Slow Cooker Everyday Challenge: Day 2, Chicken and Sweet Potato Stew
In deciding this personal daily crockpot adventure week was for me, I predicted that my best chances of making it successful would be to make sure components were prepped the night before and kept in the refrigerator. I still stand by that prediction. I wake up early for a specific purpose, like getting in a workout that has a clear-cut timeline attached to it. Slicing and dicing, especially bleary-eyed, has too much ambiguity attached to it for me, and I hate feeling rushed. I panic enough on my own, without having to deal the likes of raw chicken. That said, if there's a quick-to-fix, toss-it-all-in kind of recipe suitable for pre-work prep, this recipe from Eating Well is it. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say it is the epitome of simplicity as deliciousness. And the prep time was no more than 10 minutes.
I made some changes based on what I had on hand, swapping out mushrooms for zucchini and adding some fresh thyme. One of the beautiful things about recipes like this one is how affably adjustable it is. When I got home, even with this painful head cold dulling my senses, I was greeted with this wash of wafting fragrance, a true pleasure, especially considering I was still technically "the cook" (though all the credit really goes to the incredible slow cooker). Standing over the stove, we typically absorb cooking aromas to the point we smell to much like them ourselves to appreciate them.
I'm not ordinarily a huge fan of chicken thighs, but slow-cooking does wonders, and even begs for, tougher, lovably leaner cuts of meat. It fell apart meltingly under the weight of the fork. The sweet potato spears were lovely and silky, and the white wine broth was superb. I took 15 minutes during the time I'd normally be getting started cooking, and got ahead on readying ingredients for the next day's crockpot creation. Another check for the challenge, mmm.
Chicken and Sweet Potato Stew from Eating Well
- 6 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed, trimmed of fat
- 2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into spears
- 1/2 pound white button mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 6 large shallots, peeled and halved
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary, or 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
- Place chicken, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, shallots, garlic, wine, rosemary, salt and pepper in a 6-quart slow cooker; stir to combine. Put the lid on and cook on low until the potatoes are tender, about 5 hours. Before serving, remove bones from the chicken, if desired, and stir in vinegar.