This easy slow cooker French onion chicken is an excellent hearty dish that is packed full of flavor.
The flavors from the tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, chicken stock, and French onion soup mix will infuse and produce a delicious sauce that goes great with the chicken drumsticks. Speaking of the chicken, it will be so tender that it will just melt in your mouth.
The steps to making this dish are super easy as you simply throw all the ingredients into the slow cooker and wait. It’s the perfect chicken dish if you need to prepare something that will taste great.
Since the main star of this dish is the French onion soup mix, you will want to make sure you buy a quality brand if you want the best results.
What to Serve with French Onion Chicken
There are quite a few accompaniments that will work nicely with the French onion chicken. I mention a couple of my favorite side dishes below.
As you can imagine, rice goes amazing with these chicken drumsticks. I recommend cooking the rice separately in either a rice cooker or over the stove for the best results.
A lot of people like to melt Swiss cheese over the top of the chicken. I like the dish without any changes, but if the cheese idea sounds appealing, I highly recommend giving it a go.
The chicken will also be great alongside some scalloped potatoes and some steamed vegetables. These side dishes require a fair bit of time in the kitchen, but they’re well worth it.
There are plenty of other sides that go great with chicken. For example, a nice green salad, oven-baked chips, or even some mashed sweet potato will go well with this dish.
We love hearing the side dishes that you have tried with this chicken, so if you have any suggestions, be sure to share them.
What to do with Leftovers
Any leftovers can be kept in the fridge for a few days. Alternatively, you can freeze the leftovers for up to six months.
I recommend shredding the leftover chicken and using it in another dish. The shredded chicken will be great in something like a bread roll, tacos, or even as a pizza topping.
The video below will take you through all the steps to making French onion chicken in the slow cooker. If you prefer a written recipe, then you can also find that below the video.
Slow Cooker French Onion Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 onion, sliced
- 1.5 kg (3.3 lb) chicken drumsticks
- 40 g (1.4 oz) French onion soup mix
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 400 g (14.1 oz) diced tomatoes
Thickening
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch (Amazon)
- 2 Tbsp water
Instructions
- Add the onion to the slow cooker.
- Now, add the chicken drumsticks and sprinkle the French onion soup mix over the top.
- Next, add the Worcestershire Sauce, chicken stock, and diced tomatoes.
- Cook on low for 6 hours.
- Gently remove the chicken from the slow cooker.
- Mix the cornstarch with the water until it is a thick paste. Stir into the slow cooker until well combined.
- Return the chicken to the slow cooker and cook on high for 15 minutes or until thickened.
- Season to taste.
- Serve & Enjoy.
Recipe Tips
- You can use any cut of chicken in this delicious French onion chicken dish. I made use of chicken drumsticks, but thigh or breast will also work great.
- The cornstarch thickener, although I recommend using it, it’s not actually required. If you don’t add it, then you will find that the liquid will be runny.
- If you’re running late, then this dish will be fine if it stays cooking on low for a few more hours. The chicken may fall off the bone when you go to remove it from the slow cooker.
- Feel free to add more vegetables to this dish for a little extra flavor. It’s also perfect for feeding even more people.
Equipment I use
I use a 5.5L (6 Quart) slow cooker (Amazon | Walmart) for all the recipes that I have on this website unless specified. If you have a smaller or larger slow cooker, then you might need to adjust the ingredients.
Nutrition Information
The information above is an estimate generated by an online nutrition calculator.
More Slow Cooker Recipes
There are plenty of other slow cooker chicken dishes that you should try. Below are a couple of my favorites that I highly recommend trying.
If you want a dish like this one, then you need to try the honey soy chicken. It’s as good as it sounds and will cook to be absolutely amazing.
Another dish that you should give a try is the sweet n sticky orange chicken. It’s incredibly delicious and goes great with some freshly cooked rice.
I hope that you enjoy this slow cooker French onion chicken recipe as much as I did. If you have some feedback related to this recipe, then please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below.
Loved this. We did do 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce and next time will add 2 diced carrots. Will be making this one again and again.
Can this be cooked in an instant pot?
Yes, you can cook it in the Instant Pot. You will need to reduce the cooking time to roughly 10 minutes for high pressure.
can i use chicken thighs?
Yes, chicken thighs will work fine. You probably only need 1kg (2.2 lb) though.
Can you use canned diced tomatoes and omit broth?
Yes, I used diced tomatoes, and you can leave the broth out if you want.
Can you use french onion soup out of a tin? Many thanks.
Yes, that should work fine, but you might not need to add the chicken stock since the tin will have plenty of liquid.
Is it okay to use boneless thighs!
Yeah that will work fine.
I am making this for the third time tonight. I just am running out of ideas for side dishes. I am making garlicky Israeli couscous tonight. My greens tonight will be sautéed rainbow chard. But, want to see if you can suggest anything else. I have made mashed cauliflower and also mashed potatoes. Thank you in advance.
I am making this for the third time tonight. It is so delicious!! Become a definite favorite!
Making this tonight. 6 hrs will be at 4. Going to leave it in until 6 as I have 5 lbs. of drumsticks. Should I maybe add more stock?
If you do add more stock, you may need to add more cornstarch to help thicken the sauce. I recommend leaving it as is.
Delicious! And so quick to put together! I used chicken breasts and a can of whole tomatoes with their juice (I squished the tomatoes up). I did not have any chicken broth, so I splashed in a little white wine. I served it with cauliflower/parmesan mash. This tasted like a chicken version of Swiss steak. It was soooo good! Thanks for the recipe!
Can you use chicken wings
Hi John,
Yes, you can use chicken wings. You might need to reduce the cooking time slightly.
What would be good side dishes for this recipe? It looks so delicious.
Do I need to take the skin off the drumsticks first?
You can remove the skin if you do not like it. However, I kept the skin on my drumsticks. So either way will work fine.
Can I use tin mushrooms instead of tomatoes? As I am allergic to tomatoes.
You could give it a try, but I cannot say for certain how it will turn out.
Use to have a recipe like this, without tomatoes, add tin of apricots instead. Yum
The soup mixes tend to be heavy on the salt, which due to health reason, I need to avoid. Are there alternatives that will give equal flavour to the dish?
You can try making your own French onion soup mix with low sodium alternatives.
For example, something like the following may work alright as a substitute. I haven’t personally tested this mix, so I can’t guarantee the results, but it should add plenty of flavor:
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
Feel free to adjust the quantities to suit your taste!