Pre-cooking chicken for crockpot recipe

Hi! No you will not need to precook it. Depends what you're making thoiugh, sometimes it looks more appetizing if you brown it a little.

raekty...Please do not pre-cook the chicken, except to brown the skin if you leave it on the meat.  Browning will reduce some of the fat content for your dish, by leaving the extra fatin the pan. If you cook white meat much longer than necessary, it will be rubbery. If you can add the chicken to the pot at the last 30 min. or so before whats in the pot is cooked,that will keep it moist. The only time I cook chicken less than 30 min., is when I filet the meat. The dark meat in nice slices usually cooks in 20 min, and the white portion is cooked in about the same time if it's sliced into nice medallions. BUT...if you're making chicken soup from scratch, the skin and the fat combined with a fair amount of fresh garlic binds together to make a natural antibiotic ...Yep , old fashioned Jewish Chicken Soup!!! Enjoy!!!

I don't raekty, but I do remove the skin and fat since it just melts into the dish. There apparently was caution about chicken not reaching a high enough temperature quick enough in the slowcooker to prevent bacteria growth, but I can't find any credible reference for that.

There is this info from the University of Minnesota:

• Make sure meat or poultry is completely thawed before putting into a slow cooker. If frozen pieces are used, they will not reach 140° quick enough and could possibly result in a foodborne illness.
• Cut up roasts and chicken into smaller pieces to ensure safety.

Source: Food Safety Tips for Crock Pot Cooking

You do not have to pre-cook the chicken before putting it into a slow cooker; however, it is advisable to remove the skin because of the fat, unless you brown the breast first. This browning also gives some color and a better, richer taste to the breasts.

One thing I suggest (and my manual/guide suggests the same thing) is that when you put the breasts in, your slow-cooker should be on high for the first hour or so. This brings the food up to temperature faster and deters the growth of bacteria, which can develop in any meat or poultry if it is cooked at too low a temperatutre. I'm sure most crock-pot manuals/guides will give you the same advice. By the way, "Graptos" & "Tipnut" give some pretty good advice too.

Good luck & bon appetit!!

I've never precooked my chicken breasts .