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This easy and delicious recipe for slow cooker creole white beans with chicken is adapted from this one on Budget Bytes, which the talented Beth Moncel made on her stovetop. It looked so simple and good I just had to adapt it for the crock pot.
Just chicken, beans, an abundance of colorful chopped vegetables and a few spices. Perfect for Weight Watchers.
Recipe Notes
I changed up this recipe a little. First, I tossed everything into the slow cooker instead of making it on the stovetop. And I made a few minor ingredient adjustments so it would work with what I had on hand.
Instead of navy beans, I used a bag of yellow-eye beans that my mom had brought me back from Maine last year. (Because they were older they took longer to soften.)
Since we are not a fan of overly spiced food, I cut back on the amount of Creole seasoning.
And I was also able to skip the oil because everything just got tossed into the slow cooker without pre-cooking in a skillet.
There’s quite a lot of chopping required for this recipe, which is not a problem if you are like me and find chopping vegetables kinda relaxing.
If you don’t, you may want to cut them up the night before and place them in a zip-lock bag or covered container in the refrigerator, so in the morning everything is ready to go.
It you can’t find Zatarain’s (affiliate link) or Tony Chachere’s Creole (affiliate link) or Cajun seasoning blends, you can use this recipe to make your own.
If you opt to make your own seasoning, just be aware that the store bought blends contain a quite a bit of salt, so you’ll need to add salt to your beans after cooking to compensate.
This recipe makes a big batch, about 12 cups, of Creole White Beans and Chicken, plenty to share and freeze for individual ready-to-go meals.
You could easily make a half batch in a 4-quart slow cooker (affiliate link) if you prefer.
How Many Calories and WW Points in this Crock Pot Creole White Beans and Chicken?
According to my calculations, each serving has about 257 calories.
To see your WW Points for this recipe, track it in the WW App!
(You must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.)
5 SmartPoints (Green plan)
2 SmartPoints (Blue plan)
2 SmartPoints (Purple plan)
6 PointsPlus (Old plan)
Unfortunately, chicken breasts are NOT a good substitute here because they become too dry and stringy when cooked more than 4 to 6 hours in my slow cooker.
We both really enjoyed this dish a lot! I shared with Mom who liked it too.
If you like this slow cooker creole white beans with chicken, be sure to check out my other Weight Watchers friendly slow cooker recipes including: Slow Cooker Spicy Cajun Soup, Slow Cooker 5 Spice Chicken, Slow Cooker Southwestern Chicken Soup, Slow Cooker Chicken and Pinto Bean Tostadas and Crock Pot Cajun Sausage Pasta Sauce
If you’ve made this Slow Cooked Creole White Beans with Chicken, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
Slow Cooker Creole White Beans with Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound navy beans (dry)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 yellow onion
- 4 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 2 red bell peppers, chopped
- ½ bunch flat leaf parsley (large stems removed and roughly chopped)
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat
- 1 tablespoon Creole seasoning blend
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1-1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- Black pepper
Instructions
- Ideal slow cooker size: 6-Quart.
- Place the beans in a large bowl and cover with water. Soak the beans overnight (8 hours) in the refrigerator OR, place the beans in a large pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for one minute, turn the heat off and let the beans sit, covered, for one hour. Drain the beans in a colander (affiliate link).
- Place the drained beans in your slow cooker. Add the garlic, onion, celery, bell pepper and half the parsley. (Save the rest for garnishing at the end.) Stir to combine.
- Nestle the chicken thighs down into the sautéed vegetables. Add the Creole seasoning, oregano, smoked paprika, some cracked black pepper, and 6 – 7 cups of water. Stir gently to distribute the spices, but not to disturb the thighs.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours, or on HIGH for 4 to 6 hours, OR until the beans are tender. (If your beans are older they make take longer.)
- Remove the chicken thighs and use two forks to shred the meat.
- Use a large wooden spoon (affiliate link) to smash some of the beans against the side of the slow cooker to help the liquid thicken a bit. Taste the beans and adjust the salt and/or Creole seasoning if desired. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and top with fresh chopped parsley.
- Serve alone or over a bed of rice.
Notes
(Must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.) 5 SmartPoints (Green plan) 2 SmartPoints (Blue plan) 2 SmartPoints (Purple plan) 6 PointsPlus (Old plan) There is quite a lot of chopping required for this recipe, which is not a problem if you are like me and find chopping vegetables kinda relaxing. If you don’t, you may want to cut them up the night before and place them in a zip-lock bag or covered container in the refrigerator, so in the morning everything is ready to go. Unfortunately, chicken breasts are NOT a good substitute here because they become too dry and stringy when cooked more than 4 to 6 hours in my slow cooker.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Source: adapted from BudgetBytes
Watch this video to see how to make another version of Slow Cooker Creole Chicken:
More Easy Healthy Weight Watchers Friendly Creole Recipes
- Shrimp Boil Foil Pack (Simple-Nourished-Living)
- Shrimp Creole (SkinnyTaste)
- Low-Calorie Chicken Creole Soup (SkinnyKitchen)
- Cajun Shrimp in Foil Packets (SkinnyTaste)
This video from PinchOfYum demonstrates how to make Slow Cooker Creole Chicken & Sausage:
Could this be made in the instant pot using chicken breast?
Hi Beth, though I haven’t tried it, I’m sure it could be done in the Instant Pot using chicken breast. ~Martha
I made this in the instantpot tonight. The only thing I changed was the addition of 6 cups of water as the beans were not soaked in advance. I cooked on the bean setting for 35 minutes and used the natural release. It is delicious!
Thanks for letting us know!
Oops that is 6 cups total.
You cooked the entire recipe on the bean setting for 35 minutes? I am wanting to do this recipe in the IP tonight and not sure how long, I also did not soak the beans.
The recipe says to nestle the chicken thighs down into the sautéed vegetables. Should we sautee the veggies first?
I was wondering about this too, there is no instruction to sautee the vegetables.
Do you have the nutritional info to update the PointsPlus value to SmartPoints?
Hi Tiffany, I just ran the ingredients through WW Recipe Builder and was excited to discover this has only 4 SmartPoints!!
I pinned https://www.pinterest.com/pin/312085449157143293/