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If you love turkey but don’t want the fuss of roasting a whole bird, this easy slow cooker turkey breast is a wonderful alternative.
It’s one of my favorite ways to prepare tender, flavorful turkey with very little hands-on work. Just season it, settle it into the Crock Pot with a few simple ingredients, and let it cook.
It’s especially nice for a small Thanksgiving gathering when you don’t need an enormous turkey. But it’s just as good for Sunday dinner or anytime you want cooked turkey on hand for sandwiches, salads and other easy meals throughout the week.
And don’t throw away those flavorful cooking juices. They make a delicious homemade gravy!
Table of Contents
- Why I Love This Recipe
- Ingredients You’ll Need
- How to Make Turkey Breast in the Slow Cooker
- Tips for the Best Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
- How Long Does Turkey Breast Take in the Slow Cooker?
- Calories & WW Points
- What to Serve with Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
- How to Store and Reheat Leftover Turkey
- Easy Ways to Use Leftover Turkey Breast
- Slow Cooker Turkey Breast Recipe
- More Easy Turkey and Chicken Recipes
Why I Love This Recipe
- Easy preparation: Just a few minutes of prep before the slow cooker takes over.
- Perfect for smaller gatherings: Enjoy a traditional turkey dinner without roasting a whole bird.
- Simple ingredients: Turkey breast, onion, celery, lemon and a few seasonings.
- Great for leftovers: Cook once and enjoy turkey in several different meals.
- WW-friendly: Skinless turkey breast is a ZeroPoint food on the current WeightWatchers program.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Turkey breast: Bone-in or boneless both work. If frozen, thaw completely before slow cooking.
- Onion and celery: Create a flavorful base and help keep the turkey elevated above the cooking juices.
- Lemon: Adds a little brightness.
- Olive oil: Helps the seasonings coat the turkey.
- Montreal steak seasoning and poultry seasoning: My favorite combination, though you can use your preferred herbs and spices.
- Chicken broth or white wine: Adds flavor to the cooking juices, which can also be used for gravy.
How to Make Turkey Breast in the Slow Cooker
Step 1: Prepare the slow cooker. Lightly grease a 6-quart slow cooker (affiliate link). Arrange the onion, celery and half the lemon in the bottom to create a bed for the turkey.
Step 2: Season the turkey. Pat the thawed turkey breast dry. Rub with olive oil and sprinkle with Montreal steak seasoning and poultry seasoning. Place on top of the vegetables.
Step 3: Add the liquid. Squeeze the remaining lemon half over the turkey and pour the broth or wine around it.
Step 4: Cook on LOW. Cover and cook for approximately 5–7 hours, depending on the size of the turkey breast and your slow cooker. Begin checking early and cook until the thickest part reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer (affiliate link).
Step 5: Rest and slice. Transfer the turkey to a cutting board (affiliate link) and let rest for about 15 minutes before slicing.
Optional: For golden, crisp skin, transfer the cooked turkey to a broiler-safe pan and broil for a few minutes, watching carefully.
Tips for the Best Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
- Choose a turkey breast that fits comfortably. Bone-in or boneless will work, but make sure the lid closes completely.
- Thaw it first. Don’t put frozen turkey breast directly into the slow cooker. Thaw it completely in the refrigerator before cooking.
- Use a meat thermometer (affiliate link). Slow cookers vary, and the size and shape of your turkey breast affect cooking time. A thermometer is the best way to avoid overcooking.
- Keep the turkey above the juices. The onion and celery help lift the turkey slightly and add flavor at the same time.
- Try different seasonings. Garlic and herbs, lemon pepper or an Italian seasoning blend would all be delicious.
- Save the drippings. Strain them into a saucepan, skim off excess fat and thicken with a little flour-and-water slurry for an easy gravy.
How Long Does Turkey Breast Take in the Slow Cooker?
Cooking time depends on the size of the turkey breast, whether it’s bone-in or boneless, and your particular slow cooker.
For a medium-sized turkey breast, plan on roughly 5–7 hours on LOW, but begin checking the temperature before the estimated finish time.
The turkey is done when the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F.
Calories & WW Points
According to my calculations, each 4-ounce serving (without skin) has about:
- Calories: 110 calories
- WW Points: 0 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.) - Old Points: 3 PointsPlus
What to Serve with Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
For an everyday dinner, I like keeping things simple with roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes or a big green salad.
For a holiday meal, add stuffing, cranberry sauce and your favorite Thanksgiving sides.
And of course, a little homemade gravy made from the cooking juices is always welcome.
How to Store and Reheat Leftover Turkey
- Refrigerator: Store cooked turkey in a covered container for 3–4 days.
- Freezer: Freeze sliced turkey in meal-sized portions for up to 3 months for best quality.
- Reheating: Add a splash of broth, cover and gently reheat in the oven or microwave (affiliate link) until the turkey reaches 165°F.
Easy Ways to Use Leftover Turkey Breast
One of the best things about cooking a turkey breast is having leftovers ready for another meal.
Here are a few favorites:
- Turkey sandwiches: Keep it classic or make this turkey, apple and spinach panini.
- Turkey salad: Substitute turkey in my chicken salad with apples and cranberries.
- Soup: Add chopped turkey to chicken orzo soup with lemon in place of the chicken.
- Casseroles: Use leftover turkey in Chicken and Broccoli Divan or Pioneer Woman Chicken Spaghetti Made Lighter.
- Easy grain bowls: Combine turkey with rice or quinoa and leftover roasted vegetables.
- Egg dishes: Add diced turkey to scrambled eggs, omelets or frittatas.
For even more inspiration, see my Cook Once, Eat All Week Turkey Breast Meal Prep.
If you’ve made this Slow Cooker Turkey Breast, 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 Turkey Breast Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion, peeled and cut into large chunks
- 1 stalk celery, cut into chunks
- 1 bone-in, skin on turkey breast (5 to 7 pounds)
- 1 lemon, cut in half
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Montreal steak seasoning
- 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
- 1/2 cup chicken broth , (or white wine)
Instructions
- Grease a large 6-Quart slow cooker (affiliate link).
- Place of chunks of onion and celery and one half lemon in the slow cooker.
- Remove the turkey breast from packaging and pat dry with paper towels. Place the turkey breast in the slow cooker on top of the onion, celery and lemon.
- Squeeze remaining lemon half over the turkey and add it to the slow cooker.
- Rub olive oil on turkey breast.
- Combine the seasonings and rub on the breast.
- Pour broth and wine around turkey.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 5 to 7 hours, or just until a meat thermometer (affiliate link) reads 165F degrees. (Make sure the thermometer is not touching bone.)
- Remove from the slow cooker and let rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing.
- If you prefer crispy skin, place the turkey breast under the broiler for 3–5 minutes after slow cooking. Keep a close eye on it to prevent burning.
Notes
(Must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.) 3 PointsPlus (Old plan) Any blend of herbs and seasonings, fresh and/or dried, you like best can be rubbed on to provide flavor and color. Here are some suggestions:
- Garlic Herb:1 teaspoon each rosemary, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- Italian: 1 teaspoon each Italian seasoning, granulated garlic, seasoned salt, paprika and pepper
- Lemon Garlic: 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley, 8 minced garlic cloves, 4 teaspoons grated lemon peel, 2 teaspoons salt-free lemon-pepper seasoning and 1-1/2 teaspoons salt.
- Martha’s Favorite: 1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning, 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
- Rotisserie Blend: 2 tablespoons smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons each coriander and salt, 1 teaspoon each cumin and black pepper,
- Zesty: 1.5 teaspoons onion salt and chili powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Easy Turkey and Chicken Recipes
- Slow Cooker Chicken with Gravy
- Easy 3-Ingredient Slow Cooker Chicken
- Turkey Tenderloin and Sweet Potatoes Skillet
- Slow Cooker Turkey Breast with Garlic
If you make this easy slow cooker turkey breast, I’d love to hear how it turned out. Leave a comment and star rating below!
What are the cooking times if the turkey breast is frozen.
Sandi – i have read to never use frozen meat in the slow cooker. You might want to google this!
I have slow cooked frozen blade roasts many times, putting them in before work and coming home to an amazing dinner, with no downsides.
I think you need to check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer to tell when it’s done. I have a turkey breast in my freezer. Please let us know what you do and how it goes.
Thus truly was a very moist turkey, and couldn’t be simpler. I’ll definitely make it again this way. But…why the lemon? I’d be interested to know, assume it’s got something to do with the acid, but I don’t know why it’s necessary. It flavored the drippings and overpowered the gravy, which rendered it unusable. That was the only glitch. I won’t add it again but should I substitute something else? (I used white wine instead of chicken broth)
Hi Theresa, The lemon is definitely a flavor thing. If you find it overpowering, just leave it out. Wine instead of broth most probably provides all the acid you need. Hope this helps. ~Martha
Thanks. Found a different Turkey breast recipe of yours with garlic and other flavors. Will try that next time.
Martha,
Another flavor, Put about 2 T. of Soy sauce on the turkey then bake.
Baste if you feel like it. It makes a great gravy. Use corn starch or arrow root to thicken .
Great suggestion, Lauren. Thanks for sharing!!
I have done this for the past 6 years for Thanksgiving because our family of 14 only likes white meat, so one turkey won’t do. This turkey isn’t one to be “carved at the table” but it really is delicious!!! I’m really looking forward to doing this again in a few weeks!
Hi Martha,
I don’t have a slow cooker. Can this be made in a 6-qt. pressure cooker???
MaryAnn
Hi MaryAnn, I’ve never tried it in the pressure cooker, but believe it would work. Let me know how it turns out for you!
I made this turkey breast yesterday. The breast I used was 7.78 lbs. I used my 8-quart crockpot. It took 6 hours of cooking time on low. The finished product was perfect!!! Super moist and very flavorful throughout the meat, even though the seasoning was just on the (discarded) skin. This will be my “go-to” recipe from now on for turkey breast. Zero WW Freestyle Points – YAY!!
Thank you, Martha, for all the tips & tricks! Much appreciated!!
My hands can’t handle the weight of a 6 quart slow cooker.
Could you use a 4 quart one for a 4 pd or smaller Turkey breast??
Hi Nancy, Haven’t tried it. The turkey breast just needs to fit in the slow cooker with room to put on the lid. Hope this helps.
This was wonderful Martha. So moist and flavorful! Thanks Sheri
Love this recipe! My daughter likes thighs can I do it with thighs?
hHI , I am looking for the cabbage soup , WW, RECIPE , DO YOU HAVE IT ? I LOVED THAT SOUP AND I USE TO EAT IT AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK