Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
Published 12/21/2021 โข Updated 8/28/2023
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Start your week off right and meal prep this chicken cacciatore slow cooker recipe! It has all of the traditional and savory flavors of chicken cacciatore, but it’s ready in no time with very few steps!
If you are a big slow cooker fan, try our crockpot sesame chicken, honey sriracha crockpot chicken, or this crockpot chicken chili!
Chicken Cacciatore Slow Cooker Recipe – An Italian Favorite
Have you ever been asked the question “If you could eat one type of cuisine for the rest of your life, what would it be?”? Every single time my answer is ITALIAN.
Meat, cheese, crunchy bread, green salads, red onion, wine, and pasta. PASTA. I just love the spices and flavors of Italian cooking.
I also love Italian culture. The very first trip Lee and I ever took together was a study abroad trip to Italy. We studied, took cooking classes, and ate delicious food. I fell in love with Italian culture, PDA, and the intentional time Italians spend on their food for their people.
Actually, the cooking class that Lee and I took in Italy is where we both learned how to make a traditional chicken cacciatore! Cacciatore (or alle cacciatora) means “hunters style”. The dish is traditionally made with wild game.
You throw your meat into a pot with tomato sauce, onion, herbs, and olives and you let it slow cook in a dutch oven. It is a delicious process!
Our chicken cacciatore recipe uses all of the traditional ingredients of a traditional cacciatore, but we throw it all in a crock pot for ease. Give it all a stir at the end, and serve it over your favorite pasta — seriously, the tenderness of this slow cooker chicken cacciatore cannot be beat.
Chicken Cacciatore Tips + Tricks
There is really nothing you can do to screw up this chicken cacciatore slow cooker recipe. One thing I really love about this recipe is the flavor of the tomato sauce after you have let it slow cook for hours. It’s so scrumptious.
Some of the things to keep in mind before making this chicken cacciatore slow cooker recipe.
Nobody likes squishy vegetables. Don’t slice your sweet peppers too thin. You don’t want them to get too squishy in the slow cooker.
It’s all about the flavor. The flavor of the tomato sauce really depends on your fresh herbs and what Italian Seasoning you have. You guys, our very favorite Italian Seasoning is from Lunds & Byerlys. It has a mixture of real Italian seasoning, but then has chunks of garlic, onion, and more. It’s to die for.
If I’m being honest with you I always add an extra tablespoon if I have this mix on hand! Anyway, buy yourself a quality Italian seasoning, people! Don’t have an Italian seasoning on hand? Use the following dried ingredients:
- oregano
- parsley
- basil
- rosemary
- thyme
Make it your own. If you would like to add different veggies to your chicken cacciatore, feel free to add them! Here are a list of some other great options!
- Potato – cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- Mushrooms – halved
- Cauliflower – cut into chunks
- Spice it up with red pepper flakes
- Use boneless chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts
- Don’t have yellow onion on hand? Any medium onion will do.
Do I have to add olives to chicken cacciatore? Of course you don’t have to add the olives, but they add an insanely delicious flavor to the recipe. Try adding the olives and then picking them out before you eat it!
What do I serve with chicken cacciatore? You can serve this chicken cacciatore slow cooker recipe however you would like, but we would serve it over your favorite pasta! We used pappardelle pasta and it was amazing, but feel free to use anything from spaghetti to zucchini noodles.
What kind of wine goes with chicken cacciatore? The last touch would be to top your cacciatore with parmesan cheese and a glass of wine! We would suggest keeping things Italian with this dish.
We would suggest a Sangiovese red with this delicious dish!
How long does chicken cacciatore last in the refrigerator? You can keep chicken cacciatore in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Check it out!
6 Crockpot Chicken Recipes
Looking for more crockpot chicken recipes? Look no further! Check out 6 similar recipes below. And for an added bonus, check out our Crockpot Freezer Meals post where we teach you how to turn all of these slow cooker recipes into freezer meals.
Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 large red pepper, sliced
- 1 large green pepper, sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 1 3.8- oz. can sliced black olives, drained
- 1 15- oz. can tomato sauce
- 1 15- oz. can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- salt, to taste
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme*
- 6 sprigs fresh rosemary*
- 8 ounces of your favorite pasta
Instructions
- Place red pepper, green pepper, garlic, chicken breast, onion, and black olives into slow cooker.
- Create sauce by mixing together tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, Italian seasoning, and salt.
- Then, pour sauce on top of ingredients in the slow cooker and mix together.
- Finally, create fresh herb bundle by tying thyme and rosemary together with twine. Set on top of everything in slow cooker.
- Cover slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.
- Once the chicken has fully cooked, remove and use 2 forks to shred. Then, remove herb bundle and add the shredded chicken back in and mix.
- Serve over your favorite pasta or eat by itself with a splash of balsamic vinegar and shredded parmesan on top.
Tips & Notes
- If you do not want to use fresh herbs you can alternatively add 1 more tablespoon of Italian seasoning in place of thyme and rosemary.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Fantastic cooking method! It’s always great, no matter how often I make it (nearly every week!).
I love to eat chicken. I often prepare chicken according to familiar recipes. Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore is a new dish for me. I will try to make it
It’s so good and simple! Was going to serve it with cauliflower rice, but then decided that noodles would be better.
I loved the ease of freezing and cooking the meal. My husband and I did not like the taste but that’s not the reason I only gave it 3 stars. It was extremely watery which was not what I expected. I thought it would have more of a spaghetti sauce consistency. We left it in the crockpot for another 1.5hrs with the lid off to try to thicken it. If the ingredients appeal to you I would recommend trying this recipe, you can’t deny the convenience of it and your family might love it. . (sorry I don’t have a picture my hubby dumped a can of spaghetti sauce in the mix before I could snap one-lol)
This was excellent, I prepped the 6 slow cooker freezer meals last Sunday and this was the first one I tried.
I served it with chickpea rotini and Parmesan petals.
Iโm looking forward to the other meals.
The only thing I would make note of is that it didnโt thaw overnight in the fridge. I had to throw it in some warm water this morning, dump the thawed stuff into the slow cooker and then put the chicken back into the water to thaw it.
Wow I love this! We would love it if you gave a review on that past post to tell people how much you loved them!
This is so good and easy! Was going to serve it with cauliflower rice and then decided to serve it the right way with noodles! No regrets ๐
Is the calorie count stated with the pasta?
I made this with quinoa!! So easy and very tasty!!
Looks amazing! Can this recipe be made with an instant pot? What would the different cook times be?
Hi Kacy! I’m sure it can be, but we haven’t tested it. If we do end up testing it we will update the recipe with that information!