Mississippi Chicken with tangy peppers when we aren’t making this!
Ingredient Breakdown
A homemade rub is what makes this recipe. Find the full recipe in the recipe card below the images.
This recipe features bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for rich flavor and tenderness. Olive oil helps the spice rub stick, which includes a savory-sweet blend of smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes for a touch of heat. Chicken broth and freshly chopped garlic form the base in the crockpot, infusing the meat with moisture and deep flavor as it cooks low and slow.
How to Make Crockpot Chicken Thighs
These steps are simple but make the most tender chicken. See how I do it below:
Step One: Mix together the salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, brown sugar, and red pepper flakes in a small bowl. Coat the chicken thighs in olive oil, then toss them in the seasoning blend until fully coated. Sear the chicken skin-side down in a hot skillet for a few minutes to brown the outside (no need to cook through).
Step Two: Pour the chicken broth and chopped garlic into the bottom of your slow cooker and give it a quick stir. Place the browned chicken thighs on top, skin side up. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
Easy Tips and Serving Inspiration
My top tips and the ways I love to serve these tender chicken thighs
You can use a store-bought rub instead of making your own—steak seasoning you already have on hand works great, too.
Short on time? Skip the browning step and simply broil the chicken just before serving to get that crispy finish.
For sides, think summer classics like baked potatoes, corn on the cob, or mac and cheese—you really can’t go wrong.
Want something more hearty? Serve the chicken over steamed rice or egg noodles for a cozy, winter-style meal. Both great choices since the chicken is fall off the bone tender.
Featured Comment
“I don’t do bone-in meat, so I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Didn’t sear them first. I mixed the rub with oil, then threw in the chicken and marinated for an hour or so, and then cooked as per the recipe. After the chicken was cooked, I boiled the juices in a pan with some extra brown sugar to make a sauce. Delicious!”
– Tracy
Crockpot Chicken Thighs Recipe
How to Video
Ingredients
- 2 lbs of bone-in skin on chicken thighs
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. smoked paprika
- 1 tsp. brown sugar
- ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
Instructions
- Pat the chicken thighs down making sure they’re dry. Place them in a large bowl and set aside.
- In a small bowl combine the salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, brown sugar, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine the spices.
- Add the olive oil to the chicken thighs and stir it around to evenly coat the chicken.
- Sprinkle the spice rub mixture over the chicken thighs in the bowl. Toss to coat the chicken. Make sure the seasoning is over all of the chicken.
- Place a skillet (I used a cast iron one here) over medium heat. Once the skillet is warm, place the chicken thighs skin side down in the skillet. Cook for 4-5 minutes giving them a beautiful crust on the skin.
- In the bowl of your slow cooker, add the chicken broth and the chopped garlic. Stir to make sure the garlic isn’t clumped in one spot and even distributed.
- Place the chicken thighs skin side up in the slow cooker and cook on low for 5 hours or until the internal temperature of the chicken thighs is 185 degrees F (or 85 degrees C).
- Serve with desired sides and enjoy.
Sarah’s Notes
- If you do not have smoked paprika you can sub regular paprika plus 1 or 2 drops of liquid smoke or a tbsp of BBQ sauce then omit the brown sugar. If you want to skip the rub all together, you can use a store bought rub.
- Browning the chicken thighs skin side down helps lock in those juices and flavors. This extra step will have your chicken thighs come out tender.
- To store the leftover chicken, you’ll want to allow the chicken thighs to cool and place them in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- You can reheat the chicken on the stovetop, oven, or microwave.
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Crockpot Chicken Recipes
Slow Cooker Whole Chicken is a classic, all-purpose recipe that delivers juicy, flavorful meat with minimal effort.
For cozy comfort food, Chicken and Gravy and Crockpot Chicken Alfredo are both creamy, satisfying choices that pair well with pasta, rice, or mashed potatoes.
Autumn Chicken Dinner brings together hearty veggies and seasoned chicken for an easy, fall-inspired meal in one pot.
I don’t do bone-in meat, so I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Didn’t sear them first. I mixed the rub with oil, then threw in the chicken and marinated for an hour or so, and then cooked as per the recipe. After the chicken was cooked, I boiled the juices in a pan with some extra brown sugar to make a sauce. Delicious!
How many teaspoons/ Tablespoons of spices?
The full recipe is in the recipe card below the images or right above the comments.
very nice spice combination ! is it better ?? or not matter if you marinate in oil mixture for hour or more ??
It will marinate while it cooks (with the slow cooking time), but it doesn’t hurt to marinate if you want!
So easy and so yummy. I made two changes…. After rubbing the chicken with the oil and spices I threw it in a zip lock bag and tossed it in the fridge overnight. The other change is that I added juice from half a squeezed lemon to the slow cooker with the broth and garlic. It was delicious. I decided to boil and thicken the drippings left in the slow cooker to serve with the chicken. Someone at my table claimed this to be “thebomb.com”.
What do you serve with? And can u sub with chicken breasts?
Bone in chicken breasts would work best. But yes.