Drop sliced carrots around raw chicken pieces, alongside 3 ingredients, into slow cooker for a wholesome dinner that's my default when I don't know what to make

This is the kind of supper my mother would have called a “Depression dish” — plain, filling, and made from whatever you had on hand. On days when my mind is tired and I don’t know what to make, I reach for this slow cooker chicken and carrots. You just drop sliced carrots around raw chicken pieces, add three pantry ingredients, put on the lid, and let it quietly turn into a wholesome, comforting dinner. It tastes like the kind of meal that got farm families through long winters: simple, honest, and not fussy at all.

I like to spoon the tender chicken and carrots, along with their brothy juices, over a mound of mashed potatoes or buttered egg noodles so nothing goes to waste. A slice of soft white bread or a biscuit is perfect for soaking up the broth if you’re keeping it very old-fashioned. If you want to round things out a bit more, add a simple side of peas or green beans and maybe a small lettuce salad with a tangy dressing to cut through the richness. Leftovers reheat nicely and can be tucked into a bowl with rice for an easy next-day lunch.

Servings: 4

2 pounds bone-in chicken pieces (legs, thighs, or a mix)

Place your slow cooker crock on a sturdy counter. Pat the raw chicken pieces dry with a paper towel, then lay them in a single layer in the bottom of the slow cooker, skin side up if using skin-on pieces.

Peel the carrots and slice them into 1/2-inch rounds. With clean hands, drop the sliced carrots all around and in between the raw chicken pieces in the slow cooker, letting them fall down into the spaces so they surround the meat.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the condensed cream of chicken soup, chicken broth or water, salt, and black pepper until fairly smooth. It doesn’t need to be perfect; just mix until the soup loosens and the seasonings are distributed.

Pour the soup mixture evenly over the chicken and carrots in the slow cooker, trying to coat as much of the surface as you can. Use the back of a spoon to nudge the sauce around so it seeps down between the pieces.

Cover the slow cooker with the lid. Cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours, or on HIGH for about 3 to 4 hours, until the chicken is very tender and cooked through and the carrots are soft when pierced with a fork.

Once done, taste the cooking liquid and adjust the seasoning with a little more salt and pepper if needed. Serve the chicken and carrots hot, spooning some of the broth and sauce from the bottom of the slow cooker over each portion.

If you prefer a thicker, gravy-like sauce, ladle a cup of the hot cooking liquid into a small saucepan and whisk in 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour or cornstarch, then simmer until thickened and stir it back into the slow cooker. For a little extra color and flavor without adding more ingredients, brown the chicken pieces in a skillet before placing them in the slow cooker, just like farm cooks used to do when they had the time. You can also swap cream of chicken soup for cream of mushroom or cream of celery for a slightly different, but still very humble, flavor. If you have fresh herbs in the garden, a small handful of chopped parsley sprinkled on at the end brightens the dish without changing its simple spirit. To stretch the meal, add one more carrot and serve everything over rice or boiled potatoes, which is how many Midwestern families made a little meat go a long way in lean years.