Italian Chicken Cacciatore Recipes

ITALIAN CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Sprinkle the chicken with the salt, pepper, and flour, shaking to remove the excess flour. Heat 4 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large non-stick high-sided frying pan set on high heat. (I use my electric frying pan for this.) Add the chicken to the pan and cook until well-browned, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
• Save the chicken fat left in the pan, adding enough of the oil to make 4 tablespoons Cook the onion and bay leaves over medium heat till tender. Add the garlic, pancetta, red pepper flakes, and half of the parsley. Cook for 3 minutes. Pour in the wine and cook for 3 minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan. Add the tomatoes and their juice, the chicken stock, tomato sauce, and browned chicken pieces. Break the tomatoes into smaller pieces. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes.
• Transfer the chicken to a serving dish. Cook the sauce 5 more minutes. Taste for salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle the remaining parsley on top and serve.
• (I have also posted the recipes for the homemade chicken stock and the homemade basic tomato sauce if anyone needs it.).

CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Sprinkle the chicken pieces on both sides with salt and pepper. Working in batches, place the chicken in the pan, skin-side down, and cook until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn the chicken over and cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the chicken to a large plate.
• Add another tablespoon of the oil to the pan and heat until almost smoking. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are golden brown and their liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Remove to a plate.
• Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, the onions and the bell peppers to the pan and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, serrano chiles and red pepper flakes, and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the wine and cook until almost completely reduced. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, rosemary and thyme, and bring to a simmer. Return the dark meat and mushrooms to the pan, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and cook until the chicken is tender, about 30 minutes.
• Add the white meat to the pan, cover and continue cooking for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon to a large shallow bowl and tent it loosely with foil.
• Raise the heat under the pan to high and cook the liquid, stirring occasionally, until thickened to a sauce consistency, about 15 minutes.
• Season with salt, pepper and honey. Stir in the basil and capers, and pour the sauce over the chicken. Garnish with fresh basil sprigs. Serve over spaghetti and sprinkle with shaved Parmesan.

ITALIAN CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook onion, stirring often, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a pot.
• Combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl. Toss chicken thighs in the flour mixture until evenly coated.
• Heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in the skillet over medium heat, add chicken thighs, and brown on one side, without turning, for 5 minutes. Turn and cook until browned on the other side, about 5 minutes more. Transfer browned chicken thighs to the pot.
• Pour white wine into the skillet; bring to a boil. Stir to loosen all the browned bits of chicken and flavors in the skillet pour into the pot. Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and sugar; season with salt and pepper. Add as much chicken stock as needed to cover the chicken. Cover pot and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 45 minutes.
• Stir in olives, parsley, and basil. Stir to heat through.

CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Sprinkle the chicken pieces with 1 teaspoon of each salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour to coat lightly.
• In a large heavy saute pan, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the chicken pieces to the pan and saute just until brown, about 5 minutes per side. If all the chicken does not fit in the pan, saute it in 2 batches. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. Add the bell pepper, onion and garlic to the same pan and saute over medium heat until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice, broth, capers and oregano. Return the chicken pieces to the pan and turn them to coat in the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer. Continue simmering over medium-low heat until the chicken is just cooked through, about 30 minutes for the breast pieces, and 20 minutes for the thighs.
• Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a platter. If necessary, boil the sauce until it thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Spoon off any excess fat from atop the sauce. Spoon the sauce over the chicken, then sprinkle with the basil and serve.

MY ITALIAN GRANDFATHER'S CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add chicken and cook until well browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove to a plate.
• Reduce heat to medium and add bell pepper, onion, celery, carrot, and garlic. Sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir to blend into the vegetables.
• Add crushed tomatoes, wine, allspice, bay leaf, seasoning sauce, salt, and pepper. Return chicken to the pan and toss to coat all pieces.
• Cover the Dutch oven and place in the preheated oven. Braise until chicken is falling off the bone and the juices run clear, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Dust chicken with flour. Season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, brown chicken on all sides in oil and butter over medium-high heat. Remove chicken to platter. , In the same skillet, cook and stir the onion, celery, pepper and mushrooms for 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, wine, herbs, garlic and sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes., Return chicken to skillet. Cover and simmer for 45-60 minutes or until chicken is tender. Serve over pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Freeze option: Cool chicken mixture. Freeze in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through slowly in a covered skillet until a thermometer inserted in chicken reads 165°, stirring occasionally.

CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste. When the pot is hot, add the olive oil. Add the chicken and sear it on both sides until it is golden brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set it aside.
• Add the mushrooms and bell peppers to the Dutch oven. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper, and cook until they have softened a little bit, about 8 minutes.
• Add the wine and cook until it has reduced by half. Add the marinara sauce and the basil, and bring the sauce to a simmer. Add the browned chicken, pushing each piece down in order to submerge it as much as possible in the sauce. Cover the pot and bring the stew to a simmer. Then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, if desired, and serve.
• Fat: 38.1g (before), 6.9g (after)
• Calories: 670 (before), 240 (after)
• Protein: 26g
• Carbohydrates: 12g
• Cholesterol: 95mg
• Fiber: 2g
• Sodium: 348mg