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Quinoa chicken primavera bowl with creamy quinoa, shredded chicken, pesto, peas, and asparagus

Crockpot Quinoa Chicken Primavera with Pesto and Peas

Crockpot quinoa chicken primavera is a creamy, comforting slow cooker meal with tender chicken, fresh vegetables, pesto, and a risotto-like quinoa texture. It is a hearty choice when you want an easy weeknight dinner with bright spring-inspired flavors.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Calories: 355
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Crockpot Quinoa Chicken
  • 1 1/2 cups quinoa, uncooked
  • 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 4 cups + 3 cups chicken broth (SEE NOTES)
  • 4-6 cloves garlic, minced
  • salt and pepper, other dried herbs you like (1/2 teaspoon each dried parsley, thyme, and basil)
  • 6 oz / 170 g pesto (SEE NOTES)
  • 2 1/2 cups frozen peas
  • squeeze of lemon juice
Asparagus
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 bunch asparagus, cut into bite sized pieces
Toppings
  • watercress, fresh parsley, chives, or any other herbs for topping
  • Parmesan or Asiago cheese for topping

Method
 

Preparation
  1. Rinse the quinoa. Prepare the chicken by either cutting it into smaller pieces for faster cooking or leaving the breasts whole to shred after cooking.
Slow Cooker Cooking
  1. Add the quinoa, chicken, 4 cups broth, garlic, salt, pepper, and desired seasonings to the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours.
Finishing
  1. Once the quinoa and chicken are cooked, stir in the remaining 3 cups broth or water as needed until the mixture reaches a creamy risotto or casserole-like consistency.
  2. Mix in the pesto, peas, and lemon juice, then cover the crockpot to warm the peas through.
  3. While the peas heat, warm the olive oil in a skillet. Add the asparagus and sauté for 5-10 minutes until lightly browned and tender-crisp.
  4. Stir the cooked asparagus into the crockpot mixture until combined.
Serving
  1. Serve topped with fresh herbs, shredded cheese, watercress, olive oil, or other desired toppings.

Notes

This recipe is also delicious with bacon. Do not add all of the additional liquid from the third step unless the mixture needs it. The quinoa may become very thick after cooking, but some batches may require less extra liquid. Add a small amount of liquid, stir, and continue only until the desired consistency is reached. For the pesto, add a few heaping spoonfuls first, then taste and add more if needed because pesto varieties differ in flavor strength.