Chicken Chasseur is a childhood classic for many of us, and this slow cooker version couldn't be easier. Chicken thighs and vegetables in a rich wine and tomato sauce is total comfort food. Slow Cooker Chicken Chasseur is great for batch cooking and freezing too.
When you want a comforting meal, that doesn't take much effort, this Slow Cooker Chicken Chasseur is what you need. Tender chicken that just falls apart, in a rich sauce without a packet mix in sight. This is the simplest chicken chasseur recipe and a great way to use your slow cooker.
If you are looking for some other slow cooker recipes, then why not try our Slow Cooker Beef Curry, Slow Cooker Bolognese or Slow Cooker Bread?
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What is chicken chasseur?
Chicken chasseur is a classic French dish, and one most of us probably grew up eating as it felt "fancy". The word ‘chasseur’ means a soldier who is trained and ready to ‘hunt’. This is why it is also known as hunters chicken (although different from our Hunter's Chicken recipe) as the literal translation is ‘hunters chicken’. It’s a chicken dish with mushrooms in a rich tomato, onion and wine sauce (you can use red or white).
Why you will love it
- A great way to use the slow cooker - If you are looking for new ways to use your slow cooker, then this chicken chasseur recipe is a good place to start.
- Comforting - Slow cooked chicken is like a hug in a bowl. Add in the rich sauce and some chunky vegetables and it's total comfort food.
- Adaptable - Use this recipe as a base, and then feel free to add in some other vegetables.
- Versatile - There are so many different ways that you can serve this slow cooker chicken chasseur too. With mash, crusty bread, or just a big bowl of it by itself.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Oil - A good quality olive oil to brown the chicken in.
- Chicken - We used boneless and skinless chicken thighs, as we find that they have the most flavour. They are moist and juicy, and perfect for slow cooking. You could use chunks of chicken breast, however this doesn't have the same flavour.
- Salt and pepper - Generously season.
- Onion - You can use a small brown onion, or use shallots which would add a sweeter flavour.
- Carrot - Adds some chunky texture to the dish.
- Mushrooms - We used button mushrooms, but you could use a mixture of white and brown mushrooms. Or even some portobello and shiitake if you wanted a real mixture of textures.
- Garlic - Freshly crushed is always best, but you could use crushed garlic from a jar to save time.
- Stock - The quality of the stock is important, as it adds a real richness to the dish. We used a chicken stock pot, but you could make your own chicken stock.
- Tomatoes - The quality of the tomatoes is important here too, as cheap tinned tomatoes tend to be really watery and this will give a thin sauce. So, try to get the best quality tomatoes that you can.
- Tomato puree - This will help to thicken the sauce and add a richer tomato sauce.
- White wine - This is optional (you could just add some more stock), but it adds a lovely rich flavour. You could use red wine instead if you prefer.
- Thyme - The perfect herb for this dish.
A full ingredients list with measurements is in the recipe card below.
How to make slow cooker chicken chasseur - Step by step
One: Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
Two: Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat and add the chicken (a). Brown for 4 minutes, then turn over and brown for a further 3 minutes (b).
Three: Put the browned chicken thighs into the slow cooker.
Four: Add the chopped onions, sliced carrots, quartered mushrooms and garlic to the slow cooker.
Five: In a jug, mix together the stock, wine, chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and thyme.
Six: Pour the stock into the slow cooker and carefully mix everything together, ensuring the chicken doesn't break.
Seven: Cook on high for 4 hours.
Variations
This is a really forgiving and easy to adapt with other ingredients you have that need using up. You really can't ruin this dish if you use a little less of something or a little extra of something else (apart from the stock as you don't want it to be too watery) and you can cook it for a little longer if you aren't ready to eat it after the 4 hours cooking time.
You can follow the recipe exactly, or add in different vegetables to suit your own tastes. Other veggies that work well are sweet potatoes, leek, parsnips, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, swede, butternut squash and aubergine. You could even add some spinach towards the end for a bit of a green veggie boost. This is a great recipe to reduce food waste, as you can pretty much add anything.
An easy way to add some extra flavour is by adding some cooked chopped ham or bacon before serving.
What to serve with slow cooker chicken chasseur
We think that mashed potatoes go perfectly with this chicken chasseur. Here are some mashed potatoes recipes to try - Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, Vegetable Mash or The BEST Creamy Mashed Potatoes. You could also serve it on top of a jacket potato. Why not try our Air Fryer Jacket Potato recipe?
You could serve it with rice too if potatoes aren't your thing. Why not try our Oven Cooked Rice or Perfect Microwave Rice?
We always like serving some extra vegetables where we can, so we served our Cabbage with Cumin with this. But you could also serve it with Garlic Spring Greens or Roasted Tenderstem Broccoli.
Storage
Store: Once the casserole has completely cooled, you can put it in an air tight container and it will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Freeze: This freezes really well, which is why we make a big batch of this to keep in the freezer. It will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Defrost: You can leave this to defrost in the fridge overnight.
Reheat: You can put it in the microwave for 2 minutes, or heat through on the hob (stovetop).
Frequently Asked Questions
Because this is cooked in the slow cooker with the lid on, no liquid can escape so slow cooker dishes are always more liquidy. We don't mind this so much, however if you want your slow cooker chicken chasseur thicker, then you can take the chicken thighs out, pour the rest of the dish into a saucepan and then simmer until it has reduced. If your slow cooker insert bowl can go straight on the hob, then you can do it in that too. You can also add a cornflour slurry to thicken it (although we don't like the flavour this adds) or even a little chicken gravy granules for a quick way to thicken it.
These are added at the start of cooking, however they do release a lot of liquid, you might need to thicken it if you don't like a thin sauce.
You don't have to, but frying it a little first does lock in the flavours and give it a crispy outside, and although that does give the dish a little more flavour, we don't find that the meal is missing anything without it. It's more important to seal the meat in something like our Slow Cooker Beef Curry.
We have cooked ours on high for 4 hours, however you can cook it on low for 8 hours. As mentioned before, this is a pretty forgiving recipe though. So if you are cooking it on high, then 6 hours will be fine too and if cooking it on low then it will still be delicious after 10 hours.
Extra tips
• This might not look like a lot of liquid to add, but slow cooking doesn't release a lot of liquid, so if you add too much then the finished dish will have too much liquid.
• If your chicken chasseur is too thin, you can add a cornflour slurry to it or even some gravy granules.
• Feel free to adapt the vegetables that you use.
More slow cooker chicken recipes
If you’ve tried this slow cooker chicken chasseur recipe, let us know how you got on in the comments below.
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Recipe
Slow Cooker Chicken Chasseur
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Olive oil
- 4 Chicken thighs
- 2 pinch Sea salt and ground black pepper
- 1 Onion - finely chopped
- 2 Carrot - sliced
- 3 Garlic clove - crushed
- 220 g (2.25 cups) Button mushrooms - quartered
- 175 ml (0.75 cups) White wine
- 400 ml (1.75 cups) Chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon Tomato puree
- 200 g (1.33 cups) Chopped tomatoes - tinned
- 0.5 teaspoon Dried thyme
Instructions
- Season 4 Chicken thighs with 2 pinch Sea salt and ground black pepper.
- Heat 2 tablespoon Olive oil in a pan over a medium heat and add the chicken. Brown for 4 minutes, then turn over and brown for a further 3 minutes.
- Put the browned chicken thighs into the slow cooker.
- Add 1 Onion, 2 Carrot, 220 g Button mushrooms and 3 Garlic clove to the slow cooker.
- In a jug, mix together 400 ml Chicken stock, 175 ml White wine, 200 g Chopped tomatoes, 1 tablespoon Tomato puree and 0.5 teaspoon Dried thyme.
- Pour the stock into the slow cooker and carefully mix everything together, ensuring the chicken doesn't break.
- Cook on high for 4 hours.
Recipe Tips
- This might not look like a lot of liquid to add, but slow cooking doesn't release a lot of liquid, so if you add too much then the finished dish will have too much liquid.
- If your chicken chasseur is too thin, you can add a cornflour slurry to it or even some gravy granules.
- Feel free to adapt the vegetables that you use.
Nutritional Information
The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
As all appliances vary, cooking times are a guide. Please note that by changing the serving size, the cooking time may also need to be altered.
Holley says
I wish I had this recipe growing up! Super delicious and comforting!
Kim says
Delicious! This is a perfect slow cooker dinner for our cold weather rotation, and I love how rich and comforting it is! Wonderful flavors!
Chris says
Hi, could you use chicken breasts instead of thighs ( hubby hates thighs ♀️) and if so does the cooking time change? Thanks
Dannii says
Yes, you could but they won't be as juicy. It won't change the cooking time.
Mark says
Hi, I am wondering if I could use skinless chicken thighs. Have this recipe set up for tomorrow. Thanking you
M Forde
Bob says
Recipe is for skinless chicken thighs.
Gen says
I absolutely love the flavors in this recipe! Thank you. I’ll be making this again and again.
Mirlene says
Talk about comfort food! This slowcooker dish had exceptional flavors and ideal for a great family dinner. Was so delicious!
Amanda Wren-Grimwood says
Another great slow cooker recipe that is pure comfort. This is a real family friendly recipe and I can't wait to try it.
Lesley Robinson says
Can you use a white wine stock pot instead of the wine. If so do I need to adjust the amount of liquid.
Dannii says
Yes, you can replace wine with stock and use the same amount.
Mark says
Woops. I read back through post. Apologies. I see you used skinless.
OK, I'll be on tomorrow
Janessa says
This looks delicious! I don't think you can ever have too many cozy slow cooker meals in your repertoire and I'm definitely adding this one to our rotation.
Shashi says
This is comfort food heaven - so much flavor! Perfect with some crusty bread!
Aimee Mars says
I didn't have this in my childhood, but I think I'm going to make a thing of my kid's childhood because it looks delicious! I'm all for a good slow cooker recipe.
Chenée says
This is the perfect comfort food recipe! and so easy to make in the slow cooker!
Katherine says
This is wonderful hearty comfort food. Such great flavors!
Gail says
This is such a cozy and comforting recipe! I can literally make this in my slow cooker and have it ready later on without thinking about it again!
Kathleen says
Big fan of slow cooker recipes. This chicken chasseur looks marvelous and I love that it's freezer friendly.
Beth says
Such a great recipe for the slow cooker. The chicken is so meltingly tender!
Tara says
Oh yum! Such a comforting recipe. The flavors sound fantastic and I love the minimal prep with the use of the slow cooker.
Dana says
This reminded me so much of chicken cacciatore! So good and cozy. Perfect for this tie of year.
gunjan says
Came out so flavorful, tender and juicy. It was a perfect dinner andmy family loved it.
Saif says
This chicken Chasseur looks absolutely delicious. The wine helps enhance the flavor of the chicken.