Rioja wine, a dry red wine produced in the Rioja region of Northern Spain, gives this dish its characteristic flavor. But if you don't want to use alcohol, replace the wine with another cup of liquid (either orange juice or chicken broth). Also, if you're short on time, this chicken dish can be cooked on the high-heat setting for 4 hours.
I find most slow-cooker chicken to be quite bland. This recipe, easily assembled, made a sauce that flavored the chicken nicely. Using what I had on hand, I substituted raisings for prunes and cabernet for the rioja. I suspect that using a bit less wine would solve the bitterness judged by another reviewer.
This is one of my favorite slow cooker recipes. Very good and easy to make. I am really surprise by the poor reviews. I would not change a thing. This is one of the few recipes that I follow the exact ingredients and directions. The only time this dish did not turn out well was when I used chicken breast and experimented with a different wine. The wine does make a difference.
I would never make this again. Used decent wine since I thought that may be why others did not have success. I agree with the other reviewers who said that the dish came out VERY bitter. Nearly inedible. It's almost like there were too many ingredients and the flavors got cancelled out resulting in what I can only describe as a "weird" taste. There are so many good recipes out there - don't waste your time with this one.
