Juicy, tender, and bursting with fall flavors, Crockpot Turkey and Potatoes is perfect for a small, intimate Thanksgiving gathering!
You know how on Thanksgiving everything revolves around the turkey? The timing, the space in the oven, the coveted carving job. I get stressed just thinking about it. Timing has always been my biggest problem on Thanksgiving.
I need so many different things cooking at once in the oven with so many different temperature requirements. Not anymore, though! Crock Pot Turkey and Potatoes is the ultimate Thanksgiving main dish. It frees up my oven space AND it comes out delicious and juicy as can be.
Don’t have a slow cooker? Don’t worry! My Instant Pot Turkey Tenderloin is another delicious countertop option!
CROCK POT TURKEY AND POTATOES
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Thanksgiving is one of my absolute favorite holidays. There’s something so pure and wholesome about it.
There’s no stress of buying presents for everyone like at Christmas. No planning of an extravagant egg hunt like there is on Easter.
Thanksgiving means simply gathering with loved ones, sharing a delicious meal, and being thankful for all you have.
My family’s Thanksgiving typically is tables and tables of cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, siblings… sometimes even friends and neighbors. We cook multiple turkeys, have trays and trays of potatoes, and enough pumpkin pie to feed a small army.
This year, however, it’s looking like Thanksgiving might be a bit different than in years past. Covid-19 has been taking all the fun out of everything. Literally, as I sat down to write this post, I got an alert on my phone that the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is canceled. My tradition-loving heart is breaking.
BUT, no global pandemic is going to stop me from having an amazing Thanksgiving meal with my family. (Even if it’s just me, my boys, and my husband.) That being said, we might not need the huge turkey in the oven and pounds of potatoes like usual.
Instead, I’ll be making this slow cooker turkey breast with red potatoes. It’s moist, tender, and exactly the amount that we’ll need for our intimate Thanksgiving gathering.
The best thing about this turkey recipe is that you don’t need to cook the entire turkey. Everyone knows that the breast is the coveted cut of the turkey. It’s lean, white meat, and so juicy (especially when it’s cooked in a slow cooker). There’s no more fighting over who gets what part of the Thanksgiving turkey because now everyone can have turkey breast!
Crock Pot Turkey and Potatoes Ingredients
COMPOUND BUTTER – Keep your Thanksgiving meal flavorful and juicy with this easy flavored butter. It’s a great way to get everything to stick to the turkey and potatoes. It also helps flavor the cooking liquid once it melts.
TURKEY – While yes, you probably can find a whole turkey in your grocery store year-round, it’s not a guarantee. Turkey breast tenderloins however are much more readily available any time of year.
POTATOES – Pick a waxy potato like red potatoes or Yukon gold for this recipe. They won’t lose their shape in the slow cooker and they’ll be fork tender when the cooking has finished.
What is a turkey tenderloin
Turkey tenderloin is the boneless, skinless part of the turkey breast. It’s usually a very tender cut of meat.
One of the best things about this boneless turkey breast recipe is that it’s not ONLY for Thanksgiving! If you’ve got a craving for a yummy Thanksgiving dinner in the middle of the summer, make this slow cooked turkey breast recipe in the crockpot!
How to Cook Turkey Breast in a Crock Pot
Crock pot turkey is so great because it doesn’t take up your entire oven for practically an entire day. Just a few, quick prepping steps and you’re on your way to a delicious turkey dinner paired with delicious potatoes!
- Start by combining your butter, chives, garlic, salt, and shallot in a medium bowl. Divide it in half (half for the turkey, the other half for the potatoes).
- Next, pat the turkey breast dry with a paper towel (don’t wash it off, just dry it!). Rub half of the butter mixture on the tenderloins and place them in your crock pot.
- Now it’s time to prep your potatoes! In a large bowl, combine the remaining butter and seasoning mixture onto the chopped potatoes. Make sure to mix them around so all the potatoes are equally coated in buttery goodness!
- Place the potatoes around the turkey tenderloins in the crock pot. After that, it’s time to pour in the chicken broth.
- Then cover and cook on LOW for 3 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F.
- Remove your tenderloins from the slow cooker and slice on a cutting board. You can top your turkey with gravy, chopped chives, and/or additional salt & pepper to taste.
While this boneless turkey breast comes out incredibly moist, turkey just isn’t turkey to me without some gravy on top! If you want to make your own gravy, make sure that you reserve 1.5 cups of those turkey juices after cooking!
If you have any leftovers store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days. (Leftovers are the best part of Thanksgiving aren’t they?!)
How Long to Cook Turkey in the Slow Cooker
Turkey breast tenderloins are much lower in fat than a whole turkey. (AKA healthier!!) Which means they don’t take as long as some other meats typically do in a crock pot.
For my slow cooker, I’ve found that the sweet spot for cooking time is around 3 hours on low. But, depending on the thickness of your turkey breasts, it could be longer.
My biggest tip is to check the temperature of the turkey using a meat thermometer. A cooked turkey breast will have an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. If it’s not quite there yet after 3 hours, give it another 15-20 minutes and check again!
Other Thanksgiving Essentials!
Whether you’re hosting a big group or just your small family unit, they’ll have a meal to remember with these tried and true Thanksgiving recipes!
- Brown Sugar Cranberry Sauce
- Mom’s Mashed Potatoes (they’re the BEST)
- Green Bean Casserole
- Pineapple Glazed Ham
- Cornbread Dressing
- Pumpkin Pie
Looking for some more dinner inspiration?
- Slow Cooker Cranberry Chicken
- Philly Cheesesteak Casserole
- Crock Pot Lemon Italian Chicken with Capers
- Honey Glazed Crock Pot Ham
- Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
- more MAIN DISH recipes…
Tools used to make this Crock Pot Turkey Breast recipe
Slow Cooker: I use my slow cooker ALL. THE. TIME. I’ve been through a few in my time, but this one is by far my favorite that I’ve ever had!
Serving Platter: Since we won’t be needing my gigantic turkey platter this year, I’m pulling out this beauty! It’s smaller, the perfect size for plating Crockpot Turkey Breast.
Meat Thermometer: It’s always a good idea to check the internal temperature of any meat you’re cooking!
Ingredients
- ¼ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 tablespoon fresh chives chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 shallot minced (about 1/4 cup)
- 24 ounces turkey tenderloin (2 tenderloin pack)
- 1 pound petite red potatoes washed and halved
- ½ cup chicken stock
Toppings
- Turkey gravy
- Chopped chives
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine butter, chives, garlic, salt, and shallot. Divide in half.
- Pat turkey breast dry with a paper towel. Rub half of the butter mixture on the tenderloins and place in crock pot.
- In a large bowl combine the remaining mixture onto the potatoes. Place potatoes around the turkey tenderloins. Pour in chicken stock/broth and cover.
- Cook on LOW for 3 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F.
- Remove turkey from crock pot and slice on a cutting board. Top with gravy, chives, and/or additional salt & pepper to taste.
Video
Notes
- Reserve 1.5 cups of broth/juice after cooking to make turkey gravy.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Gretchen Babcock says
I used 4-5 cloves of garlic instead of shallots as I didn’t have them and 1 cup of chicken broth… I cooked on high for 2 hours then turned to low for the last hour. It was so delicious… kind of like alla. Mama.
Stacy says
I love this recipe! I’m on a calorie diet, it looks very easy. It is September 4,2021. I am going to try this out now with the potatoes and see if this is well worth 3 hours to make this and also how it treats me on the scale. I’ll use the seasoning but not use the butter. I think the broth will make this work just fine and a trivet so that I’m not boiling the turkey itself.
Mike says
Seems way too easy. Giving it a try right now!
Tialyn says
It is getting colder and I have been searching for more slower cooker recipes! Loving this recipe!