Chicken Cacciatore Soup (Chicken Tomato Stew)
Save Recipe
This slow cooker chicken cacciatore is a Mediterranean-inspired dish made with tender chicken thighs, stewed tomatoes, olives and herbs. It’s perfect for a lazy Sunday meal prep or a hands-off weeknight dinner because the slow cooker (or crock pot)does all the work.Note - ingredients can be approximate
Equipment
- slow cooker, with searing function (optional)
Ingredients
- 1.5 kg (3 ⅓ lb) chicken thighs , boneless, approx. 8
- 1 onion,
- 4 cloves garlic
- 6 carrots,
- 300 g (2 cups) kalamata olives, subs note 1
- 500 g (1 lb) mushrooms, button
- 700 g (3 cups) passata
- 400 g (14 oz) diced tomatoes, subs note 2
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire, subs note 3
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 sprig rosemary, fresh recommended, see note 4
- 4 bay leaves, fresh recommended, see note 4
Rice (cooked your way, or see my post for top tips)
- 400 g (1 cups) rice, yields 6 cups cooked
Instructions
Preparation
- Dice: 1 onion and 4 cloves garlicSlice: 6 carrots, 500 g (1 lb) mushrooms to desired consistency
Cook
- In the slow cooker on a searing function (or on the stove) gently saute onion and garlic for 2 minutes.
- Add 1.5 kg (3 ⅓ lb) chicken thighs and brown for 1 minute each side
- To the slow cooker add the onion, garlic and chicken (if cooked on the stove) then add: carrots, 300 g (2 cups) kalamata olives, 700 g (3 cups) passata, 400 g (14 oz) diced tomatoes, 1 tbsp worcestershire, 1 sprig rosemary, 4 bay leaves. Stir and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.
- With 30 minutes left, remove rosemary and bay leaves and add mushrooms and 1 tbsp white sugar. Taste the sauce and adjust as necessary (too acidic? Add more sugar)See note 5 if you plan on eating straight away and want it thicker. For meal prep, it'll naturally thicken in the fridge.
- At this time, you can also begin to prepare your 400 g (1 cups) rice. You can do this however you like, or you can follow some of my tips & tricks for cooking rice.
Notes
Note 1 - Kalamata olives
Substitutions - green olives or capers. If note a fan of any, you can omit, but I recommend adding extra salt or vinegar to break up the acidity of the tomatoes.
Note 2 - Diced Tomatoes
Substitute 400g tinned tomatoes with 4-5 medium-sized fresh tomatoes (approx. 400-450g in total). Fresh tomatoes will have more water content so may have to be cooked longer to achieve the same consistency.
Note 3 - Worcestershire Sauce
You can substitute for any type of vinegar or acid (e.g. lemon juice)
Note 4 - Rosemary and Bay Leaves
I recommend fresh rosemary and the dried bay leaves (as they're easily accessible from the supermarket), however you can use dried rosemary and omit the bay leaves but the flavour won't be as deep.
Note 5 - Thickening
If it's not thick enough for your liking (and you're serving straight away), mix 1 tablespoon corn starch with 2 tablespoon water and stir into the sauce. Leave lid off for approx. 20 minutes and you'll notice it starts to thicken.
Storing
Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. If storing with rice, I recommend storing on opposite sides of the container so the rice doesn't soak up the liquid before reheating.
Reheating
Stove. Reheat over medium heat for approx. 5 minutes. Continuously stirring until warmed through.
Microwave. Drizzle a bit of water over the rice, and reheat with the stew on 1 minute intervals until heated through (approx. 3 minutes)
Freezing
Freeze stew (avoid combining with the rice) for up to 6 months in freezer safe containers, ziplock or vacuum sealer.
Nutrition
Calories: 737kcalCarbohydrates: 62gProtein: 39gFat: 38gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 184mgSodium: 825mgPotassium: 1324mgFiber: 6gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 8447IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 105mgIron: 5mg
Tried this recipe?Please consider Leaving a Review!
