Chicken Cacciatore (Pollo alla Cacciatora)
Chicken Cacciatore, or “hunter-style” chicken, is a dish that’s origins extend back to Renaissance Italy when hunters would make this stew with rabbit instead of chicken, and later pheasant before the modern version of cacciatore came into existence. Back then, there were also no tomatoes used in the stew, not until after tomatoes were introduced to Italy from abroad at a later time. Instead, the base of the dish was wine, and the original recipes were less thick and red as a result. The Hunters would cook this meal outdoors using inexpensive and easy-to-find ingredients, like seasonal vegetables and whatever animals roamed the area.
As you can imagine, this recipe is pretty much as traditional as it gets. While my contemporary version of braised chicken is cooked over a stove instead of over a firepit, the soul of the recipe largely remains the same. A few mainstays in Italian cooking are required for this classic rendition of chicken cacciatore, such as a soffritto, olive oil, wine, parsley or basil, and olives, among other things.
A modern day Caravaggio over here
Browning the chicken
In the north of Italy, people use white wine for the sauce, whereas, in the south, people are more prone to red wine, and I am too. Either choice will work, and it all depends on your personal preference. Like most foods in the world, Italian food is regional, and it’s up to you to decide how you’d like to experiment with this recipe.
That said, you’ll find more tomato-based sauces in the south of the country, and likewise, more cream-based sauces in the north. What a person adds to their chicken cacciatore depends on the ingredients available and what’s in season. If it’s not the time of the year to forage mushrooms, then people typically wouldn’t use mushrooms. If there were no chickens, then cooks could use whatever was readily available, like rabbits, pigs, or boar, and so on.
Soffritto and anchovies sizzling
Pouring in the wine
Herb, capers, and olives
When cooking the chicken, it’s essential to make sure that the meat is coated in a generous amount of sauce with the lid partially covering the skillet. During the simmer period of preparing this meal, you want to be careful not to bring the sauce to a boil because it will reduce and disappear. I would also give the chicken a toss halfway through the cooking time, making sure to bathe the meat in the sauce once again so the outside won’t get dry.
Additionally, make sure that you add the parsley or basil towards the end because those ingredients lose all of their flavor and aroma when they cook too long.
Pre-sauced
Post-sauced
As for what food can accompany this meal, I would make a bowl of rice or pasta to serve on the side or have a few pieces of Italian or French bread to dip in its sauce when you’re done polishing off the chicken. You can usually never go wrong with a salad or steamed vegetables either, so use your discretion on what you would like to eat with your chicken cacciatore. For a lighter version, you can use all white meat instead of dark or mixing both.
In my opinion, chicken cacciatore pairs well with a medium-bodied red wine. The high acidity of a Sangiovese or Chianti Classico goes nicely with a tomato sauce because the flavor of the wine won’t get overpowered by the cacciatore’s sauce. I would also try Pinot Noir because its high acidity and low tannin content taste good with poultry.
Living that short life and standing on a stool to take pictures of food
Ingredients
10-12 pieces of chicken
2 cups of crushed red tomatoes
2 carrots, minced
2 celery stalks, minced
1 medium yellow onion, minced
6 garlic cloves, 4 halved, and 2 whole
1 tablespoon of capers
2/3 cup of Greek black olives, pitted
3/4 cup of red wine (for a northern version, try white wine)
4 tablespoons of olive oil
4-6 anchovies
1/4 cup of fresh Italian parsley
1 chicken bouillon cube
5 bay leaves
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon of red chili flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
(optional): 1 red bell pepper, sliced thin without seeds to be added in between steps 5 & 6
(optional): 1/4 lb of mushrooms, sliced, to be added during step 6
(optional): 1 teaspoon of oregano to cook in the sauce
(optional): A handful of fresh basil to cook during the last few minutes
Cooking Instructions
In a bowl, wash the chicken with salt and water, soaking for 5 minutes
Drain the water and pat the chicken dry with a paper towel
In a deep skillet, add in the anchovies and olive oil on medium-high heat until they melt
Place the chicken in the skillet and brown for around 4 minutes on each side until it looks golden
Remove the chicken and lower the heat to medium
Add the chopped onions, celery, and carrots to the skillet, sautéing the soffritto on medium heat for around 5 minutes until tender
Add in the garlic and cook for around 3 minutes or until fragrant
Bring the heat back up to medium-high and pour in the wine and add the bouillon cube, cooking for 2-3 minutes or until the smell of alcohol completely dissipates
Add in the tomatoes, olives, capers, red chili flakes, bay leaves, and rosemary, stirring well so all of the ingredients are mixed together
Put the chicken back in the skillet and bathe it in the sauce. Partially cover the skillet and reduce the heat to low and simmer the chicken for 45 minutes, turning the chicken over halfway through and covering with sauce
Remove the cover and add in the parsley, cooking for 2 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with crusty Italian bread or pasta on the side
