Paleo Slow Cooker Chicken Pad Thai with Veggie Noodles

This is a recipe I found through Pinterest. The original recipe is from the Paleopot blog https://paleopot.com/2013/05/paleo-slow-cooker-chicken-pad-thai-with-veggie-noodles/ and I followed it pretty closely, tho I didn't have any fish sauce, so had to leave that out. I use a julienne peeler instead of a spiralizer to make the veggie noodles.

INGREDIENTS

2-3 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs and/or breasts

Salt & pepper to season meat

1 cup coconut milk

1 cup chicken stock

2 heaping Tbsp sunbutter

1 Tbsp coconut aminos

2 tsp Fish sauce (recipe recommends Red Boat, which is Paleo-friendly)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cayenne pepper

Dash of red pepper flakes

2 medium zucchini

1 large carrot

1 can or some fresh bean sprouts (optional)

Green onions, thinly sliced (2 go in broth, others for garnish)

Cashews for garnish

Cilantro for garnish (optional, and I don't use)

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken in a little olive oil in a cast iron skillet (this can be skipped if needed).

Turn slow cooker on th High and add coconut milk and chicken stock. Stir/whisk together well until coconut milk is thoroughly dissolved and mixed with stock. Add sunbutter and fish sauce and continue stirring/whisking until that is dissolved and well-mixed. Add coconut aminos, garlic, ginger, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, and 2 green onions. Mix well. Reduce slow cooker setting to Low. Place chicken into liquid, covering the bottom of the slow cooker and providing a platform to support the noodles. Cover the slow cooker until ready to add noodles.

Julienne peel or spiralize the zucchini and carrot. Rinse the bean sprouts. Mix together.

Gently rest veggie noodles on top of meat in slow cooker - the idea is to steam the noodles, not stew them. Press down very slightly. Re-cover the slow cooker. Cook on Low for 4-6 hours, aiming for 5.

To serve, remove the noodles to a strainer to drain away any liquid. Remove the meat and shred or slice it it before mixing  in some of the liquid from the slow cooker. Place meat & sauce over noodles and garnish with green onions and cashews.