Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

Winter returned to our corner of the Midwest with a cold blast this week.  Here's a chicken cacciatore recipe to warm you up on chilly nights.

This dish is an Emeril Lagasse recipe that I have slightly modified.  It is not hard to prepare, but does require some time on the front end.  Once it is in the crock pot, though, you are home free.  Lagasse recommends serving this over pasta, but we most often serve it over brown rice at our house.

The recipe calls for bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.  To save calories, you can substitute chicken breasts or use skinless thighs.  The flavor, however, will not be as rich.  I have tried both, and always come back to bone-in, skin-on thighs.  I do trim off excess skin and fat before cooking.

Crock Pot Chicken Cacciatore

Adapted from Emeril Lagasse

8 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 1/2 teaspoons Emeril’s Original Essence (recipe follows)

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 large yellow onions, sliced

1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2-3 tablespoons minced garlic (can slice or chop for larger chunks if desired)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

1 tablespoon dried basil

1 large or 2 medium bay leaves

1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, cored and rough chopped, with juices

1/2 cup dry white wine (can omit)

1/4 cup tomato paste

seasoned and ready for dredging

Trim excess skin and fat from chicken thighs.  Season both sides with salt and pepper and Essence blend.  Pat gently to make sure seasonings adhere.  Dredge chicken lightly in 1/4 cup flour.

Heat olive oil in large nonstick skillet.  Brown the chicken thighs until golden on both sides.  Transfer chicken to crock pot.

In same skillet, add onions.  Cook until softened and lightly carmelized.  Add red pepper flakes, garlic, oregano, rosemary, basil, bay leaves and 2 tablespoons flour.  Cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes.

sauce ready to go in crock pot

Add tomatoes, wine, tomato paste and stir to combine and heat through.  Pour tomato mixture over chicken in crock pot.  Cook on low for 6 hours or so, until chicken is cooked through and bones easily pull out.

Remove bones, skin, and cartilage.   Pull meat apart into chunks.  Serve over rice or pasta.

Recipe for Emeril Lagasse Essence

5 parts paprika

4 parts salt

2 parts: garlic powder

ground black pepper

onion powder

cayenne pepper

dried oregano

dried thyme

Printable recipe