Chicken Cacciatore recipe – this traditional Italian hunter’s stew with chicken, peppers, tomatoes and olives simmered in a rich tomato sauce is hearty and packed with bold flavors. Serve with polenta or crusty bread to soak up that glorious sauce.
Find the detailed recipe with notes and tips on Supergolden Bakes: https://www.supergoldenbakes.com/chicken-cacciatore/
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INGREDIENTS
For the Chicken
4 chicken leg quarters (chicken marylands)
1 tsp sea salt flakes or kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 tbsp cornstarch (cornflour)
3 tbsp olive oil
Cacciatore Sauce
1 onion, finely diced
5 cloves garlic, whole and unpeeled
4 bay leaves
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 lb (450g) cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp tomato paste
4 anchovy fillets (or 1 tsp anchovy paste) very finely chopped
½ cup (250ml) dry red wine
14 oz (400g) canned crushed tomatoes or passata
½ cup (85g) pitted black olives, divided
3 fresh rosemary sprigs
To Serve
1 tbsp fresh rosemary or parsley, finely chopped, to garnish
Salt and black pepper, if needed
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season both sides with salt, pepper and pinch crushed red pepper flakes. Dust the chicken with cornstarch (cornflour) and set aside for five minutes.
2. Heat olive oil in a large deep skillet (I used my cast iron braiser). Place the chicken on the hot skillet skin-side down and cook over hight heat until golden, about 5-6 minutes. You may need to do this in batches to avoid crowding the pan. Flip over and cook for a minute longer then set aside onto a plate.
3. Turn the heat down and allow the pan to cool down a little. Add the onions, whole garlic cloves and bay leaves. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring, for five minutes. At this point you can add the peppers and cherry tomatoes and cook for a further 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the chopped anchovies and tomato paste and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the red wine, increase the heat back to high and simmer until the wine is reduced slightly and the wine aroma dissipates.
5. Add the canned tomatoes, half the olives, and rosemary sprigs. Stir well and bring to a rolling simmer. Place the chicken back into the pan with any juices released while it was resting. Cook with the pan partially covered for 20 minutes.
6. Take the lid off and pick out the garlic cloves – the flesh should now be mellow tasting and very soft. Squeeze out of the skin, mash with a fork and add back into the sauce together with remaining olives.
7. Continue to simmer, uncovered, for a further 10 minutes or until the sauce is thick and chicken is cooked through.
8. Discard the bay leaves and rosemary sprigs. Add the remaining olives and scatter with finely chopped rosemary or parsley. You should not need to add any salt but have a taste just in case. Serve over polenta, mashed potatoes or simply with some crusty bread.
1 Comment
Anchovies? Get outta here.