Friday 29 March 2013

Chicken Cacciatora

Sometime ago, a friend gave me a bottle of white wine and since no one drinks wine at home, it was just sitting in my pantry. I finally decided to use the wine to cook this delicious Chicken Cacciatora recipe from Delia Smith. 


This dish brings me fond memories of my mother's cooking because she used to make this often when I was young. The aroma of succulent pieces of chicken gently simmering away in a concoction of white wine and tomato sauce is simply irresistible. 


The tomato sauce is thick with the aroma of onions and rosemary and is very flavourful and it goes wonderfully with the chicken pieces served over steaming rice or pasta. 


This is for Cook like a Star, Delia Smith blog hop event, hosted by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake. Grab the HTML Code for the event here. This is my last Cook Like A Star post for the month. Thank you to everyone who took part and for your support!



This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs up organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Doreen from my little favourite DIYat this post.


This is for Made with Love Mondays by Javelin Warrior. 

Chicken Cacciatora (Serves 4)
  • 1 x 3 lb (1.35 kg) Traditional Free Range chicken, jointed into 8 pieces
  •  1 tablespoon olive oil
  •  2 large-ish onions, peeled and thickly sliced
  •  1 lb 8 oz (700 g) ripe red tomatoes
  •  2 large cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
  •  1 level tablespoon tomato purée (I used about 10 tbsp for more sauce)
  •  1 level tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves, bruised and finely chopped
  •  1 bay leaf
  •  10 fl oz (275 ml) dry white wine (I used normal white wine)
  •  1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  •  salt and freshly milled black pepper
Method
  • First of all heat the oil in the casserole over a high heat and season the chicken joints with salt and pepper. Then, when the oil gets really hot and begins to shimmer, fry the chicken – in 2 batches – to brown it well on all sides: remove the first batch to a plate while you tackle the second; each joint needs to be a lovely golden-brown colour all over. When the second batch is ready, remove it to join the rest.
  • Now add the onions to the casserole, turn the heat down to medium and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until they are softened and nicely browned at the edges. Meanwhile, skin the tomatoes. To do this, pour boiling water over them and leave them for exactly 1 minute before draining and slipping off their skins (protect your hands with a cloth if they are too hot), then chop them quite small.
  • When the onions are browned, add the garlic to the casserole, let this cook for about 1 minute, then add the tomatoes, tomato purée, rosemary, bay leaf, white wine and white wine vinegar. Now add some seasoning and bring it up to the boil, then let it bubble and reduce (without covering) to about half its original volume, which will take about 20 minutes. Now add the chicken pieces, stir them around a bit, then put the lid on and allow to simmer gently for 40 minutes (I reduced the simmering time to about 20 mins as I wanted to retain the tenderness in the chicken), until the chicken joints are cooked through. This is good served with green tagliatelle, noodles, rice or a simple vegetable.


29 comments:

  1. Wow, Mich! I am so in love with your Chicken Cacciatora. It looks beautiful and delicious!

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  2. Great to use the wine in good use when no one drink it. I can see that dish taste absolutely delicious, no doubt about it, even if I am just looking at the pics here. Might like to give this a try.

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  3. Wow! Your chicken looks so delicious, it makes me hungry !

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  4. Hi Mich,
    That is a beautiful and delicious looking dish! My kids would really enjoy this over pasta!

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  5. This looks awesome Mich! I can imagine how aromatic and yummy this dish is! Am very tempted to try this out...^_^

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  6. YUM!!! I love this kind of chicken dish! Looks perfect!

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  7. Mich love the color on this Chicken Cacciatora!!! Who wouldnt like to have that for dinner.

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  8. This looks so delicious. I love the rich colour of your dish!

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  9. As I said, it should be delicious combined with pasta:D I would be slurping up all those delicious gravy!

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  10. This is one of my favorite meals and you make it look especially delicious.

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  11. Mmmm.... this looks so delicious. Definitely love to try this for sure :)

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  12. i am seeing many nice chicken recipes from you and yen from this event. all delicious looking!!

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  13. That chicken cacciatora looks utterly delicious , Mich ! Love the wonderful flavor of this dish . It's a toss up between rice and pasta with that as an add-ins but I'll take both :D

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  14. Simply drolling me,
    fany chicken recipes, great photograph too....

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  15. Great photos and looks like a great weeknight meal!

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  16. Hi Mich! No one drinks wine at home? Come come.. bring the bottle over... :D

    Food is a good trigger of memories... especially childhood memories.. I'm sure you love this dish very much!

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  17. Looks great Mich, beautiful red hue :) Did you use chicken breast for this dish?

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  18. Another nostalgic dish from my aussie days, i didnt know that it is so easy to make, definitely gotta try this soon.

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  19. I haven't had Chicken Cacciatora for many many years. How delicious and a great way to use up an unwanted bottle of white wine!

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  20. I've never tried chicken cacciatora with tomato!! I always use my parents tomato less recipe....next time I will try this...your pictures are very inspiring Mich!!!!!!

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  21. I think my kids would love this chicken. These days I too love cooking meat with wine especially yellow wine with heavy cream. Yummm.... Btw, I just checked out fb regarding the info you given. I asked them to share not to take others belonging. Anyway, thanks so much for the info. Have a great week ahead dear.
    Kristy

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  22. Hi Mich, I haven't eaten this chicken dish but yours sure look very tempting and finger licking good. I think I might need extra rice. :))

    Have a wonderful week ahead,regards.

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  23. Wine can do amazing things in meals. I love this chicken cacciatora. Elegant yet easy. Thank you for sharing Mich. I hope you have a wonderful week!

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  24. So tasty, Mich! This looks so awesome and I love the use of fresh tomatoes to make the sauce. What a lovely comforting dish that's still healthful... Thanks so much for sharing!

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  25. Hi Mich,
    I was going to cook this but i don't have one of the ingredient..white wine.:p
    Your chicken cacciatora looks really delish!!
    Thanks for sharing this wonderful dish in LTU.
    mui

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  26. I couldn't resist to a chicken cacciatora! Beautifully made Mich.

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  27. Hi Mich,

    Sorry for my late visit as I had to go back to Singapore last minute for personal matters...

    Your chicken cacciatora looks wonderful. I would love to cook this too.

    Zoe

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  28. YUMMY! Chicken Cacciatora is one of my favorite and so happy to see a recipe from you. I have been trying different recipes throughout years and I for sure need to try this!

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  29. This chicken dish looks so amazing

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