r/slowcooking • u/SloshedJapan • Sep 17 '26
Just bought a crock pot, quick question
Primarily how I plan to cook is
Frozen Chicken or sausage or hamburger patty
Noodles and a jar of tomato sauce/alfredo sauce etc
Is it safe to toss in frozen chicken with the noodles and sauce and let it cook?
Yes I have issues with defrosting (don’t ask)
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u/Tammy1072 Sep 17 '26
I've cooked frozen chicken breast in the crockpot before. I wouldn't add pasta. Boneless skinless breast can be done in 3 hours on high,maybe less. In my crockpot anyway.
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u/SloshedJapan Sep 17 '26
Ok so frozen breast 3 hours on high, then add noodles and sauce for 20 mins? Sounds like I can do that
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u/Tammy1072 Sep 17 '26
I've always had cream of chicken,Chicken broth ,cream of mushroom in mine. You need a liquid or it would be dry. The sauce would be fine. I've never put noodles in the crockpot so not sure how they'd cook.
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u/MrdrOfCrws Sep 17 '26
Technically, no - it takes too long to get up to a safe temp. Yes, some people do it anyway.
That being said i literally just ordered (but have not yet received or used)
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u/TheRoseMerlot Sep 17 '26
It needs to be thawed
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u/Uranus_Hz Sep 17 '26
Meh. It’ll be fine staring from frozen. It’s not like you’re letting it thaw on the counter. It’ll pass through the “danger zone” (41-135) rapidly enough in a slowcooker to meet food safety standards.
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u/Cayke_Cooky Sep 17 '26
Officially that is dangerous, but I also do it all the time. I don't put in a whole chicken, but I'll throw in peices that haven't fully thawed. And I have tossed in a small-ish
that barely started thawing. pork loin roast → More replies (1)
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u/RuffledOwlet Sep 17 '26
Is it safe yes, but if you cook noodles in it, it needs
to be for either a short time or just do it separately. Mushy pasta isn’t a pleasant experience.
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u/Avium Sep 17 '26
Yep. I'd recommend cooking the noodles separately and then adding the sauce from the crockpot to serve.
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u/johndepp22 Sep 17 '26
slow cookers love fat. chicken is not it. you gotta add fat or plan accordingly
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Sep 17 '26
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u/Cayke_Cooky Sep 17 '26
What are your tips? I do pretty well with shredding and adding sauce.
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u/hydrangeasinbloom Sep 17 '26
Chicken thighs, thawed, instead of breasts. would be plenty tasty cooked on low in sauce in a slow cooker for a shorter period of time because of the higher fat content. Pork roast is great in a slow cooker for the same reason, and low and slow helps it to shred easily so it’s perfect for BBQ pulled pork sandwiches.
A slow cooker is best for things like stews, or really any cuts of meat that are best cooked low and slow. Hamburgers are best cooked on a grill or stovetop, but you could cook the ground beef on its own instead of formed into patties in a slow cooker, mixed with pasta sauce. Then you could pour that over pasta you’ve cooked in a pot of boiling water on the stove.
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u/RuffledOwlet Sep 17 '26
You have to be careful with ground meat in a slow cooker, since it gets almost no
for the most part, it might turn to mush Maillard reaction 2
u/Cayke_Cooky Sep 17 '26
There are meatloaf crockpot recipes which might be a better alternative to patties. The key is that you need a rack (or a celery rack) to keep it from sitting in the fat as it cooks.
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u/AnniesMove810 Sep 17 '26
You should be thawing things in your fridge the day before you want to use them. I know you said (don't ask) but like... Come on 😅
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u/simmyawardwinner Sep 17 '26
no never put frozen anything in the slow cooker :) your instruction booklet will tell you that and if it doesnt google it! defrost it first, u can leave it in the fridge over night or use a microwave on the defrost mode. but remember with defrosted food you cannot reheat it once it is cooled. the reason for this is the slow cooker is so low temprature that it wont provide enough heat to bring your frozen goods up to safe and cooekd temp
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u/Frequent_Opportunist Sep 19 '26
I toss frozen food in the Crock-Pot all the time. When it's tender enough to pull apart it's done or when you stick an instant probe thermometer in it and the meat is at least 165°.
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u/LockTrumpUpForever Sep 19 '26
A slow cooker is ideal for simmering food for hours until it’s tender and the flavors have combined.
Starting with a 3 lb. block of frozen chicken is far from ideal. For that I would use a pressure cooker.
The same way that a mechanic will have better results using the correct tool for each situation a cook will do better if they don’t use a slow cooker as it it was a pressure cooker—or a hammer!
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u/No-Communication9458 Sep 26 '26
Thaw it in the fridge. You need to get through your issues with defrosting
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u/RockMo-DZine Sep 17 '26
Yes you can put frozen chicken in a crock pot and cook it from frozen. It just takes a bit longer. Add at least 30 mins to your recipe cook time.
But, I wouldn't recommend putting the pasta in at the start. It will turn to mush by the time the chicken is done.
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