Easy Mississippi Chicken Recipe

Mississippi chicken is a dish that is something of a spinoff from Mississippi pot roast, and it has garnered a great deal of popularity in the social media-sphere in recent years. The reason for its popularity seems to lie in its simplicity, since as recipe developer Chanel Murphy-Lowe describes it, it's "an easy weekday dish" due to the fact that it's "flavorful, easy to make, has only a few ingredients, and feeds a good number of people." It can also feed just one person a good number of times, especially since it takes quite well to freezing.

While Murphy-Lowe tells us that "Chicken thighs are a personal preference because they are generally more tender and juicy ... [and] also budget friendly," she does say that if you prefer light meat to dark, there is no reason why you can't use chicken breasts, too. The fact that the dish is slow-cooked means you won't even need to adjust the cooking time.

Some people prefer to leave their Mississippi chicken pieces whole, but Murphy-Lowe is Team Shred all the way. She likes to eat this shredded chicken on top of mashed potatoes, but it can also be turned into a sandwich or taco filling or even drained, chilled, and used to top a salad.

Mississippi chicken is such an easy recipe that you can really make it with any kind of chicken you like –- boneless, bone-in, and any part that pleases. To duplicate what Murphy does here, though, boneless, skinless thighs are what you'll need. She also uses pepperoncini (both peppers and juice), dry ranch mix, and butter, all of which are standard for Mississippi chicken, although she prefers using chicken gravy mix to the powdered au jus seasoning called for in other recipes.

Put the chicken in the slow cooker, then sprinkle it with both types of seasoning. Measure out and pour the pepperoncini juice into the pot, then plop a whole stick of butter down on top of the chicken. Stick some peppers in alongside and/or on top of the chicken, then close the lid.

If your Crockpot is like many another slow cooker, you'll likely have a choice of two settings, low or high. If you prefer to cook on high heat, your chicken will be done in about half a day, or 4 hours. If you want to give it a few more hours of cooking time, however, you can opt for low heat as this typically takes about 7 hours.

Once the timer goes off, you can open up the crockpot, although watch out that you don't burn yourself on any escaping steam. If you're opting to shred your chicken as Murphy does, you can do it with a fork right in the slow cooker. Mix the shredded chicken into the juices, then you're all set to eat. Should you wish to more fully incorporate the pepperoncini with the shredded chicken, you may chop up the peppers either before or after cooking. Murphy-Lowe prefers to eat the cooked ones whole, though, saying "I love their flavor with the dish."

The leftover chicken can be refrigerated for up to four days. Another option is to freeze the dish for a longer duration if that works better for you.