Martha Stewart Garlic Chicken Barley Recipe

Set it up and walk away for 2 hours. Martha Stewart’s Garlic Chicken with Barley is a slow cooker chicken recipe that browns a whole cut-up chicken in olive oil, then layers it over pearl barley, chicken broth, white wine, sliced onion, and garlic to cook on low until everything is tender and the barley has soaked up all the liquid.

I make this Martha Stewart chicken recipe on days when I want a real dinner but do not want to babysit anything on the stove. It is one of Martha Stewart’s best chicken recipes for fall and one of her most comforting chicken dishes and winter, the kind of slow cooker meal that makes the whole house smell like garlic and tarragon while you do something else for two hours. Frozen peas and fresh tarragon go in at the end to keep things bright.

Try More Dinner Recipes:

• Chicken And Dumplings
• Chicken Pot Pie
• White Chicken Chili

Why You Will Love This Garlic Chicken With Barley:

• The slow cooker does everything: You brown the chicken, layer everything in the pot, set it to low, and come back in 2 hours. I have started this before running errands and come home to dinner already done.
• Barley absorbs all the flavor: The pearl barley cooks in the broth, wine, garlic, and chicken drippings so every spoonful is packed. It is heartier than rice and has a chewy texture I really like.
• The peas and tarragon finish it: They go in right at the end so the peas stay bright green and the tarragon tastes fresh, not cooked out. It takes a heavy dish and makes it feel like spring showed up at the table.

Garlic Chicken With Barley Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds), cut into 10 pieces
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2/3 cup pearl barley
• 1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon

How To Make Martha Stewart Garlic Chicken With Barley

1. Brown the chicken: Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. In a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker with a browning option, brown the chicken in the olive oil, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate. If your slow cooker does not have a browning option, just remove the skin from the chicken.
2. Layer and cook: Add the barley, chicken broth, white wine, onion, and garlic to the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Place the chicken pieces on top. Cover and cook on low until the chicken is cooked through, about 2 hours.
3. Add the peas and serve: Stir the thawed peas and chopped tarragon into the barley. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a platter and arrange the chicken on a bed of barley. Serve immediately.

Recipe Tips

• Brown the chicken if you can: If your slow cooker has a browning option, use it. Those 8 to 10 minutes of searing build a layer of flavor that the slow cooker alone cannot replicate. I have made it both ways and the browned version is noticeably better.
• No browning option? Remove the skin: Martha says if you cannot brown the chicken, just take the skin off before adding it to the slow cooker. Skin that does not get seared turns rubbery and unpleasant in a slow cooker. I always remove it if I skip the browning step.
• Add the peas last: The peas and tarragon go in after the 2 hours of cooking, not before. If you add them at the start, the peas turn mushy and grey and the tarragon loses all its flavor. I stir them in right when the lid comes off.
• Use pearl barley, not hulled: Pearl barley cooks faster and has a softer texture. Hulled barley is chewier and takes much longer, which would throw off the timing in this recipe.

What Goes Well With This Garlic Chicken

This dish is already a complete meal with the barley and peas, so I keep sides minimal. A loaf of sourdough bread torn into chunks for soaking up the broth at the bottom of the pot is all I usually make. If I want a green on the table, a quick caesar salad takes five minutes.

On colder nights, I have served this alongside a bowl of butternut squash soup and the combination is perfect. Soup and slow cooker chicken with barley is the kind of dinner that makes you want to stay at the table.

How To Store Leftovers

Store the chicken and barley together in an airtight container. The barley soaks up more liquid as it sits, so the leftovers will be thicker than the original dish. Keeps 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Freezes well for up to 3 months since the barley and chicken both hold up after thawing.

To reheat, warm it in a saucepan with a splash of chicken broth to loosen the barley back up. I stir it gently over medium heat until everything is hot through. The tarragon fades a bit overnight, so I sometimes chop a little fresh tarragon on top of the reheated version. Makes it taste just-made again.

FAQs

• What wine should I use? Martha says a dry Sauvignon Blanc works best and would also make a good drink alongside the meal. I keep a bottle of cheap dry white in the fridge for cooking. If you do not cook with alcohol, Martha says to substitute low-sodium chicken broth instead.
• Can I use a regular pot instead of a slow cooker? You can make this in a Dutch oven on the stove. Brown the chicken the same way, add everything, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on low heat for about 45 minutes to an hour until the barley is tender. I check at 45 minutes.
• What does “cut into 10 pieces” mean? A whole chicken cut into 10 pieces usually means 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, 2 wings, and each breast split in half. I ask the butcher to do this for me because it is faster and cleaner than doing it at home.
• Can I use a different grain? Pearl barley is the best fit because it cooks in 2 hours and absorbs flavor without getting mushy. I have not tried farro or wheat berries in this recipe, but they would likely need more liquid and longer cooking time. I would stick with the barley.

More Dinner Recipes:

• Chicken Divan
• One-Pot Pasta
• Chicken Sausage And Bean Casserole

Nutrition Facts

(1 serving, serves 4)

• Calories: 580
• Total Fat: 22g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Cholesterol: 165mg
• Sodium: 620mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 38g
• Protein: 52g