Recipes - Chicken Cacciatore

I just made this dish for a small dinner party which included my parents. The dish was a huge hit with just the right amount of flavors to satisfy anyones palate. Cacciatore [ kah-chuh-TOR-ee ] means hunter in Italian, and this is the Italian version of hunter’s chicken. Like many Italian recipes it varies from region to region. This is a version I have adapted to my taste, you can change the amounts of ingredients each time you make it until you come up with the perfect version for you.

2 lb chicken, skinned and cut into pieces (Use breasts for a lower fat dish)
1 large onion, sliced
1 green pepper, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 lb plum tomatoes roughly chopped (canned are fine)
1 12oz can of Tomato Sauce
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (if using dried about 1.5 teaspoons)
1 tbsp fresh basil (1 tsp of dried)
1/2 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 cup of red or white wine (optional) (a good rule of thum to use with wine is put in the wine you would drink with the dinner, you are sure to get a flavor that is not a surprise to you later.)
pepper, to taste
1/4 lb mushrooms, sliced (optional)

Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium to medium high heat, when the oil is hot add the onion sauté it until it begins to turn light brown, then add the green pepper, mushrooms, and garlic, cook for only a few minutes stirring frequently to avoid burning the garlic. Tip: keep some water next to the pan if the anything starts to burn, just add a little water and stir it in. Remove the onion and green pepper mixture and place it in a small dish. Now add a drop of olive oil to the hot pan and place the chicken peices in the pan. Sear the chicken about 4 minutes on each side, the chicken should be slightly browned, this will lock the juices into the chicken.

Once the chicken is cooked you can add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, parsley, basil, salt and pepper to pan. Cook over low heat for 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
Add chicken; cover and cook over medium heat 45 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add mushrooms and cook uncovered 20 minutes or until sauce is desired consistency.

Serve with pasta or rice.