Slow Cooker Spicy Chicken Cacciatore

Anyone who knows my husband (his name is Richard) knows that he LOVES spicy food. And when I say LOVES (in all caps), I'm not exaggerating. At any given time in our house, you can look in the fridge or pantry and find at least one supremely spicy snack that Rich regularly devours when he returns home from work each day. Ghost pepper peanuts and Ass Kickin' Original salsa are among his favorites, I believe, but he'll pretty much take anything that totes an "insanely hot!" warning on its label. When I tell him something is (or should be) spicy, it's a bit of a double-edged sword; he's both excited to try it and doubtful that he'll actually agree. 

I'm telling you this as a bit of a warning; when I made this recipe, Rich said "this actually has some heat to it." So yes, it's a bit spicy. But it's also unbelievably good. Don't like spice? Reduce the crushed red pepper, or leave it out all together. I'm pretty sure you'll still love it. 

Cooking Light gets all the credit for this one, and I've linked the original recipe for you below; as you'll see, I really only made slight changes.  

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

Original recipe by Phillip Rhodes, Cooking Light (March 2014) - click here for original recipe

All-purpose flour

2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken thighs

1 tbs olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 large red bell peppers, chopped

8 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup dry red wine

1/2 cup tomato puree

2 tbs capers

2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp black pepper

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 can unsalted petite diced tomatoes

2 tbs chopped fresh parsley

Add flour to shallow bowl and dredge chicken thighs in flour. Shake off excess.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil, swirling to coat. Add chicken thighs and cook for 4 minutes on each side. 

Add chicken to slow cooker and reduce heat under skillet to medium. 

Add onion, bell pepper and garlic to skillet and cook for 4 minutes, stirring often. Add wine and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Add to slow cooker.

Add tomato puree, capers, crushed red pepper, dried oregano, black pepper, kosher salt and diced tomatoes (with juice) to slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours.

Serve over mashed potatoes or polenta as desired and sprinkle with parsley. 

Until next time...

Cheers!