Chicken Cacciatore Revistied

Although it has been unseasonably warm this past week in the big smoke, it’s been crazy rainy and windy. It’s a perfect time to stay in and make some healthy comforting food that is great for lunch the next day. I posted this recipe in 2009 because it is an incredibly tasty and easy dish for a week night, but I find myself craving to repost as I really hated the old photo! This is still JTs signature dish so I won’t alter his recipe other than how it has morphed over the years, and it has morphed a touch over the years. But I will say, please make this, it is really, really, really good!

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway! I’m really excited about the give away and what creative things you will make with it and blog about. I did forget to detail the time the draw closes: 12pm Eastern Standard Time, that will give me some time to get the correct entries together and have JT do the draw! As well, the Just a Pinch salts were purchased entirely by ME! It is not linked to any other promo! Time is a tickin’ people, better enter soon!

And did I mention that a couple of the answers are found in more than one post? Oops! Good luck!

A hearty but healthy dinner on a cold winters night

JTs Chicken Cacciatore

Adapted from Fannie Farmer, December 1984 (originally published in 1896!).
Serves 4 (2 dinners and 2 lunches in our case)

Ingredients:

• 400g chicken breasts, skinless, boneless
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 28g dried mushrooms rehydrated in about 1 cup warm water, set liquid aside (make sure you strain through coffee filter to ensure no sand gets into it)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup dry white wine (or low sodium chicken stock)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 red pepper, sliced (we used green this time because that is what we had)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste (put remaining tomato paste into an extra ice cube tray and freeze, remove from tray into a resealable container and voila, tomato paste as required!)
• 2 cups canned Roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• Chili peppers to taste
• Salt to taste
• Grated Parmesan, if you wish

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (or you could just cook the entire dish stove top with the lid on)
2. Heat the oil in a large dutch oven and cook the chicken until lightly browned on all sides.
3. Add the onion and sauté a minute or two and then add the wine and allow to boil up.
4. Lower the temperature and add the garlic, tomato paste, tomatoes, pepper and the mushrooms.
5. Add the seasonings, bay leaves and the mushroom liquid.
6. Cover and bake in the hot oven for about 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked through. If you like a dryer cacciatore, leave the cover off so that some of the liquid evaporates; I prefer mine a bit wet so that it makes a tasty ‘dressing’ for the greens.
7. Remove bay leaves, taste and season if required.
8. Serve on a bed of mixed baby spinach and baby arugula leaves. You can also serve with grated Parmesan and a dollop of yogurt or sour cream, but we’re reducing our intake this week, so we omitted it.

Tips: You can also add black olives (chop in half) and crumble some sheeps milk feta on top instead of the Parmesan for a slightly Greek version of the dish.

I had to update this post with a photo I recently took with my iPhone at work. I just loved how rich the sauce looks and how luminous this photos is.

Our studio has amazing light. And yes, that surely is cayenne pepper on the chicken.