This easy chicken cacciatore with thighs and breasts recipe is seriously impressive. With the right wow factor for a dinner party but with an ease of preparation to make the cook smile, you can’t go wrong with a chicken cacciatore recipe.
This easy chicken cacciatore with thighs and breasts features chicken as well as wine, fresh herbs, tomato sauce and a few capers for good measure.
Garlic and onion also feature for a nice, earthy flavor. Serve your chicken cacciatore with noodles or rice, or even mashed or roasted potatoes if you want to have the ‘comfort food’ type appeal. Some of your favorite steamed veggies on the side also goes perfectly with this tasty stew.
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What does Cacciatore Mean?
This word is Italian for ‘hunter’ which means wine, herbs, onion and tomatoes are added to the meat you have hunted (or bought from the supermarket!) and it is usually made with chicken or rabbit.
There are plenty of variation with easy chicken cacciatore with thighs and breasts. Northern Italian chefs usually use white wine which in the South they prefer red wine, for example.
A basic recipe for cacciatore usually starts with olive oil in a heavy pan, followed by salt and pepper dusted chicken pieces. The chicken then comes out of the pan and the vegetables and tomatoes go in, along with the wine and herbs.
Chicken Cacciatore with Thighs: Optional Ingredients
Add some carrot, bay leaf and crushed fresh rosemary for extra flavor at this stage, if you wish. These ingredients are optional. Real hunters might or might not have these in their store cupboard to throw in, so add them if you wish.
Next, the chicken goes back into the pan and then everything simmers together. Cook until all the ingredients are not only cooked through but well blended and highly flavored.
What to Serve with Hunter’s Stew
Easy chicken cacciatore with thighs and breasts is usually served with pasta or rustic bread, although some people prefer potatoes or noodles. Choose whichever side dishes you like, because it is your dish.
PrintChicken Cacciatore
Chicken cacciatore is a classic Italian dish combining chicken with tomatoes, herbs, wine and more. Although this dish is very easy to prepare, it does offer the wow factor making it ideal for a dinner party.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 55 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Entree
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs
- 2 chicken breasts with skin and bone, halved crosswise
- 3/4 (180ml) cup dry white wine
- 28 ounce (800g) can diced tomatoes in juice
- 3/4 cup (180ml) reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup (65g) all-purpose flour, for dredging
- 3 tablespoons drained capers
- 1/4 cup (small handful) coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 chopped red bell pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
- 1 chopped onion,
- 3 minced garlic cloves
Instructions
- Sprinkle a teaspoon of salt and pepper over the chicken pieces then dredge the chicken in the flour to lightly coat.
- Heat the oil in a heavy pan then add the chicken and saute for 5 minutes a side or until golden brown. Do this in 2 batches if need be.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate and put the bell pepper, garlic and onion in the pan and cook for 5 minutes or until the onion is tender.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste, then pour in the wine and simmer for 3 minutes or until reduced by half.
- Add the tomatoes plus their juice, the oregano, capers and broth, then put the chicken back in the pan and turn in the sauce to coat well.
- Bring the sauce to a simmer and simmer for half an hour or until the chicken is just cooked.
- Transfer the chicken to a platter with tongs. If needed, boil the sauce for a few minutes until it thickens a bit then spoon off any excess fat from it and spoon over the chicken. Serve sprinkled with the basil.
