Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
with zucchini noodles / lemony asparagus
Chicken Cacciatore is a rustic Italian dish that is hearty and satisfying served over zucchini "noodles" with simple pan-seared asparagus on the side. The slow cooker allows chicken thighs to get super tender while they cook in a flavorful tomato sauce.
Ingredients
- Onions, medium - 1, chopped
- Bell peppers, any color - 1, chopped
- Garlic - 6 cloves, chopped
- Tomatoes, crushed (28 oz / 794 g) - 1 can
- Italian seasoning - 1 tsp
- Salt - 1 tsp
- Oregano, dried - 1/2 tsp
- Red pepper flakes (opt) - 1/4 tsp
- Chicken thighs, boneless and skinless - 1 lb
- Zucchini - 1 lb, spiralized, sliced into noodles with a peeler, or sliced
- Oil, cooking - 1 Tbsp
- Asparagus - 12 oz, trimmed
- Pine nuts (opt) - 2 Tbsp (sub chopped walnuts or pecans)
- Oil, cooking - 1 Tbsp
- Lemon juice - 2 tsp
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Onions / Bell peppers - Prep as directed and combine. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Slow cook chicken - Chop garlic. Combine garlic, onions, bell peppers, tomatoes (including liquid), Italian seasoning, salt, oregano and red pepper flakes in the bowl of a slow cooker. Nestle chicken thighs in the sauce. Cook chicken until tender and easily shredded with a fork, low for 7 to 8 hours (or high for 4 to 5 hours).
- Asparagus - Trim asparagus. (Can be done up to 2 days ahead)
- Zucchini - Turn zucchini into 'noodles' with a spiralizer or peel off strips with a peeler.
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Make
- Heat a skillet or pan over medium heat. Toast pine nuts for 3 to 4 minutes, until fragrant. Set aside.
- Return pan to medium-high heat and add oil (portion for the asparagus). Add asparagus and saute for 4 to 8 minutes, until tender but still crunchy. Season with some salt and transfer to a serving dish. Top with lemon juice and pine nuts.
- While asparagus is cooking, heat a second skillet over medium heat. Add oil (portion for the zucchini ) and zucchini with a sprinkle of salt. Saute until zucchini is tender, ~2 minutes for zucchini noodles and 4 minutes for zucchini slices.
- Taste chicken and sauce; season with some salt and pepper.
- Serve chicken and sauce over zucchini noodles. Enjoy with asparagus on the side.
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
49 reviews
Did the chicken in the instant pot using the directions from the FB group. Fast and fairly easy.
0 HelpfulGood quick busy weeknight made in crockpot in am. Added a bit of paste to thicken. Did not make the Asparagus. Likely will keep I’m crockpot rotation.
0 HelpfulLate to this one, but it was delicious! We replaced the asparagus with green beans and the pine nuts with sliced almonds. I used one can of crushed fire roasted tomatoes and one crushed tomatoes with basil. Based on the reviews we also added a little Better Than Bouillonon and cornstarch slurry at the end, making a thicker, flavorful sauce. Will definitely be making again.
0 HelpfulFlavor was a little bland and mostly tasted of peppers and onions. Next time I would use crushed tomatoes with basil, and add olives and mushrooms at the end.
0 Helpful