Food You’ll Find Here:

Usually Simple, Often French, Always Delicious

Chicken with Tomatoes, Black Olives, and Mushrooms –

Le Poulet avec les Tomates, les Olives Noires, et les Champignons

Usually I make this on top of the stove, but we were so busy that I knew I wouldn’t have time.  We had an optometrist appointment at 1:40, a haircut at 4:15, and Girl Scouts and Karate at 6:00 which doesn’t seem like a tight schedule until you factor in the 20 – 30 minute drive between each one.  And the slow cooker works just fine.

Brown chicken in a little olive oil.  Use as much chicken as your family will eat. I used three boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  Use dark meat with bones if you prefer it.

At this point, I would normally continue cooking on top of the stove, simmering the chicken and tomatoes over low heat for 45 minutes.  But as I had to be out of the house most of the afternoon, I simply added a cup of chicken broth (1 cup of water and a bouillon cube), some white wine, garlic, and tomatoes and put it in the crock pot on low heat.

I used one clove of garlic, and one tomato per person because we like tomatoes.  If you do not like tomatoes a lot, only use one tomato.  I like fresh tomatoes, especially in the summer when they are so delicious, but you may used canned tomatoes if you like.  You may also add other vegetables, onions, peppers, etc. but then it becomes “Chicken with Other Vegetables”.  If you want Chicken with Tomatoes, Black Olives, and Mushrooms, you have to stick with the recipe.  Slow cooker temperatures vary, so adjust yours accordingly.

Season with fresh basil, oregano, salt and pepper.  If you don’t have fresh herbs, use dried.  Fresh is always best.  What a silly photo.  A blurry close-up of a tomato wedge with herbs, salt and pepper.  Either my camera is going or it’s my eyes.  And the optometrist appointment was not for me, although maybe it should have been.  I prefer to believe it’s a problem with the camera.

This was the first attempt at a photo while adding the wine.  I thought the yellow end of the bottle made it difficult to discern that this was a bottle of wine.

So I added more wine in order to take another photo.  And that one was overexposed.

So I tried again.  And then I got it.  Which meant that I had added nearly three times the amount of wine I normally add.  Extra broth, that’s all.  This is cooking, not baking, so it’s all good.

A few hours later when I returned home, the chicken was tender and the tomatoes were lovely.  Add the mushrooms about 20 minutes prior to serving.  While they were cooking, I made rice.  If you prefer, you can make noodles, or quinoa, or potatoes to go with it.  Whatever you like!

About 5 minutes before serving, add the black olives to the chicken.  Serve over or next to your starch with a nice side salad.  Enjoy the blended flavors of the tender chicken, juicy tomatoes, earthy mushrooms, and salty olives.  Bon appétit!

Bien sûr, if there’s any wine remaining in your bottle, pour it into a glass and enjoy it with your meal.

À votre santé,

Bebe