WW Recipe of the Day: Low Carb Slow Cooker Five Spice Chicken
One of my goals this summer is to clean out my freezer and pantry as much as possible. And then refrain from stockpiling.
How I accumulate so much food is a mystery. And unnecessary. We are a family of two that enjoys eating out, as well as in. And, there's a grocery store within walking distance.
So Saturday I pulled out a package of boneless, skinless chicken thighs from deep in the freezer that I used to make this really simple skinny slow cooker five-spice chicken.
Weight Watchers Friendly Slow Cooker 5-Spice Chicken
Chinese Five Spice Powder is a spice blend available in either the spice section, or the Asian or ethnic food section, of most major supermarkets.
My bottle is a blend of China cassia cinnamon, star anise, anise seed, ginger and cloves.
Skinny Slow Cooker Five Spice Chicken Recipe Notes
In addition to chicken and five spice powder, the recipe calls for garlic, onion, celery, ginger, lemon zest and chicken broth.
While I loved the combination of flavors and textures, you could definitely adapt this to suit your likes and dislikes.
Next time I'm going to add sliced fennel. Carrot and bell pepper would work well too.
I served this over a rice blend from the pantry with roasted butternut squash and a simple green salad.
If you're watching your carbs cauliflower "rice" or zucchini "noodles" would be great accompaniments.
How Many Calories and WW Points in this Slow Cooker Chicken?
According to my calculations, each serving has 227 calories and:
3 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
3 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
3 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
6 *PointsPlus (Old plan)
To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!
This is going in my make again file. Enjoy!
If you like this lightened up slow cooker 5-spice chicken, be sure to check out some of my other easy, healthy, Weight Watchers friendly slow cooker chicken recipes including Easy Slow Cooker Goddess Chicken, Slow Cooker Creamy Italian Chicken Made Lighter, Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken, Slow Cooker Creole White Beans & Chicken and Slow Cooker Caribbean Jerk Chicken
Are You Ready To Slow Cook Yourself Slim?
If you've made this Slow Cooked Five Spice 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.
Skinny Slow Cooker Five Spice Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 2-½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (8 thighs, about 5 ounces each)
- 1 cup chopped onion (I softened my chopped onion in the microwave (affiliate link) for about 3 minutes before adding to the slow cooker)
- 2 celery stalks, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger (or ½ teaspoon ground ginger)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice powder
- 1 cup chicken broth
Instructions
- Ideal slow cooker size: 4-Quart.
- Trim any excess fat from the chicken thighs and place them in the slow cooker.
- Top with garlic, onions (I like to soften mine for about 3 minutes in the microwave (affiliate link) before adding), celery, ginger, 5-spice powder, salt, and lemon zest.
- Add chicken broth.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours, or until chicken is fork-tender.
- Serve over rice, cauliflower "rice" or zucchini noodles, if desired.
Recipe Notes
Source: recipe adapted from Pillsbury Doughboy Slow Cooker Recipes (affiliate link)
*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.
Watch this video to learn how to make your own Five-Spice Powder at home:Kitchen tools I used to make this easy Weight Watchers friendly slow cooker recipe:
If you like this easy crock pot 5-spice chicken recipe, you might also like:
- Five Spice Roasted Chicken Legs (SkinnyTaste)
- Asian Baked Kabocha Squash (Simple Nourished Living)
- Weight Watchers Five Spice Pork and Apple Salad (Weight Watchers)
- Slow Cooker Asian Lettuce Wraps (Simple Nourished Living)
- Slow Cooker Cuban Chicken with Citrus (Simple Nourished Living)
Martha is the founder and main content writer for Simple-Nourished-Living.
A longtime lifetime WW at goal, she is committed to balancing her love of food and desire to stay slim while savoring life and helping others do the same.
She is the author of the Smart Start 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.
A huge fan of the slow cooker and confessed cookbook addict, when she's not experimenting in the kitchen, you're likely to find Martha on her yoga mat.
This post contains affiliate links to products I like. When you buy something through one of my Amazon links or other (affiliate links), I receive a small commission that helps support this site. Thank you for your purchase!
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Lynne
May I ask why you soften the onion prior to putting it on the chicken please, as it would cook well over 5-6 hours in the slow cooker.
Tammy
This was excellent! Definitely a keeper!