29 August 2014 -- Pollo alla cacciatora (Chicken Cacciatore)

A three day weekend!  Time to catch up and finally cook, after 2 months of traveling for both work and helping my mother with her cataract surgery.

It's Friday afternoon and we were let out two hours early for the Labor Day holiday.  I planned ahead and was ready to make one of my favorite dishes:  Pollo alla cacciatora, from a FaceBook friend, Letizia Mattiacci.  She owns Madonna del Piatto, a cooking school and Bed&Breakfast in her native Umbria.

I had Chicken Cacciatore as a child and still can't bear the thought of it.  It was made with chicken and a tomato sauce. To this day, I cannot eat chicken in any tomato based sauce.

But this recipe is fabulous! The ingredients are simple. One cannot shorten the time this takes to cook.  I've tried before to shortcut the time but the dish suffers.  I've also tried it with chicken parts and/or chicken breasts but I prefer using only legs. Don't forget the lemon zest and balsamic vinegar at the end.

I serve mine with mashed potatoes.

 

The glorious finished product.  I dislike eating out. 

 Eating at home is so much more fun and the food is fantastic. 

Copied from Madonna del Piatto:

Recipe

• 1/2 free-ranging chicken cut into serving pieces
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2-3 cloves garlic, very finely minced
• 1 tablespoon capers,
• 4 tablespoon spoon good quality olives, not pitted
• 1 sprig rosemary,
• a handful sage leaves
• 1 cup dry white wine
• zest of 1/4 lemon
• juice of 1/4 lemon
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil

Using a large thick bottom or non stick pan, sear chicken pieces in one tablespoon olive oil until golden on all sides. Good quality chicken should not produce any fat, but if it does drain it and wipe clean the pan before proceeding.

Turn heat to low, return chicken to the pan, add onion and stir frequently until caramelized.  Add minced garlic cloves, capers, olives, rosemary and sage leaves.

Please don’t use the inexpensive, pizza style, bland black olives. They are generally unripe green olives that have been dyed with iron salts (ferrous gluconate) after artificial ripening.

Season with just a sprinkle of salt and black pepper.

When everything is fragrant add one cup of wine, cover and simmer very slowly until the chicken is tender. This might take 45 min to 1 and 1/2 hours depending on size and quality of the bird. Add some water if the sauce gets too dry while simmering.

When ready to serve add the lemon juice and zest and balsamic vinegar. Taste and add more lemon if desired as it brings out the flavor of all other ingredients.

This dish is lovely with a side of steamed greens dressed with a fruity extra virgin and a splash of lemon juice if you like. If you need your starch, accompany it with homemade potato puree or polenta. Italians would never serve it on pasta or rice.

Serves 3-4 depending on initial size of chicken.

~~~.~~~

Letizia: 

Former scientist, I now run B&B and cooking school Alla Madonna del Piatto in Assisi, Umbria, central Italy, together with my husband Ruurd, daughter Tea and truffle dog Google. We love good food and wine, travel, beautiful handicrafts like textiles and pottery. We feel fortunate to be able to share our magical mountain with many friends from all over the world.

Madonna del piatto -- Pollo alla caciattore