Cacciatore translates to “Hunter” in English. I’m sure it was originally cooked with rabbit but I’ve cooked it with chicken as most people do. It comes from Northern Italy and combines wine, tomatoes and olives to add flavour to the chicken.
There is a little bit of advance preparation work to marinade the chicken but it really only takes 10 minutes. It is best to do this the night before or the morning if cooking in the evening.
You can also add diced onion, celery and carrots as a base for the sauce if you wish.
The flavours and aromas as this cooks are delicious.
I like to serve it with some crusty bread, butter pasta and steamed broccoli.
It really is a delicious Sunday dinner that all the family can enjoy. It is also a great recipe to cook for large groups of people as it takes care of itself in the oven.
Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg chicken thighs or jointed chicken
- 1 large glass red wine
- Salt
- Pepper
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 3 cloves garlic (1 crushed, 2 sliced)
- flour (for dusting)
- olive oil
- 1 tbsp capers
- 1 handful olives (pitted)
- 2 tins Plum Tomatoes
Instructions
- Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and place in a bowl.
- Add the wine, rosemary, bay leaves and 1 garlic clove (crushed) on top of the chicken and marinate in the fridge for at least one hour but preferably overnight.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry. Dust the chicken with flour.
- Preheat the oven to 180 Celsius
- Heat the olive oil in an ovenproof pan and fry the chicken skin side down until the skin is brown.
- Add the sliced garlic and fry for another minute.
- Add the tins of tomatoes, the olives, capers and reserved marinade to the pan. Bring to the boil and then move to the oven.
- Bake in the oven for 90 minutes, checking frequently and adding water if necessary.
- Skim the excess fat from the top of the sauce, then season with salt and pepper and stir.
- Serve with buttered pasta or crusty bread.
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