Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore with Mushrooms

This Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore is the easiest way to make this classic Italian dish. The chicken comes out super tender and the sauce is super delicious. Serve it as an easy dinner or to guests for a special occassion.

I cannot get enough of my slow cooker. I feel as though you can adapt *almost* any recipe to the slow cooker if you try hard enough. As luck would have it, this past week I was inspired to whip up something new when a friend requested a lighter version of Chicken Cacciatore that they could freeze for a friend who had a baby on the way.

I was more than willing to give this recipe a trial run, especially since it had been a while since I made anything in the slow cooker. We were going to be out all day anyway, and I had just about all the ingredients on hand. And, as a bonus, we had other friends stop by around dinner time, and since I had more than enough to go around, they decided to stay for dinner.

Let’s just say, you might have a new go-to slow cooker meal for those last-minute unexpected guests. They could not believe how easy it was to make this dish that typically takes an hour or two of mostly hands-on involvement to make otherwise.

Packed with delicious Italian flavors and made special by adding capers and black olives, this dish tastes great with pasta, rice, or spaghetti squash, or it’s terrific tucked in sandwiches with some melted cheese.

Where Does Chicken Cacciatore Come From?

As you might guess by the way it sounds, chicken cacciatore is an Italian dish. “Cacciatore” means “hunter’s-style” and is also referred to as “alla cacciatora” meaning “of the hunter’s wife” who would serve this dish the night before a big hunt to provide enough fuel for the big day ahead.

While this dish is made with boneless, skinless chicken breasts, it is historically made with various bone-in chicken parts (thighs, wings, legs, etc.) that are first seared in olive oil. These are then put to the side while the remaining vegetables are seared in some of the chicken fat, a can of tomatoes are added with herbs and red wine. The chicken is returned to the pan, where it is all cooked together for about another hour at a low simmer. Usually this dish would be served with a crusty bread or over pasta.

Ways to Serve Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore with Mushrooms

I’ve already adjusted this dish to be made in the slow cooker. But why stop there? There are many different ways you can serve this yummy dish up.

• Add over the top of a little pasta — whatever is your favorite kind, it doesn’t matter. Use a whole wheat or added fiber style pasta for additional nutritional value.
• Try this dish over a big helping of zucchini (or other vegetable) noodles or spaghetti squash.
• This chicken goes great with quinoa, brown rice, or another whole grain.
• Add the chicken cacciatore to a bowl and serve with toasted sourdough, baguette, or a French roll on the side for dipping.
• You could also try some seasoned, roasted potatoes right underneath the chicken, veggies, and juices.

Side Dishes to Serve with Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore

While you can serve this dish with lots of different options “under” it, why stop there? Add some healthy side dishes to round this meal out.

Ideas for Customizing Chicken Cacciatore with Mushrooms

For some people, mushrooms is a four-letter word. I get it. It’s a very polarizing food. If that’s a no-no for you, simply skip the mushrooms. Other ways you can customize this dish include:

• Use whatever chicken you have on hand. Bone-in is fine as well as boneless chicken thighs. Be sure to take the skin off your chicken though first and make sure your chicken is done by using a food thermometer. It should read 160 degrees F for breasts and 165 degrees F for thighs and drumsticks.
• You can also add a couple of diced carrots to the crock before cooking.
• Skip the fire roasted tomatoes if you don’t care for spice and just use regular roasted or diced tomatoes or the Italian seasoned ones.
• You can swap green pepper for any color pepper you have on hand.
• Leave the red pepper flakes out of the recipe and serve on the side along with hot sauce in case some prefer their meals hot and some do not.
• Skip the black olives or serve on the side if you have picky eaters.