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Crockpot Italian Chicken and Peppers is a healthy, delicious dinner that's versatile and customizable. Serve over rice, cauliflower rice, pasta or greens. A weeknight dinner recipe the whole family will love!
This healthy chicken and pepper slow cooker recipe was originally published in 2016. It has been revised and updated for you!
This is Crockpot Italian Chicken and Peppers is a spin on my chicken taco bowl recipe. This is a recipe I make all the time because it's so simple and easy.
Just toss the ingredients in a crockpot, go to work and when you come home from work it's ready to eat.
Plate over some rice, cauliflower rice or bowl of greens (if you're doing low-carb or Paleo) and enjoy a home cooked dinner!
Probably one of the easiest recipes you can make. Best part is it's healthy, lower calorie and gluten free!
What I Love About This Healthy Chicken and Pepper Recipe
- Easy - This recipe is one you can throw in a slow cooker and it's ready to eat for dinner. The only prep you need to do is slicing the bell peppers which I do ahead of time.
- Versatile - You can easily swap out ingredients to make this recipe your own and choose to serve it any way you like to make it fit your dietary needs.
- Simple Ingredients - The ingredients are super simple and easy to find.
- Low Calorie - Each serving is just a 202 calories. The high volume of vegetables combined with the chicken breast makes this a higher protein makes this recipe nutrient dense and naturally lower in calorie.
- Higher Protein - Each serving has 27 grams of protein. The higher water volume from the bell peppers combined with the lean chicken breast combination makes it more filling.
- Higher Fiber - Each serving has 5 grams of fiber. Fiber keeps you fuller longer!
Crockpot Italian Chicken & Peppers Ingredients
Here's what you need to make this healthy chicken and pepper crockpot recipe. You will also need a slow cooker that's 6-quart or larger.
- Chicken Breasts (I get organic, pasture-raised chicken from ButcherBox).
- Bell Peppers
- Marinara Sauce
- Italian Seasoning
For the full ingredient measurements and nutritional data, scroll to the bottom of this post to the recipe card where these details are.
How To Make Healthy Chicken and Peppers In A Slow Cooker
This is one of the simplest recipes I've ever made and it's one I make repeat!
Step One - Layer the sliced bell peppers, chicken breasts and seasonings in a slow cooker. Pour the marinara sauce over the top.
Step Two - Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high 4-6 hours.
Step Three - Once cooked, remove the cover and place the chicken breasts on a plate. Shred the chicken breasts with two forks. Add it back to the slow cooker. Stir to mix with the sauce and peppers.
Step Four - Serve any way you want it and enjoy!
Can You Make Chicken and Peppers In An Instant Pot?
Yes, you can make this healthy chicken and pepper recipe in an Instant Pot! The Instant Pot recipe version is here. It's just as simple a the slow cooker version.
How To Serve Italian Chicken and Peppers
Here's a few options for serving your healthy Italian chicken and pepper recipe.
- Rice - Serving over white or brown rice is my favorite way to enjoy Italian chicken and peppers.
- Cauliflower Rice - For a lower carb or Paleo version, this is a great option. I also like to do half cauliflower rice and regular rice for a higher volume and higher fiber meal.
- Greens - This recipe is delicious served warm over a bed of your favorite greens.
- Pasta - High protein pasta, chickpea pasta, lentil pasta, black bean pasta are all great options for enjoying this meal.
- Zucchini or Spaghetti Squash - Spiralized zucchini or roasted spaghetti squash is another great option for serving this that's lower carb and Paleo friendly.
Substitutions For Crockpot Italian Chicken and Peppers
Here's the ingredient substitutions you can make for this low calorie chicken and pepper slow cooker recipe! Remember when you make substitutions it will change the nutritional values you see in the recipe card below.
- Chicken Breast - You can use chicken thighs, pork tenderloin, turkey breasts, turkey tenderloin or lean cuts of beef.
- Marinara Sauce - You can use any type of spaghetti sauce you enjoy with this recipe. You can also use this homemade tomato sauce instead.
- Italian Seasoning - Italian seasoning is made of basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme and marjoram. You can use these individual spices instead if you do not have Italian seasoning. I also like to add a touch of crushed red peppers to this meal for a bit of spice.
- Bell Peppers - If bell peppers do not work for you, I recommend adding spiralized zucchini or roasted spaghetti squash instead.
More Healthy Crockpot Meals
- Crockpot Chicken Sloppy Joe's
- Crockpot Pulled Pork
- Crockpot Beef Stroganoff
- Crockpot Salsa Chicken
- Crockpot BBQ Chicken
- Crockpot Buffalo Chicken
- Crockpot Chicken Shawarma
- Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore
Healthy Crockpot Italian Chicken and Peppers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Green Bell Pepper sliced into strips
- 1 Red Bell Pepper sliced into strips
- 1 Yellow Bell Pepper sliced into strips
- 1 Orange Bell Pepper sliced into strips
- 1 lb Chicken Breast boneless skinless
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 24 ounce Marinara sauce
- Pinch salt & pepper
Instructions
- Layer the sliced bell peppers, chicken breasts and seasonings in a slow cooker. Pour the marinara sauce over the top.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-6 hours.
- Once cooked, remove the cover and place the chicken breasts on a plate. Shred the chicken breasts with two forks. Add it back to the slow cooker. Stir to mix with the sauce and peppers.
- Serve over rice, cauliflower rice, over pasta, or a bed of greens.
Video
Notes
- 1 serving is approximately 1 1/2 cups
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used for this recipe and that I recommend to my nutrition clients.
- Click here for the Instant Pot version.
Nutrition
Very good flavor, but mine came out very watery. How can I avoid next time?
You can't avoid the water really as it is what keeps the chicken juicy and moist. You could consider adding a grain like rice, barley or quinoa and that will absorb some of the liquid.
Can you use Alfredo sauce ?
I haven't tried it myself, but most likely!
easy, delicious, done in 4 hours (on high)!
I used 16 oz of a marinara sauce and an 8 oz can of tomato sauce. Thank you!
Served with rice.
Thank you for the review! So glad you enjoyed it.
Love the recipe! But trying to log the nutrition information and there is no way there's 202,000 calories (202 kcal)! Also, in a serving, does that include the rice? If so, how much rice to chicken?
Hi Danielle, there is 202 calories per serving. I don't know where you got 202,000 from??? I just ran the calculator again and the 202 is accurate. It does not include the rice.
Can you make this crackpot chicken and peppers with can shredded chicken
Yes, you could make it with pre-cooked shredded chicken.
Can this recipe "crockpot Italian chicken and peppers" be made in the oven. I don't like how fat comes out in the slow cooker?
You could bake everything in the oven. I'm not sure what you mean by how the fat comes out in the slow cooker? Chicken breasts are very lean and don't have fat.
I can't wait to try this!!! It looks awesome!!!
This recipe couldn't be easier to make and the results are ,off the charts" YUMMY ! I love crockpot recipes that have you throw everything in and hit START. No pan frying or sautéing. And the leftovers get BETTER everyday ! Thank You Megan !!!! Sharing this with EVERYONE !
Hi! This looks divine. Im wondering if you have any idea how i would go about cooking this in an instant pot? Im new to the instant pot game and dont have a crockpot and neeed to cook this asap
Thanks so much
I haven't tried it in the Instant Pot, but most IP's do have a slow cooker function so maybe check that out!
I came across this recipe last night, and I happened to have all the ingredients on hand, so I made it for dinner tonight, served over rice. It was delicious! It's going into my collection of slow-cooker recipes!
I happen to make this on accident one day . I was tired of making the same meals for my family so I put chicken ,peppers and onions in my crockpot I added ragu 7 herb and other spices and my family loves it I even cut up potatoes and il add kidney beans sometimes and other veggies . It's a great way to get kids to eat them
Glad you liked it! I've heard from multiple parents that kids love this recipe.
I throw frozen chicken in the slow cooker. We use the Foster Farms thin chicken breasts (purchased from Costco); and, in my own experience, the chicken isn't tough. Perhaps it's because the breasts are thin, but it's really easy to pull apart with forks at the end and tastes delicious!
Good to know, I haven't tried it. I always assumed it would water down the other ingredients.
Can I use frozen Chicken or will it be too watery?
I wouldn't recommend it. Chicken gets tough and weird when it's not thawed first.