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This Crock Pot Chicken Marsala recipe is a creamy, delicious, mushroom studded chicken dinner! You’ll be amazed by how easy it is to make a restaurant-quality meal right at home with this simple recipe. Put your slow cooker to work with this flavorful chicken marsala.
Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala
I always thought Chicken Marsala was a fancy Italian recipe you could only enjoy at restaurants, but guess what? It’s actually super simple to prepare at home, especially if you let your slow cooker do most of the work. When you use a crock pot, you don’t have to pound the chicken breasts down, and you don’t have to stand at the stove flipping chicken breasts – score! I love making this Chicken Marsala recipe on busy weeknights, but it’s also perfect for a fancy date night or Sunday supper. When you really want to wow everyone at the table but aren’t feeling like putting too much effort in, this is the recipe to make.
What is Chicken Marsala?
Chicken Marsala is an Italian-American dish of tender chicken breasts in creamy Marsala wine sauce loaded with mushrooms. It’s a variation of the traditional Italian scaloppine, which is thinly sliced meat dredged in flour and then sautéed and cooked in a sauce reduction. Chicken Marsala probably comes from western Sicily, where Marsala wine is made. In this recipe, you have golden, lightly pan-fried chicken breasts topped with mushrooms and smothered in a thick Marsala wine reduction that has a nice amount of garlic for additional flavor. It’s so good!
How To Make Chicken Marsala in the Slow Cooker
This recipe only takes about 10 minutes to prep and packs a ton of flavor.
- We start with browning chicken breasts in a skillet; they’ll need about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the seared chicken breasts to a 6-quart slow cooker. Add garlic and sliced mushrooms over the chicken.
- Deglaze the skillet with Marsala Wine and pour it over the chicken breasts and mushrooms. Also, please note to use dry Marsala Wine. Sweet Marsala Wine is for desserts. If wine is not your thing, you can use chicken broth instead.
- Cover with a lid and set your slow cooker on LOW for 4 to 5 hours, or until chicken is cooked through. You can also cook it on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours.
- Remove chicken breasts from the slow cooker and set aside on a plate.
- Whisk water and cornstarch together, then add to the sauce inside the slow cooker. Whisk in heavy cream and return chicken breasts to the slow cooker.
- Cover with a lid and continue to cook on HIGH for 20 more minutes, or until sauce thickens.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
Tips For The Best Chicken Marsala
- Searing the Chicken: Skipping the step of browning the chicken breasts is okay if you’re short on time, though doing so does enhance the flavor and helps to seal in the juices. But hey, if you want to see what I mean, just try my baked chicken pieces—your taste buds will thank you!
- Don’t rush: Making chicken marsala in the crock pot adds a depth of flavor that only comes from cooking food low and slow, much like this slow cooker coq au vin. Both dishes benefit from the slow-cooking process, allowing the rich flavors to meld together nicely.
- Check for doneness: Use an Instant Read Thermometer to check for doneness. Chicken is cooked through when the internal temperature reaches 165˚F.
What Marsala Wine To Use & Substitution Options
Marsala wine is a fortified wine from Sicily that can be sweet or dry. You want to use a dry Marsala wine for savory recipes like Chicken Marsala. If you can’t find some, use a darker Sherry, a dry white wine, a dry Madeira, or a Port. Remember that using anything other than dry Marsala wine will alter the classic flavor.
Side Dishes for Chicken Marsala
Now that you have a creamy, incredible chicken ready to go, what do you serve with it? I like Chicken Marsala on its own, but you can serve it over penne pasta, egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or rice. It would also go great with cauliflower rice or creamy mashed cauliflower.
For a classic Italian side, try my Vesuvio potatoes—they’re a delicious match! And to round out the meal, my chickpea salad adds a bit of freshness, while my baked homemade cannolis make for the sweetest dessert!
How To Store Leftovers
- To Store: Store Chicken Marsala leftovers in an airtight container and keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
- To Freeze: Place chicken and sauce in a large Ziploc bag, seal it well, and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- To reheat, thaw the chicken in the refrigerator overnight. Preheat oven to 350˚F and heat chicken marsala until warmed through.
More Italian Chicken Recipes
- Creamy Tuscan Chicken Breasts
- Creamy Lemon Chicken with Asparagus
- Baked Chicken Parmesan
- Creamy Lemon Parmesan Chicken Breasts
- Chicken Milanese
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Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala
Ingredients
- 6 (1.5 to 2 pounds, total) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon sweet paprika
- salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 ounces mushrooms,, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup dry marsala wine
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Lightly grease a 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray and set aside.
- Season chicken breasts all around with garlic powder, dried basil, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the seasoned chicken breasts to the hot oil and cook for 3 minutes per side or until just browned.
- Transfer chicken to slow cooker and top with mushrooms and garlic.
- Return skillet over medium-high heat and add the marsala wine; cook for 1 minute, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
- Pour the wine over the chicken and mushrooms.
- Close with a lid and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours, or on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours. Chicken is done when internal temperature reaches 165˚F.
- Remove chicken breasts from slow cooker and set aside on a plate.
- Combine water and cornstarch in a mug or a small mixing bowl and whisk until incorporated; then, whisk the slurry into the wine sauce.
- Add heavy cream to the wine sauce and whisk until combined. Taste for salt and pepper, and adjust accordingly.
- Return chicken to the slow cooker; cover with a lid and cook on HIGH for 20 minutes or until sauce has thickened. For a creamier texture, add more heavy cream.
- Transfer chicken from slow cooker to plates; top with mushroom sauce and garnish with fresh parsley.
- Serve.
Notes
- If you don’t have time to brown the chicken breasts, you don’t have to, but it does help with the overall flavor.
- Try to use Dry Marsala Wine. Sweet Marsala Wine is for desserts. If you don’t want to use wine, you can use low-sodium chicken broth instead. I would also recommend chicken broth for those that are watching their calories, carbs, and/or are on a Keto diet.
- If you don’t have Marsala Wine, you can use Sherry, Madeira, Dry White Wine, or Port. Please keep in mind that using anything other than Dry Marsala Wine will alter the overall classic flavor.
- Check for doneness: For perfectly cooked chicken breasts, use an Instant Read Thermometer to check for doneness. Chicken is cooked through when internal temperature reaches 165˚F.
- Keep leftovers refrigerated for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Needs more masala otherwise very good
I used your recipe as a guide and did browning on stove top and then finished in oven. Turned out amazing and the flavor was so good!
I was a little concerned when making this recipe due to the mixed reviews, so I followed the recipe to a T and it was absolutely delicious, and full of flavor. I can only imagine that those who complained that it had no flavor did not follow the recipe.
Curious if anyone has tried coconut cream? Thanks. Made this already, super yummy!! But used dairy the 1st time around.
Can you substitute chicken thighs for the chicken breasts?
Yes, chicken thighs will work, but if you’re using bone-in thighs, you may need to cook them for a bit longer. If you can, use a meat thermometer and check the thighs for doneness – chicken is done when internal temp registers at 165หF.
I love your page ! everything from telling me where the dish originated to the nutritional values !
It’s so nice to hear that. โค๏ธ Thank you!!
Didn’t like the taste of the spices used in this recipe. And chicken breast were tough.
This turned out fabulous. My husband who is very picky really liked it a lot. Will be making this again. No adjustments to the recipe.
Thanks for the recipe! It’s easy to make and super delicious! After reading the comments, I doubled the spices, increased wine to 1.5 cup and omitted the cornstarch since we like it saucy. It was great with roasted potatoes on the side!
This is very good! I used a pound of mushrooms (yum!) and a little extra heavy cream. Threw this in the crockpot before driving to the beach and it was done perfectly when I came home. Very easy and very tasty. Only 5 WW points. Served with Ronzoni Smart Taste Egg Noodles.