Chicken With Brown Rice & Barley (Crock Pot) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs (or breasts if you prefer)
3 -4 cups prepared chicken broth
1/2 cup brown rice
1/2 cup pearl barley
1/4 cup Bulgar wheat
2 large carrots, fine dice
2 celery ribs, fine dice
1 small red pepper, fine dice
1/2 large onion, fine dice
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 turkish bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher sea salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon olive oil (optional)

Preparation

Spray inside of 6-quart crockpot with cooking spray or add 1 teaspoon olive oil and coat inside of crockpot.
Add chicken (no need to cut it up, it will fall apart after cooking), and prepared broth.
Add grains, diced vegetables, and seasonings.
Stir to mix ingredients in the crockpot.
Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours.
Remove bay leaf before serving, and season to taste as necessary.
NOTE: the first time I made this I used 2 1/2 cups broth; it was not quite enough as the rice was sticking to the crockpot. 3 1/2 cups of broth seemed to be a better choice, but it depends on your crockpot.