Name: Gluten-free Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients: Two, 15-ounce cans of diced tomatoes (for convenience use pre-seasoned tomatoes from a reliable gluten free source and omit the addition of herbs from the ingredients list); One, 15-ounce can of tomato sauce; 2 tablespoons of fresh or dried parsley; 1 teaspoon sugar; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon of fresh or dried rosemary; 1/2 teaspoon of fresh or dried thyme; 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano; One medium onion minced; One clove of garlic minced; 2 tablespoons of olive oil; One small green bell pepper diced; 1/2 to 1-cup of fresh, cleaned, thickly sliced mushrooms or small can of mushrooms; 2 pounds to 2-1/2 pounds of chicken pieces

Why it works: Rosemary and thyme match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,340 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-one, which smells mushroom, metallic. The science ↓

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Rosemary + thymetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,340 recipes

Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Rosemary + oreganotop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together344 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Parsley + thymetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together9,057 recipes

Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
Thyme + oreganotop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together791 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Tomato + oreganotop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,767 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Chicken pieces: Provides the protein and meaty body that the slow-simmered sauce surrounds.
Diced tomatoes: Form the liquid base of the sauce and add acidity and body as they cook down.
Tomato sauce: Thickens the braising liquid and adds concentrated tomato flavor and moisture.
Olive oil: Carries aroma and adds fat that rounds out the sauce's flavor.
Onion: Adds savory sweetness and depth as it softens into the sauce.
Mushrooms: Add earthy flavor and moisture that enrich the sauce during long cooking.

The step that matters

Cook for eight hours on the low heat setting.. Long, gentle heat lets the chicken become tender and the tomato sauce develop a rounded flavor. Cooking too hot can dry the meat or scorch the sauce, so keep the slow cooker on low.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, sauce, parsley, sugar, rosemary, thyme, oregano):

Carrotfits better
Eggplantfits better
Capsicumfits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, sauce, parsley, sugar, rosemary, thyme, oregano. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Mushrooms	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Mushroom	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Clove	1 tsp ground (2g)	7
Oregano	1 tsp dried (1.8g)	5
Rosemary	1 tsp dried (1.2g)	4
Thyme	1 tsp dried (1.4g)	4
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Gluten-free Chicken Cacciatore