Pollo Alla Cacciatora Italian Hunter Style Chicken Food

HUNTER'S CHICKEN STEW (POLLO ALLA CACCIATORA)

Steps:

• Chicken cacciatora seems to be reasonably well known in Britain because it's the classic pre-packed dish you find in Italian food ranges in supermarkets (which, to be honest, never taste of much). When you get the real deal cooked at home with love and passion it's a totally different experience. It's a simple combination of flavours that just works really well. Cacciatore means 'hunter', so this is obviously the type of food that a hunter's wife cooks for her fella when he gets home from a hard morning spent in the countryside. This is also a great dish for big parties, as it looks after itself in the oven. In the picture I've made it for about 12 people.
• Season the chicken pieces with salt and freshly ground black pepper and put them into a bowl. Add the bay leaves and rosemary sprigs and the crushed clove of garlic and cover with the wine. Leave to marinate for at least an hour, but preferably overnight in the fridge.
• Preheat your oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Drain the chicken, reserving the marinade, and pat dry with kitchen paper. Dust the chicken pieces with flour and shake off any excess. Heat an ovenproof pan, add a splash of olive oil, fry the chicken pieces until browned lightly all over and put to one side.
• Place the pan back on the heat and add the sliced garlic. Fry gently until golden brown, then add the anchovies, olives, tomatoes (broken up with a wooden spoon) and the chicken pieces with their reserved marinade. Bring to the boil, cover with a lid or a double thickness layer of foil and bake in the preheated oven for 1½ hours.
• Skim off any oil that's collected on top of the sauce, then stir, taste and add a little salt and pepper if necessary. Remove the bay leaves and rosemary sprigs, and serve with a salad, or some cannellini beans, and plenty of Chianti.

POLLO ALLA CACCIATORA (ITALIAN HUNTER-STYLE CHICKEN)

Steps:

• Rinse the chicken pieces and pat them dry.
• Mix the flour, salt and pepper together in a large bowl. Toss the chicken pieces in the seasoned flour, shaking off any excess, and set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high flame. Add a few chicken pieces at a time and brown them on both sides. Remove the chicken to a plate.
• Add the onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
• Add the garlic and mushrooms and sauté for another 3-4 minutes, or until the mushrooms are wilted and cooked through.
• Stir in the wine and tomatoes and simmer for a few minutes until cooked down somewhat. Then stir in the water or stock, herbs and salt and pepper to taste.
• Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.
• Adjust seasoning to taste and serve with polenta or roasted potatoes.
• *Variations.
• Coniglio alla Cacciatora: use rabbit instead of chicken.
• Other possible additions: chopped bell peppers, chopped carrots, chopped celery, chopped oregano, bay leaves, juniper berries, dried porcini mushrooms, black olives, capers, 3 or 4 chopped anchovies.
• Use boneless, skinless chicken breast for a lower fat version.

POLLO ALLA CACCIATORA

Steps:

• Put the garlic oil into a pan with the pancetta, sliced scallions and chopped rosemary and fry for a couple of minutes.
• Add the bite-sized chicken pieces, stirring well, and sprinkle in the celery salt.
• Pour in the wine and let it come to a bubble before adding the tomatoes, bay leaves and sugar. Put the lid on and let the pan simmer for 20 minutes.
• Drain and add a tin of cannellini beans and when they have warmed through too, you are ready to eat.

POLLO ALLA CACCIATORA (CHICKEN CACCIATORE)

Steps:

• Warm the olive oil in a large saute pan set over medium-high heat. Stir in the peppers and cook, stirring, until slightly softened, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside. Stir the mushrooms into the pan and cook, stirring, until slightly softened, about 8 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to the pan and brown lightly on both sides, about 15 minutes in all. Remove the chicken from the pan to a platter and set aside. Pour the wine into the pan and stir to incorporate any cooking juices. Add the garlic, onions, and rosemary and cook until the onions are slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, crushing them with your hand or the back of a slotted spoon as you add them to the pan. Return the chicken to the pan, along with any juices that have accumulated on the plate. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes. Stir the peppers and mushrooms into the chicken. Return to a simmer, cover, and cook to blend in the flavor of these ingredients, about 10 minutes. The stew may be set aside at this point for several hours before reheating and serving with bread to dip into the sauce. Variation: Rabbit cut into serving portions may be substituted for the chicken. Omit the peppers. Quarter rather than slice the mushrooms. To the basic recipe add 2 all purpose potatoes, peeled, halved and each half quartered. Stir these into the stew at the same time the rabbit is returned to the pot. stir 6 kalamata olives into the stew along with the mushrooms during the last 10 minutes of cooking.;

CHICKEN HUNTER'S STYLE: POLLO ALLA CACCIATORE

Steps:

• Rinse the chicken, pat it dry, and season with salt and pepper. In a large casseroleset over moderately high heat, warm 2 tablespoons of the oil until hot. Add the chicken and cook it until no longer pink on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Heat the remaining oil in the casserole over moderate heat until hot. Add the onion, carrot, and salt and pepper to taste, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes, or until softened. Add the tomato, garlic, oregano, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves, and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes more. Return the chicken to the casserole, add the wine, and reduce it over moderately high heat for 1 minute. Add the water, bouillon cube, sun-dried tomatoes, dried red pepper, if desired, and more salt to taste, bring to a boil, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes more, or until chicken is tender. Add olives and cook 5 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a serving plate and reduce sauce over moderately high heat until lightly thickened. Discard bay leaves, spoon sauce over chicken, and sprinkle with parsley.

POLLO ALLA CACCIATORA

Steps:

• Wash and drain chicken pieces. Heat olive oil in deep skillet. Roll and coat each chicken piece in the flour and brown each piece on all sides to a golden brown. Transfer chicken to paper towels to drain.
• Saute the onion, mushrooms, carrot, green pepper, and garlic in the same skillet for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and saute for another 5 minutes.
• Stir in the tomato paste, wine, herbs, salt and pepper and cook over medium heat for another 5 minutes.
• Add all the chicken pieces and mix well. Turn down the heat very low and simmer, covered, for 1-2 hours. Adjust the salt and pepper to your taste.
• Serve with some freshly grated Romano cheese and a warm loaf of bread.