Crock Pot Turkey and Dressing Recipe

This Crock Pot Turkey and Dressing recipe is the perfect recipe to make on Thanksgiving day when there will be 2-4 individuals at the dinner table.

Best of all, it takes little time to prepare, and even less hands on cooking time because the crock pot does all the work for you!

Simply place the turkey breast in the slow cooker and add a simple homemade dressing on top. And within a few hours, the two most important items of your classic Thanksgiving dinner items are ready to be served!

And just in case you are wondering, if it is just the two of you, you will have plenty extra to make all of your favorite leftover turkey recipes. Be sure to check out some of my favorite leftover recipes which I have listed at the end of this article.

Crock Pot Turkey and Dressing Recipe

*A printable recipe card is located at the bottom of this article which contains the specific measurements, temperatures and cook times. However, continue reading below to learn about more helpful tips about this specific recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 lb. boneless turkey breast
• ½ cup chicken broth
• 1 loaf standard white sandwich bread, cubed
• 1 apple, cored and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• ½ teaspoon pepper

HELPFUL TIPS ABOUT THE INGREDIENTS

1. Boneless Turkey Breast

You can easily find a boneless turkey breast this time of the year. Most often you will find them in the same area as the frozen turkeys.

Depending on the brand, the turkey breast will typically weigh approximately 2-4 pounds. And most often it will still have the skin attached and include a packet of turkey gravy as well.

*Important tip – Be sure that you let the turkey breast thaw completely before placing it into the slow cooker.

2. Chicken Broth

Because turkey breast is a lean cut of meat it can become tough and dry when using traditional cooking methods. To prevent this from happening pour a little chicken broth in the slow cooker to keep the turkey moist. However, you could substitute chicken stock, or vegetable stock or broth if desired.

3. Sandwich Bread

Although you could use packaged bread cubes to make the dressing, I prefer to cut my own cubes out of a loaf of standard size sandwich bread.

Do this by using a serrated knife to cut 3-4 slices of bread at a time in 1/2 – 1 inch cubes. Try to keep them as uniform in size as possible.

And if you have time, I highly suggest you do this the night before you are making your Crock Pot Turkey & Dressing to allow the bread to become slightly stale and a little crusty on the outside surface.

This will allow the dressing to remain intact and not become a soggy mess when cooked.

4. Apple

Use any variety of apple that you have on hand for this recipe. The natural sweetness of the apple adds a little flavor to the dressing.

However, don’t waste your time peeling the apple. Instead, use a sharp knife to cut the flesh away from the core. Then dice the apple into fine pieces.

5. Celery

Just to clarify, an entire bunch of celery is called a stalk and the individual celery sticks are called ribs. I only bring this up because the terms are often used interchangeably in a variety of recipes that are published.

Therefore, this recipe calls for two ribs of celery, meaning two sticks of celery. I recommend using small to medium size ribs rather than the tall, large ones.

6. Onion

Use a small yellow, white or sweet onion and dice it finely. If you aren’t a huge fan of onion, or your onion is on the bigger side of small, reduce the amount per your preference.

7. Salt & Ground Black Pepper

Although most recipes give the recipe maker the option of adding salt & pepper to taste, I have listed the specific amounts required in this recipe.

Both turkey and dressing are rather bland in nature. Therefore, these two staple seasonings will flavor the meat the dressing during the cooking process.

However, feel free to use additional salt & pepper to taste when serving.

8. Poultry Seasoning

Beyond popular belief, if you still have poultry seasoning stored in your cupboard that you bought last year, you can use it again for your Thanksgiving dinner this year as well.

Although you may follow the practice to replace your kitchen spices every 6 months to a year, this isn’t the common safety practice any longer.

In fact, most ground spices, if stored properly in an air-tight container in a temperature controlled atmosphere can be stored for 2-3 years.

9. Ground Sage

Although there is ground sage in the poultry seasoning, a little more gives the dressing that classic flavor.

INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO MAKE CROCK POT TURKEY & DRESSING

The first thing that you need to do is to remove the packaging from the turkey breast. This includes both the plastic wrap and the netting that surrounds the breast.

I also remove the skin attached to the top of the breast by simply pulling it away from the top surface. This helps prevent too much fat from being released while the turkey is being cooked.

If your turkey breast came with a gravy packet, place it in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Then place the turkey breast in the crock pot and pour the chicken broth over top. Set the slow cooker aside and prepare the dressing.

Make The Homemade Dressing

In large bowl mix the cubed bread with the diced apple, celery, onion, salt, poultry seasoning, sage and pepper. Toss well.

Pace stuffing over top and around the turkey breast. Then lightly pat the dressing down towards the turkey and broth.

The bread cubes will not be entirely in the liquid and that is okay. Additional moisture will reach the top of the dressing during the cooking process from the condensation on the slow cooker lid.

Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours *Cook time will vary on how thick your turkey breast is and the make and model of your slow cooker. Therefore, adjust cook time accordingly. The turkey is ready when a digital thermometer inserted in the thickest part reads 165°F.

Scoop the stuffing out of the crock pot and place in a serving bowl. Then remove the turkey breast, cover and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Be sure to slice it across the grain so that the meat will be tender.

Serve the crock pot turkey & dressing with Loaded Sweet Potatoes and Easy Cranberry Sauce for a complete Thanksgiving meal!

Just in case you have some leftover turkey, here are some of my favorite leftover turkey recipes:

Leftover Turkey Recipes

• Turkey Tetrazzini
• Leftover Turkey Stew
• Stir Fry
• Turkey Noodle Casserole
• Turkey Pot Pie
• Instant Pot Southwestern Turkey Soup
• Instant Pot Turkey Tetrazzini
• Turkey Chili
• Turkey Quesadilla

Enjoy! Mary

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