I’ve been using up some beef most of the week – and tonight was in the mood for some light chicken. Also, it’s Friday…the start of the weekend! Perfect time to pop open a bottle of the good Sonoma Valley wine my husband bought on our recent family vacation to Windsor, CA. Since I don’t drink wine, I try to cook with it whenever my hubby wants to indulge in a good glass. So, what can I make with chicken and a good petite sirah? Why, chicken cacciatore of course!
Chicken Cacciatore over farfalle
Chicken Cacciatore
1 cup all-purpose flour for coating
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 yellow bell peppers, chopped
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes + 2 fresh tomatoes, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 C fresh chopped parsley
3/4 C red wine
2 cups fresh mushrooms, quartered
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Pat chicken dry and season lightly with salt and pepper. Combine the flour, more salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Shake the chicken pieces in flour until coated. Using tongs, shake excess flour from chicken. Heat the oil in a large skillet (one that has a cover/lid) over medium high until pan is hot. Fry the chicken pieces until they are browned on both sides. Remove from skillet and set aside on plate.
Add the onion, garlic and bell pepper to the skillet and saute until the onion is slightly browned, scraping up any brown bits stuck to the pan with a wooden spoon. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the skillet and add the tomatoes, parsley, Italian seasoning and wine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes over medium low heat.
Add the mushrooms and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer uncovered for 10 more minutes. If you desire a thicker sauce dissolve 1 T cornstarch into 1 T water and add to sauce, stirring quickly to incorporate.
We served this up over farfalle pasta (what my daughter calls little butterflies) with some fresh steamed broccoli and homemade quick rolls. It was earthy, full of flavor and delicious. The chicken was fork tender and practically melted in my mouth. The great thing about this dish is that it’s really light, despite the full-bodied flavor. There’s almost no fat in it at all, but you’d never guess it by the taste! This is also easily adaptable to whatever you like – if you’re a fan of chicken on the bone, this would be amazing, I’m sure the chicken would be falling right off the bones. You could omit any of the veggies you don’t like or add some additional ones (carrots anyone?). I’m sure you could use white wine or chicken broth/stock instead of the red. Really it would be pretty hard to mess this up. As with almost all Italian dishes, once the leftovers have smooshed (very technical word) their flavors together overnight, it’s even better! Actually, I just took the pieces of chicken that were left, cut them up into chunks and mixed them in with the remaining sauce for easy serving leftovers. Is it tomorrow yet?
Bakerlady 