Weeknight meal: Slow Cooked Chicken Cacciatore
Need tasty inspiration for a weeknight meal? This Slow Cooked Chicken Cacciatore is sure to satisfy hungry tummies!
Image credit: Canva
This weeknight meal uses chicken drumsticks and chicken thighs, both on the bone. The benefits of using a bone-in chicken is that you also create additional chicken flavour, just like you do when making a chicken stock, and gain access to the yummy chicken marrow. Bone-in chicken is also a fraction of the cost of boneless skinless chicken thighs or chicken breasts. Use what you prefer.
This weeknight meal also creates a soffritto, a mixture of cooked onions, tomatoes and garlic, a key and healthy ingredient featured in the Mediterranean Diet. The Mediterranean Diet has many benefits for your midlife health outlined here.
Depending on your time, I have 2 variations for this weeknight meal:
- Option 1 – Drop and run. Place all ingredients in a slow cooker, turn on and come back when finished
- Option 2 – Layered approach. This approach focuses on flavour building through layering in flavours by browning the chicken, cooking the onions, waking up the tomato paste and concentrating the cooking wine. It involves a bit more cooking before slow cooking. This option elevates the taste of this meal.
Do what you can with this weeknight meal, and let good be good enough!
Weeknight meal: Slow cooked chicken cacciatore
- 1.5 pounds Chicken thighs and drumsticks, skin removed
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- ¼ cup cooking wine (or substitute with chicken broth)
- 1 - 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes
- 1 yellow pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 tsp sugar
- ⅓ cup green olives, halved
- Spices:
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- Option 1: Add all ingredients to a slow cooker. Cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 3 hours.
- Option 2: Heat a Dutch oven, and brown the chicken in 1 tsp oil. Add onions, garlic, and cook for 5-10 minutes, until onion is softened. Add tomato paste and stir. Then add cooking wine (or chicken broth) and heat for 1 minute. Add remaining ingredients, cover and slow cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 3 hours.
- Serve with cooked whole grain noodles, rice or other grain.
This meal can be served with noodles or rice. You might consider trying a whole grain noodle or other whole grain like rice or farro, since the nuttier taste of the whole grain can be matched with the bolder flavours of this meal.
If you are concerned about adding in carbohydrates to this meal, remember that foods rich in carbohydrates, like noodles or rice, contribute B-Vitamins to our diet, and also contribute to our taste satisfaction in the meal, allowing your whole body to feel nourished. This is especially important in a weeknight meal!
Here are some additional ideas of what to serve with Chicken Cacciatore.
Here are some other posts that you might enjoy:
Changing food and eating habits: The 3-step skill you need to learn
Midlife meal planning: 9 tips to help you eat well in your chaotic life.
Having trouble with your portion sizes? There is more to your appetite than your will power
Tagged in: calgary dietician, Calgary Dietitian, Calgary Nutritionist, dietitian, healthy eating, meal planning, Mediterranean diet, midlife nutrition, Over 40, recipe
Welcome to the Energize Nutrition blog, where we share evidence-based nutrition content, designed to empower people’s midlife. Take a look around to find information on feeling your best.
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