Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore is a comforting Italian classic with tender chicken and earthy mushrooms simmered in a rich tomato sauce. Perfect for busy weeknights, this easy one-pot meal is a hearty dish the whole family will enjoy!
An Easy Italian Chicken Dinner
Craving a meal that’s both comforting and simple to make? Chicken cacciatore brings together succulent chicken, colorful bell peppers, and earthy mushrooms in a savory tomato sauce. Our rich cacciatore sauce is flavored with mushrooms, onions, garlic, Italian herbs, fire-roasted tomatoes, and red bell peppers for maximum flavor.
Why We Love This Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
Between an Italian husband and a house full of hungry kids, this Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore has a permanent spot on our weekly menu. We used to cook it on the stovetop, but we found that using a crockpot made it far easier to prepare. Here’s why we love this one-pot meal:
- So Flavorful: The chicken comes out incredibly tender, juicy, and packed with rich flavor after simmering in the cacciatore sauce all day.
- Easy To Make: No stirring, no constant watching — just set it and let it go!
- Family Friendly: Even our pickiest eaters love the tender chicken and savory tomato sauce.
Served over some tender pasta, this hearty chicken dinner is always a family favorite. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do! If you make it, please leave us a comment and let us know how it turns out for you. – Ellen
Looking for more easy crockpot chicken dinners? Try our easy Crockpot Chicken Marsala or Crockpot French Onion Chicken!
Key Ingredients
Below you will find helpful notes for key ingredients used to make this recipe for slow cooker chicken cacciatore. Scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and exact amounts!
- Diced Tomatoes: We love using fire roasted diced tomatoes as they add a smoky depth of flavor to the sauce, but regular diced tomatoes will work well too. Do not drain the tomatoes, you want all the juice!
- Chicken Better Than Bouillon: You can swap this with a cube of chicken bouillon if preferred.
- Chicken: You can use breasts or thighs! Just make sure they’re boneless and skinless.
- Bell Pepper: You can use any color of bell pepper, but we prefer the flavor of a milder sweet yellow, red, or orange bell pepper.
- Mushrooms: We prefer the taste of portobello mushrooms and we always slice them thick. That way they don’t cook down too much in the slow cooker and keep more of their texture.
- Seasonings: We use a simple, flavorful medley of crushed red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Adjust these to your tastes.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
This effortless one-pot meal is a real weeknight staple! With just a few minutes of prep, your slow cooker does the rest! Below is a quick recipe overview, but please scroll down to the recipe card for full instructions.
- Make the Sauce: Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, bouillon, and garlic to the slow cooker and stir.
- Add the Remaining Ingredients: Lay the chicken on top of the sauce. Add the onions, bell peppers and mushrooms to the crockpot. Season it all.
- Cook: Cover and cook. We like to cook it low and slow for 8 hours, but you can crank up the heat to high and cook for about 4 to 5 hours if you’re in a time crunch. The lower and slower cook time allows the chicken to become fully tender, but also helps to create a deeply flavorful sauce.
Cook’s Tips & Variations
- Thicken The Sauce: If you would prefer a thicker sauce, you can thicken it by removing the lid from the crockpot for the last 60 to 90 minutes of cook time. Or combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water and stir it into the sauce and let cook for 10 minutes.
- Sear The Chicken: We typically don’t sear the chicken – we like to keep things nice and easy! However, you can always quickly sear the chicken on your stovetop before tossing it in the slow cooker to finish cooking.
- Add Olives: While my Italian husband would disagree, some families add sliced black olives to their cacciatore! Feel free to add up to 1/2 cup!
Serving Suggestions
- Slice or Shred: The choice is yours! The chicken will be tender enough to shred with two forks, or you can serve it whole or slice it into pieces.
- Sides: Pasta, rice, polenta, or mashed potatoes are all great options.
- Low Carb Sides: It’s also tasty served over cauliflower rice or zucchini noodles for a lighter option.
- Leftovers Make a Great Sandwich: Pile the shredded chicken on a crusty roll with melted mozzarella for an Italian-style sandwich.
Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced fire roasted tomatoes, do not drain
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon chicken, or 1 chicken bouillon cube
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic, or more for the garlic lovers!
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- 8 oz mushrooms, sliced thick
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, chicken bullion, and minced garlic to the crockpot. Stir to mix together the sauce.
- Add half of the onion and bell pepper to the crockpot and lay the chicken on top. Place the mushrooms around and on top of the chicken. Season everything with the Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper.
- Place the lid on the crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 to 5 hours, until the chicken is fork tender. If you like a thicker sauce, remove the lid from the crockpot for the last hour of cook time.
- Serve with pasta, rice, or with mashed potatoes, and of course some crusty bread. We like to serve ours with a hearty sprinkle of parmesan cheese!
Great crockpot dinner! Definitely going into rotation. Love easy crockpot meals
how can i make without tomatos
Hi Jamie! The tomatoes are a pretty integral part of a cacciatore sauce and are needed for flavor. You could try it without, but we can not guarantee what the results will taste like.