Am I the only person who has never heard of this recipe before? It seems to be a classic Italian dish so I’m betting it’s just me and people who live under a rock who haven't. Anyway, it’s delicious so I’m pretty upset it took me 24 years to find. But now that I have it in my life, I thought I’d share it with you all.
Unlike most of my recipes, this is not quick to make. However, this recipe is pretty simple, it just requires more of your time. Disclaimer: this recipe requires a lot of chopping--a tedious amount of mies in plas, if you will. But if you’re a good little chef and get all your veggies chopped before starting, chicken cacciatore is a cinch.
Chloe really loves it when I make chicken. I don’t make much of it because my mom hates it, but she’s out of town this week so I seized the opportunity. Chloe actually has heard of this recipe (I really am the only one) and she loves it. She gave me a 8/10 for my first try!
But some important notes before I get into the recipe.
Notes
Which Chicken is Best?
Good question. The answer: all of it. You really can use any cut of chicken you want for this recipe. Since the chicken stews in the tomato sauce for so long, I don’t suggest anything with skin as it would be very difficult to keep it crispy. I ended up using bone-in chicken thighs with the skin because that’s all I could find at my local Trader Joe’s. Bone-less, skinless thighs would also be delicious, as well as drumsticks or wings. Even skinless chicken breast would be delicious, but the white meat has a tendency to dry out so proceed with caution.
Serving
This recipe really needs to be served with something that will soak up all that delicious, herb-filled tomato sauce. Traditionally, spaghetti noodles make a good base, but you could try orzo pasta or polenta as well. If you're trying to keep this low-carb you could even try steamed vegetables or vegetable noodles.
Chicken Cacciatore
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour, 40 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
3 Tbsp olive oil
8 bone-in chicken thighs
1 medium sized onion
4-5 cloves of garlic
1 small red bell pepper
1 small yellow bell pepper
1 large carrot
10 oz mushrooms
8 sprigs of thyme
3 Tbsp fresh basil
3 Tbsp fresh parsley
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp red pepper flakes
5 oz (~½ cup) dry red wine
2 Tbsp tomato paste
3-4 medium Roma tomatoes
28 oz crushed tomatoes
½ cup pitted black olives
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
Prepare your vegetables by dicing your onion, mincing your garlic cloves, dicing the red and yellow bell peppers, dicing the carrot and slicing the mushrooms. Also finely mince your basil and parsley and cut your Roma tomatoes into quarters. Set the vegetables and herbs aside.
Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed pan (preferably one with a lid like a Dutch oven) to medium-high heat.
Season each chicken thigh with salt and pepper. Sear the chicken in the hot oil for 3-4 minutes on each side until they’re golden brown. Remove the chicken from the pan and set them aside.
Turn the heat down to medium and add the onion to the same pan you used to cook the chicken. Cook the onions for 3-4 minutes until they’re translucent. Add the garlic to the pan and cook for 30 seconds until the garlic is fragrant.
Next, add the red and yellow bell peppers, the carrot and the mushrooms to the pan along with the sprigs of thyme, basil, parsley, oregano and red pepper flakes. Allow this to cook until the vegetables are softened.
Add the red wine, tomato paste, Roma tomatoes and crushed tomatoes to the pan. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring the mixture up to a boil and allow the sauce to thicken and reduce by ½.
Add the black olives and chicken thighs to the pot. Place the lid on top of the pan and place the pot into the oven. Cook with the lid on for 50 minutes. After 50 minutes, take the lid off the Dutch oven and continue to cook for 20 minutes.
Serve over pasta, creamy polenta or vegetables.
Enjoy!
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