Saucy Stewed Chicken And Tomatoes with Rice Recipe and Video

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This slow cooked chicken leg recipe with stewed tomatoes is easy to make and has a beautiful, simple, and tasty sauce. Use chicken legs, thighs, or drumsticks.

Bonus: stewed tomato chicken legs are so tender that they fall off the bone.

Brown bowl full of bone in chicken legs and thighs in a red stewed tomato sauce with rice on the side in a tan bowl.

What Kind Of Chicken For Stewed Chicken with Tomatoes

Any kind of chicken works for this stewed chicken with tomatoes recipe.

I buy legs because they are affordable, but this recipe can also be made with chicken breasts, thighs, drums, or the whole chicken cut up.

Why use bone in chicken for this saucy stewed chicken leg recipe? Bones impart a ton of flavor and texture into the dish, as well as collagen. Having said that, stewed chicken and rice can also be made with boneless chicken.

Don't want to cut the chicken leg from the drum? Buy thighs and drums separate and/or use 2 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs if you don't want to take the skin off.

Raw ingredients: diced red onions, minced garlic, bowl of diced canned tomatoes, ⅓ cup white wine, raw chicken thighs and drums on a wood cutting board. Side view.

How To Separate Chicken Legs to Get Thighs and Drumsticks

It's easy to separate the chicken thigh from the drumstick - look for the natural indentation in the "knee" where the joint is.

Cut through the skin and tendon and either "pop out" the joint or cut through it and peel the skin off.

See the video in the recipe below for cutting a chicken leg to get the thigh and the drumstick.

Removing Chicken Skin For Stewed Chicken

Removing the skin is optional, but I find chicken skin is greasy and makes the stewed tomato sauce too greasy for this recipe. I also like chicken skin that is crisp, like in roasted chicken recipes with no sauce.

Pull the chicken skin with a paper towel in one hand while grasping the meat with the other hand. See video below.

Grab a handful of paper towels to make your life easier before you start pulling on the chicken fat.

An extra treat is roasting the chicken skin when you take it off the legs. One client calls roasted chicken skins "paleo crack".

Top down view of browned chicken in a tomato and white wine sauce in a large black pan with tongs hanging out the side.

Stovetop Saucy Stewed Chicken with Tomatoes

This stewed chicken and tomatoes recipe is for cooking the stewed chicken legs on the stovetop.

Having said that, it can just as easily be made in a crockpot on low for 4- 6 hours or in an instant-pot.

Saucy Stewed Chicken Legs and Rice FAQS?

What is a chicken leg exactly?

Chicken legs are also called chicken quarters. Chicken legs / chicken quarters consist of the chicken thigh and the chicken drumstick (also called drum).

Can I used canned diced tomatoes instead of canned stewed tomatoes?

Yup! Sometimes it's hard to find canned stewed tomatoes. Grab a can of diced tomatoes instead.

Brown bowl full of bone in chicken legs and thighs in a red stewed tomato sauce with rice on the side in a tan bowl. side view.

Stewed Chicken And Tomatoes with Rice

Print Recipe

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4.5 from 2 reviews

EatSimpleFood.com

This easy slow cooked chicken leg recipe with stewed tomatoes has a tasty sauce and produces tender chicken. Use legs, thighs, or drumsticks.

Author: beckie
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 6
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop / Oven / Crockpot /Instant Pot
Cuisine: Italian
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

6 skinned chicken legs (drums and thighs), skin removed
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
½ cup onion, diced or sliced
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
½ cup white wine
22 oz (~ 1 ½ small cans) canned stewed tomatoes with juices
¾ tsp dried Italian Seasoning
¾ tsp salt
pinch black pepper
6 cups cooked rice (~ 2 cups uncooked)

Instructions

Cook rice according to package instructions.
Salt and pepper skinned chicken.
Bring a large pan to medium high heat and add oil. Add chicken when oil is hot. Cook ~ 3-5 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
Remove chicken and set aside on a plate.
Lower heat to medium and add onions to the pan. Add a little more oil if you need it. Cook ~ 3-4 minutes.
Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.
Add wine, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered ~ 3-4 minutes or until slightly reduced.
Stir in tomatoes, Italian season, ½ teaspoon salt, and pinch of black pepper.
Place chicken and any juices back in pan.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook ~ 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (165F by a thermometer).
Add salt to taste. Happy Eating! Beckie

Notes

Don't have wine? Skip it and add chicken broth instead.
Can't find stewed tomatoes? Use a can of diced tomatoes instead.
Chicken skin is greasy. Pull the chicken skin with a paper towel in one hand while grasping the meat with the other hand.
Buy 2 ½ lbs of boneless skinless chicken thighs if you don't want to deal with the skin or you don't like the bones.
Why use bone in chicken? It imparts a ton of flavor and texture into the dish.
Don't know what to do with the extra stewed tomatoes that you didn't use? Freeze them in a ziploc bag and next time you'll only have to use 1 can of stewed tomatoes.

Things In My Kitchen:

6 quart Dutch oven - These Lodge Dutch ovens are beautiful, sturdy, and affordable and make braising (cooking low over long periods of time) very easy work.
Crockpot - For when you just want to throw all the ingredients in and walk away.

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Serving Suggestion

Serve saucy stewed chicken with tomatoes and rice with a vegetable side dish.

Stewed Chicken and Tomatoes with Rice

What Kind Of Chicken For Stewed Chicken with Tomatoes