You’ll want to keep these slow cooker Dijon chicken drumsticks on rotation throughout autumn. This easy, comforting recipe features tender chicken, perfectly cooked vegetables, and just the right amount of herbs for a bright finish.
Easy, comforting slow cooker chicken drumsticks
Several months ago, I released a recipe for honey-Dijon chicken with dill and received several requests to modify it for a slow cooker. I finally tested a version of these drumsticks that work perfectly in a slow cooker and retain all the original recipe’s bright, comforting flavors.
How to make Dijon chicken drumsticks in the slow cooker
This dish is even easier to make than the original because you simply throw everything in the slow cooker and let it go for a few hours. Even though you only need a few ingredients, this recipe delivers a flavorful meal that your whole family will love.
What you need
- Drumsticks: You can use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs if you prefer! I don’t recommend boneless chicken for this recipe.
- Vegetables: You’ll use an onion, carrots, celery, and gold potatoes. You can add most stew vegetables here. Try it with diced parsnips, rutabaga, turnips, squash, or sweet potatoes.
- Sauce: The sauce is simply chicken broth, Dijon mustard, whole grain mustard, and honey. That’s it!
- Finishing touches: The dish is finished with lemon juice, sumac, and fresh dill to give it a beautiful brightness. Sumac is optional, but I recommend grabbing a jar if you can! It adds a nice, subtle tanginess. If you don’t have it, consider adding an extra squeeze or two of lemon juice.
How to make it
- Step 1: Prep! Prepare all your veggies and place them in the bottom of a slow cooker. Season them with salt and pepper.
- Step 2: Make the sauce! Whisk together the broth, mustard, and honey. Pour the sauce over the vegetables.
- Step 3: Cook the chicken! Season the drumsticks with salt and pepper and nestle them into the sauce. Cover and cook for 3-4 hours on high heat or 5-6 hours on low heat.
- Step 4: Broil the chicken! This step is optional, but I recommend not skipping it! After the drumsticks finish cooking, carefully transfer them to a foil-lined baking sheet. Drizzle them with a touch of olive oil and then broil for 2-3 minutes to crisp and brown the skin before serving.
- Step 5: Finish the sauce and serve! Add the lemon juice, dill, and sumac to the slow cooker and let stand for 5 minutes. From there, ladle the sauce and vegetables into a deep serving platter and arrange the chicken on top of the vegetables. Garnish with more sumac and fresh dill as you like.
To serve, simply ladle the broth and vegetables into shallow bowls. Arrange a drumstick on top. Finish with more fresh scallions and dig in!
Community-tested and community-approved. Here’s what Tasters are saying about this recipe.
“This dish is so simple to make, but don’t let it fool you on taste.
After slowing-cooking for 6 hours the veggies and chicken developed so much flavor! The chicken was almost falling off the bone. I enjoyed this easy yet satisfying dinner!”
–Macie S., Independent Recipe Tester
“So easy to prepare and such a great family meal with deep flavors!
The broil is so important for the color and crisp! If I recommended this recipe to someone, I would tell them not to skip it!”
–Saskia H., Independent Recipe Tester
“This was absolutely delicious!
I was pleasantly surprised by the sumac and more acidic notes from the mustard and lemon.”
–Vy B., Independent Recipe Tester
To join my recipe-testing program, sign up here.
Slow Cooker Dijon Chicken Drumsticks
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken drumsticks (about 7–8 drumsticks)
- 2 teaspoons salt (plus more to taste)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper (plus more to taste)
- 1 yellow onion (peeled, halved, and sliced into thin wedges)
- 3 carrots (peeled and cut into rounds)
- 3 ribs celery (with leaves; ribs diced and leaves minced)
- 1 pound gold potatoes (scrubbed and medium-diced)
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1½ tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon whole-grain mustard
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil (optional)
- ¾ cup dill (loosely packed; roughly chopped; plus more for serving)
- 1 lemon (juiced)
- 1 teaspoon sumac (plus more for serving)
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
Prepare the chicken:
- Place the chicken in a bowl and season with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper.
Layer the vegetables:
- Add the onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes to the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper to taste.
Prepare the sauce:
- Combine the chicken broth, Dijon mustard, honey, and whole-grain mustard in a glass measuring cup and whisk until smooth.
- Pour the sauce over the vegetables.
Cook the chicken:
- Arrange the chicken drumsticks on top of the vegetables. Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on high heat for 3–4 hours or low heat for 5–6 hours until the chicken is very tender.
Broil the chicken (optional):
- Turn on the broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil. Carefully remove the chicken from the slow cooker and arrange the drumsticks in an even layer on the baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons of olive oil.
- Transfer the baking sheet to the broiler for 2–3 minutes or until the chicken skin is browned and crisp. Remove from the oven and set aside.
Finish the broth:
- Taste the broth and add the dill, lemon juice, and sumac. Let stand for 5 minutes.
To serve:
- Pour the broth and vegetables into a deep serving platter. Arrange the drumsticks on top, and serve with more dill scattered over the chicken. Enjoy!
Turned out SUPER!!!
This recipe is so amazing! It took absolutely no time to come together and looked like I spent an insane amount of time on it when I was done. No one could believe it was a crockpot meal.
Is this a type of dish you can freeze? Would you freeze it before the boiling stage and then broil after it’s thawed?
I would not freeze it with potatoes, personally! If you want to make a freezer-friendly version, I would do all carrots (or other root vegetables like parsnips or turnips) and make fresh potatoes (mashed or roasted) to serve alongside. If you go that route, you can prepare the recipe all the way to the end, let cool after broiling, and then freeze.
Hi! Would you recommend using thawed chicken drumsticks, or can you also use frozen?
Personally, I recommend thawed chicken legs only because the crock pot heats up much more slowly and might increase the risk of the chicken being in that danger zone for bacteria to develop. Some sources say you can use frozen, I just try to err on the side of caution and stick with thawed.