Chicken Cacciatore

When the leaves start to turn red and gold I begin thinking of my favorite cold weather comfort foods, and this dish certainly qualifies. It’s perfect homestyle food, a dish of fried chicken and vegetables with a delectable sauce.

I’ve played around with this a bit, using chicken breasts instead of a whole chicken, adding crimini mushrooms, and doubling the vegetables and sauce. You can prepare the dish up to one day in advance. Just let the chicken cool completely before putting it all in the refrigerator. Then reheat it all the next day in a covered pan, keeping it at a slow simmer until the chicken pieces are heated all the way through.

Equipment

large saute pan with a lid (large enough to hold all the chicken pieces)
plate or pan for dredging flour

Ingredients

6 to 8 small to medium chicken breasts (or a 3 to 4 pound chicken, cut into pieces)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
flour for dredging
salt
black pepper, freshly ground
2/3 cup thinly sliced onion
1-1/3 cup dry white wine (an Italian Pinot Grigio works very nicely)
8 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, cut into julienne strips
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into julienne strips
2 carrots, cut into thin disks
1 stalk celery, sliced thin crosswise
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes, with the juice

Preparation

1. Pat the chicken pieces dry with a paper towel.

2. Add the oil to the saute pan over medium hight heat. Dredge the chicken in the flour, coating on all sides. Shake off the excess flour and put them into the pan, skin side down. Cook until brown, then turn the pieces over and brown the other side. Remove the chicken pieces and put them on a warm plate. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Turn the heat back up to medium high and add the sliced onion to the pan. Cook until the onion is deep golden. Add the wine and deglaze the pan for about 30 seconds, scraping the tasty brown bits (fond) up from the bottom of the pan.

4. Add the red and yellow bell pepper, mushrooms, carrots, celery, garlic, and diced tomatoes. Cook at a slow simmer with the lid on for about 20 to 30 minutes. Add the chicken breasts and cook for another 10 minutes.

5. Remove the chicken and put on a serving platter. If the sauce is a bit watery, turn the heat up to high and cook uncovered until the sauce thickens a bit. Pour the vegetables and sauce over the chicken and serve immediately.

Variations

If you use a whole chicken, add the dark pieces with the vegetables in step 4 and cook for about 40 minutes. Then add the chicken breasts as directed.

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Source: adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, by Marcella Hazan