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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.
Did not have enough flavor. Definitely needs more salt pepper and other spices. The spices on the chicken are not enough to carry the dish, so would recommend adding some to the sauce. Using Chicken broth instead of water may help too. Might try it again with additional spices and possibly Parmesan.
I used chicken tenders but found them to be too dry cooking in the crockpot that long. Sauce was delicious but I would not use tenders. Little dry using them.
So, you slammed the recipe with only 3 stars bc you used tenderloins (which anyone knows are much smaller & thinner than a breast) which cook in a much shorter time?
Wow, if you truly liked it, perhaps you’ll change your rating to be accurate on the flavor and not YOUR egregious error…
Wells said, Natalie. This is the same thought I have for a majority of comments on most recipe sites.
Looks great – will definitely try! FYI . Would not show ingredients or measurements till
I saved as a pin – then They popped right up!
I’m super picky with my Chicken Marsala!
I made the quicker version (on high and no browning).
This recipe is AMAZING!!! I’ll never order it at a restaurant again…not when I can make it myself this easy and it tastes oh so delicious! I served it over fettuccini and had garlic/rosemary potatoes (I know, too many starches)…my hubby had never had it and can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow ๐๐คฃ
That’s great! I’m very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
This was so good! Didnโt do the corn starch. And added caned diced tomatoes! Not sure what everyone means, this was so tasteful! If you seated it first it came out great, i left for church and boom came home dinner was ready. I served it over white rice.
That’s great! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
My daughter and I are trying to be a dairy free kitchen. So we omitted the heavy cream and added a can of cream of mushroom soup and it was Very Good!
That’s great! I’m very glad you and your daughter enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
i swap coconut milk for regular milk ๐
Ha, Thanks for posting, as I just asked this very q. Was it a strong coconut flavor??
You do realize canned cream of mushroom soup contains Dairy…..its full of dairy and fats.
You were better off using half and half or 1% milk.
Loved it.
Thank YOU! I’m very happy you loved it! ๐
you do realize, with all the prep work that takes place in a skillet you might as well cook it in the skillet. standing at the stove for a whole five minutes to reduce the marsala into a proper sauce will yield a much better result and you’ll only have one pan to clean. a crock pot has its merits but understand its limitations.
I used my InstantPot Sautee function to seer the chicken. Then I used the slow cooker function after that on low. FIRST time I have used my IP as a slow cooker lol and it turned out great! I did use a bit more seasonings since I read someone said the “man in the moon” tasted better. LOL
I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank You! ๐
People were looking for a slow cooker recipe. If you wanted a stove top recipe that’s what you needed to look up. Don’t rate a recipe if you refuse to cook it as directed.
Unfortunately we thought it flavorless as well. Very disappointed. Too much corn starch. Heavy cream will thicken on its own.
Sorry. It was the most boring thing we ever ate. It tasted no more like chicken Marsala than the man in the moon.
You are the man in the moon?
Great recipe….in the crockpot no less. Thank you. We have a new fam fav.
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
You ATE the man in the moon before?!?