Scatter dried lima beans around raw chicken thighs, together with 3 ingredients, into slow cooker for a hearty supper that's my default when I don't know what to make

This slow cooker chicken and lima beans is my Depression-era inspired, five-ingredient default supper for the nights when I truly don’t know what to make. It leans on the old-fashioned pairing of inexpensive dried beans and bone-in chicken thighs, cooked low and slow until everything is tender and brothy. The method is wonderfully simple: you scatter dried lima beans around raw chicken thighs in the slow cooker, add just three more pantry ingredients, and walk away. It’s the kind of practical, comforting food generations before us relied on—filling, economical, and surprisingly satisfying for how little effort it takes.

Serve the chicken and lima beans in shallow bowls, making sure to ladle plenty of the savory cooking liquid over the top. A hunk of crusty bread or cornbread is perfect for soaking up the juices, and a simple green salad or steamed greens (like kale or green beans) adds freshness to the plate. If you’d like to stretch the meal for more people, spoon the beans and shredded chicken over cooked rice or buttered egg noodles. A splash of hot sauce or a squeeze of lemon at the table brightens the earthy beans and rich chicken.

Servings: 4

1 1/2 cups dried lima beans, rinsed and picked over

Rinse the dried lima beans under cool running water and pick out any broken beans or small stones. Drain well.

Scatter the drained lima beans evenly over the bottom of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, creating a loose, even layer.

Peel and thinly slice the onion. Scatter the onion slices over the lima beans in the slow cooker.

Nestle the raw chicken thighs, skin side up, directly on top of the beans and onions. The thighs can overlap slightly, but try to keep most of the skin exposed so it can render flavor into the cooking liquid.

Sprinkle the kosher salt evenly over the chicken thighs, beans, and onions.

Pour the chicken broth around the chicken thighs into the slow cooker, being careful not to wash all the salt off the top of the chicken. The beans should be mostly submerged; the tops of the chicken thighs can sit above the liquid.

Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours, or on HIGH for 4 to 5 hours, until the lima beans are very tender and the chicken is cooked through and pulls easily from the bone.

Once cooked, taste the broth and beans and add a little more salt if needed. If you prefer less fat, you can skim some of the rendered chicken fat from the surface with a spoon.

Serve the chicken thighs whole or remove the bones and gently shred the meat back into the beans. Spoon the chicken, lima beans, and plenty of broth into warm bowls and serve hot.

For a touch more flavor without complicating the ingredient list, add freshly ground black pepper at the table or a bay leaf to the slow cooker (removed before serving, though that would technically make it a sixth ingredient). If you’re comfortable stretching the “Depression era” spirit a bit, you can tuck in a chopped carrot or celery stalk with the onions for extra sweetness and aroma. To make this dish richer, stir in a tablespoon of butter at the end while the beans are still hot. If you prefer a slightly thicker, stew-like texture, mash a few spoonfuls of the cooked lima beans against the side of the slow cooker and stir them back in. For a lighter version, remove the chicken skin after cooking and discard it before serving. You can also swap the chicken thighs for drumsticks or a mix of bone-in dark meat, keeping the same method of scattering the dried beans around the raw chicken in the slow cooker.