Slow Cooker Chicken Parmesan

ByTammi 10/01/202110/22/2024 Updated on10/22/2024

This easy Slow Cooker Chicken Parmesan is the best weekday dinner recipe. Made in the crock pot with seasoned breaded chicken breasts, marinara sauce, and cheese.

a whole piece of chicken parmesan on top of spaghetti on a white plate on a table

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This time of year I rely heavily on crock pot dinners. You just can’t beat the convenience of having ready-made meals ready after a busy night.

It’s nice when dinner time is right when you walk in the door.

Being a pasta lover, of course I adore making traditional chicken parmesan. It’s one of our family favorites.

Yet what I don’t like is the hassle of making it, especially if it’s a fried recipe. This crockpot chicken parmesan recipe is so simple to throw together and it tastes incredible!

When ordering chicken parmesan at the restaurant, sometimes it’s way too thin and dry. I love cooking it in the crock-pot because it results in the most juicy chicken and such a delicious breading.

This slow cooker version most certainly deserved its spot in our best slow cooker recipes collection.

Yet also make sure to check out our Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan and our Chicken Parmesan Meatballs Recipe for more great variations on the classic.

chicken parmesan and spaghetti being lifted by a fork on a white plate

Recipe Ingredients

The full recipe is on the card below, yet here ate the ingredients you’ll need:

boneless skinless chicken breasts
eggs
panko bread crumbs
Italian seasoning
garlic powder
black pepper
kosher salt
parmesan cheese
spaghetti sauce / pasta sauce
mozzarella cheese
marinara sauce
fresh parsley

How to Make Crockpot Chicken Parmesan

Spray the inside of the crock pot with cooking spray (or you can use olive oil). Then pour the jar of spaghetti sauce into the slow cooker.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl and whisk. In another separate shallow bowl add the bread crumbs, seasoning, garlic powder, pepper, salt, and parmesan cheese. Mix the dry ingredients to combine.
Place the two bowls alongside the slow cooker, and dip one chicken breast into the egg mixture to coat all sides.
Then roll the same chicken breast around in the bread crumb mixture until all sides are coated. Place the breaded chicken on top of the sauce in the slow cooker.
Repeat with the remaining chicken breasts, assembly line fashion. Make sure to place the chicken pieces in a single layer in the slow cooker.

If you overlap the chicken pieces, they won’t cook evenly and some of the breading might come off or get rubbed off. Give them some space for best results.
Top chicken breasts with the shredded cheese, and then finish with the marinara sauce on the top. Cook on low for 7-8 hours, or on high for 5-6 hours.

Make sure to check out the tips section below, for a time saving method to cook this recipe, yet still using the slow cooker.

What to Serve with Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan

I like to serve this delicious recipe over a bed of cooked spaghetti noodles. I’ve made this recipe with extra tomato sauce in mind, to serve over pasta. Yet feel free to add more if you like your pasta extra-extra saucy.

You can also serve this easy dinner idea with crusty bread or garlic bread.

The beauty of cooking in the crock-pot means that you’ve freed up the ovenspace, so go ahead and place some bread on a baking sheet, there’s room to cook your sides.

You can also skip the bread as a side dish, and put your chicken parmesan right into a crusty roll, to make a submarine sandwich for a delicious meal. It’s a good idea for the next day, or to change up the meal.

a whole piece of chicken parmesan on top of spaghetti on a white plate

Crockpot Chicken Parmesan Tips:

You can decrease the slow cooking time by cutting your chicken breasts in half diagonally, so they are half as thick. If you do so, cook for 5 hours on low or 4 hours on high. In this case you’ll need only 2-3 boneless chicken breasts for this easy recipe.
I add the mozzarella to the chicken, and then the sauce, so the cheese melts and helps everything to stick to the chicken. Sometimes I reserve a bit of the shredded cheese and top the entire dish at the end as well. After all, that golden brown crusty cheese is a famous part of any favorite italian dish. Yet this is an extra step (because, cheese), so it’s not necessary if not preferred.

chicken parmesan and spaghetti being lifted by a fork on a plate

The chicken is so very tender that you could easily shred it right in the slow cooker and dump in some cooked penne pasta to make a chicken parmesan pasta.

Keep this in mind, because you can use leftovers for chicken parmesan sliders, or cook this with appetizer sandwiches as the intent. Doesn’t that sound perfect for game day?

More Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes

Why not try our Easy Focaccia Bread with this recipe? It’s a great side to any Italian dish.