Chicken Cacciatore
Chicken Cacciatore is rustic Italian food at its best! Seared chicken thighs and legs are braised until tender in a delicious tomato sauce with olives, capers, peppers, onions, and plenty of garlic. Serve with crusty bread to mop up all the sauce!
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 4 pounds (1.9kg) chicken thighs and drumsticks trimmed of overhanging fat
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion sliced
- 1 celery rib chopped
- 2 large red bell peppers sliced
- 12 cloves garlic chopped
- 3 anchovy fillets
- 3 tablespoons (45g) tomato paste
- 1 cup (240ml) dry white wine
- 1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes hand crushed or blender pulsed
- 1/2 cup (120ml) low sodium chicken stock
- 1/4 cup Sicilian green olives pitted and chopped
- 1/4 cup black oil-cured olives rinsed, pitted and chopped
- 3 tablespoons (27g) capers rinsed
- 1/4 cup minced Italian flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Heat a large pan or dutch oven to medium-high heat. Dry the chicken pieces well with paper towels and season on all sides with salt and pepper.
- Add the olive oil to the pan and once shimmering add the chicken and sear for 4-5 minutes per side. Work in batches and do not crowd the chicken. Place the seared chicken pieces on a plate and tent with foil.
- Turn the heat to medium and add the peppers, onions, and celery along with a pinch of salt and if needed, a bit more olive oil. Cook the vegetables until soft (about 7-10 minutes). Add in the garlic and anchovies and cook for 3 minutes more or until the garlic turns golden and the anchovies dissolve.
- Add the tomato paste and cook for 3-5 minutes while stirring to incorporate. If the paste starts to burn, add a splash of water or wine.
- Next, add the white wine and scrape all the flavor bits from the bottom of the pan. Let the wine cook out for 2 minutes then add the chicken stock and plum tomatoes and bring to a lively simmer.
- Mix in the olives and capers and add the chicken to the pan. Turn heat to low and simmer covered with the lid slightly cracked open. Cook for 60-75 minutes or until the chicken is very tender.
- Taste test the sauce and season with salt and pepper if needed. Mix in the parsley and serve with crusty bread or on top of some pasta. Enjoy!
Notes
- Chicken. Dark meat chicken pieces (thighs and drumsticks) are recommended. They are more tender, juicy and flavorful than white meat.
- Sauce. If the sauce is too thin after an hour of cooking, remove the chicken to a plate, and cook the sauce uncovered over high heat for 10 minutes more to thicken.
- Olives. A mix of olives or only one type can be used. Black oil cured olives are very salty. Rinse well before using them.
- Leftovers. Can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, or the chicken cacciatore can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Calories: 766kcal | Carbohydrates: 18.1g | Protein: 90.7g | Fat: 33.7g | Saturated Fat: 7.7g | Cholesterol: 269mg | Sodium: 1266mg | Potassium: 1308mg | Fiber: 4.1g | Sugar: 10.8g | Calcium: 102mg | Iron: 6mg
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