Cooking a turkey breast in the slow cooker is a great option if you're making Thanksgiving dinner for just a few people, and I've been cooking turkey this way for years now. But even though I'm updating this recipe for CrockPot Turkey Breast with with Lower-Carb and Gluten-Free Turkey Gravy while everyone's thinking about Carb-Conscious Thanksgiving Recipes, this is a recipe that's easy enough to enjoy turkey for dinner any time of year.

I first made turkey breast in the crockpot back in 2008, after Dianne did it Alanna did it, and Stephanie did it. I was impressed with the completely delicious moist and flavorful turkey this method produced, and it gave me a chance to experiment with making lower-carb and gluten-free turkey gravy using arrowroot starch, which was also a winner.

And I think using the slow cooker is such a brilliant idea for Thanksgiving. I've already gushed about how much I love Spicy CrockPot Sweet Potatoes, which is a recipe I've also loved for years. And I shared my Top Ten Ideas for Slow Cooker Turkey Breast on my slow cooker site, if you want more turkey variations, and at Slow Cooker from Scratch there's also a very informative post with 50+ Ideas for a Slow Cooker Thanksgiving.  So if you're making a big dinner this year, check out those recipes and let the slow cooker free up some space in the oven.

(How to Cook a Turkey Breast in the Crockpot and Lower-Carb and Gluten-Free Turkey Gravy was updated with better photos November 2015. Happy turkey eating everyone!)

Trim skin on the turkey breast and rub the outside with thyme and sage. Heat olive oil in a frying pan and brown the turkey well. (Don't rush this step.) Put browned turkey into the slow cooker, then cook the chicken or turkey stock in the frying pan for a couple of minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan to get all the browned bits. Put that liquid over the turkey breast; then put onion, carrots, and celery around the turkey. Cook on high for 2.5-3 hours, or on low for 5-6 hours, or until the meat thermometer reaches the safe minimum temperature for turkey breast.

When turkey has reached the desired temperature take out the breast and put it on a cutting board while you make the gravy. (You can cover with foil to keep warm.) Strain the liquid from the crockpot into a pan, add a little Penzeys Turkey Soup Base if desired, and simmer to reduce until it has a good turkey flavor. Turn down the heat, mix the arrowroot powder (or thickener of your choice) with cold water to make a slurry, and whisk that into the hot liquid, turning off the heat as soon as it thickens if you're using arrowroot.

And just for historical purposes, here's my original photo of this recipe from back in 2008! Still looking pretty tasty, don't you agree?


Crockpot Turkey Breast with Lower-Carb and Gluten-Free Gravy
(Makes about 4.5 pounds of cooked turkey and 2 cups gravy, about 6 servings. Recipe created by Kalyn with inspiration from Dianne, Alanna, and Stephanie.)

Equipment:
I made this turkey breast in my 6 Quart Ninja Cooker, which gave plenty of room for vegetables to add flavor to the gravy, but you can get away with a smaller slow cooker if that's what you have. Just use less vegetables if needed.

Ingredients:
1 (5 pound) turkey breast with skin and bones (thawed in refrigerator, if frozen)
1 T olive oil
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried sage (rubbed sage)
2-3 large carrots, cut into pieces
2-4 ribs celery, cut into pieces
1 onion, peeled and cut into 4 pieces
2 cups chicken or turkey stock or 2 cups water with 1 T Penzeys Turkey Soup Base
4-6 tsp. arrowroot starch for gravy (or use cornstarch, but arrowroot is slightly lower in carbs and thickens with less starch)

Instructions:
Trim extra skin and fat from turkey breast, leaving the parts of skin that are directly covering the meat. If you have a meat thermometer, pull out the pop-up timer if desired. Rub breast all over and inside with thyme and sage. Heat olive oil in heavy frying pan, then brown turkey breast on both sides and top, about 5 minutes each side.

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South Beach Diet / Low-Carb Diet Suggestions:

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use the Recipes by Diet Type photo index pages to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan.

Nutritional Information?
I chose the South Beach Diet to manage my weight partly so I wouldn't have to count calories, carbs, points, or fat grams, but if you want nutritional information for a recipe, I recommend entering the recipe into Calorie Count, which will calculate it for you.

Check out my picks for Top Ten Ideas for Slow Cooker Turkey Breast, plus Honorable Mentions at Slow Cooker from Scratch.

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