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    Classic Chicken Cacciatore Recipe

    Published January 31, 2023. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

    This authentic Chicken Cacciatore Recipe is a delicious braised chicken dish loaded with mushrooms and vegetables in a tomato and herb broth. The flavors in this simple-to-prepare dish are so good.

    I’m Sicilian, so making and eating Italian food in my house is commonplace. If you want to try out some new recipes, you must try Aglio e Olio or Bucatini All’Amatriciana.

    chicken cacciatore in a rondeau pot


     

    Chicken Cacciatore

    Chicken cacciatore Is an incredibly simple recipe consisting of chicken and mirepoix cooked and braised in a simple tomato broth with herbs. Cacciatore translates from Italian to English as “hunter.”

    Cacciatore is a cooking style so hunter-style would include certain ingredients such as mushrooms, onions, herbs, tomatoes, and sometimes wine. This very traditional recipe sticks to the dish’s original intent, which is a few ingredients and simple procedures. You will not find bell peppers or olives in my recipe, which would veer from the classic version.

    Ingredients and Substitutions

    • Chicken – I prefer to use a whole chicken fabricated into wings, thighs, drums, and breasts. Classically this dish would have featured a rabbit.
    • Mushrooms – Any wild mushroom will work. However, I used porcini, portabella, and button mushrooms.
    • Onion – You can use white, sweet, or yellow onion. In addition, some garlic is needed.
    • Celery – A few ribs of celery will help add some more flavor to this dish.
    • Carrots –  I love using carrots as they greatly enhance the braising sauce’s flavor.
    • Wine – You can use Sangiovese, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, or shiraz.
    • Tomatoes – You can use fresh, whole peeled, or canned tomatoes. I especially like to use San Marzano tomatoes.
    • Herbs – I like the combination of parsley and rosemary in this recipe as those would be classical to use.

    How to Make Chicken Cacciatore

    Pour 2 cups of boiling water over ½ ounce of dried porcini mushrooms and sit for 20 minutes.

    adding hot water to porcini mushrooms

    Finely strain the mushrooms and reserve ½ of the liquid.

    straining porcini mushrooms

    Rinse the mushrooms and squeeze out all the liquid.

    reconstituted porcinis

    Roughly small chop the mushrooms.

    chopping porcini mushrooms

    Season the chicken parts well on all sides with salt and pepper.

    seasoning chicken

    Heat the olive oil into a large rondeaux pot over medium heat and brown the chicken parts well on each side, about 4 minutes per side.

    pan seared chicken

    Remove the chicken and set aside.

    setting cooked chicken to the side

    Next, add the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, and mushrooms to the pan and sauté for 6 to 7 minutes.

    sauteed mushrooms and vegetables

    Deglaze with the wine and cook over medium heat until it is almost gone, about 5 minutes.

    adding wine to a pan

    Pour the reserved porcini mushroom liquid, tomatoes, herbs, salt, and pepper, and stir.

    tomato sauce

    Add the browned chicken back in, add a lid to the pot, and simmer over low heat for 25 to 30 minutes.

    adding chicken to a cacciatore sauce

    Garnish with chopped parsley.

    garnishing chicken cacciatore with parsley

    How to Serve it

    Chicken cacciatore can be served with various things such as rice, pasta, or polenta.  I like finishing my chicken cacciatore recipe with a ton of chopped parsley.

    Make-Ahead and Storage

    Make-Ahead: You can make this up to 30 minutes ahead of time. Just keep it covered over low heat.

    How to Store: Place this covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This will freeze covered for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating.

    How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of chicken cacciatore to a rondeau pot and cook over low heat while occasionally stirring. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper and serve.

    Chef Billy Parisi

    Chef Notes + Tips

    • Feel free to use chicken breasts, thighs, or drums.
    • When searing the chicken, be sure not to crowd the pan too much so you can get a good sear. If you need to sear it in batches, then please do it.

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    Classic Chicken Cacciatore Recipe

    5 from 51 votes
    This authentic Chicken Cacciatore Recipe is a delicious braised chicken dish loaded with mushrooms and vegetables in a tomato and herb broth.
    Servings: 5
    Prep Time: 20 minutes
    Cook Time: 50 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

    Ingredients 

    • ¼ cup of reconstituted dried porcini mushrooms
    • 1 whole chicken broken down into parts
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • ½ peeled and small diced yellow onion
    • 3 small diced ribs of celery
    • 2 peeled and small diced carrots
    • 4 finely minced cloves of garlic
    • 1 cup sliced baby portabella
    • 1 cup sliced button mushrooms
    • 1 cup dry red wine
    • 2 28- ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes, crushed with your hands
    • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
    • 1 ½ teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
    • sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

    Instructions

    • Pour 2 cups of boiling water over top a ½ ounce of dried porcini mushrooms in a medium-sized bowl and let them sit for 20 minutes.
    • Finely strain the mushrooms and reserve ½ of the liquid.
    • Rinse the mushrooms well under cold water and then squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Roughly small chop the mushrooms.
    • Season the chicken parts well on all sides with salt and pepper.
    • Heat the olive oil into a large rondeaux pot over medium heat until it begins to smoke likely.
    • Add chicken parts and brown them well on each side, which takes about 4 minutes per side.
    • Remove the chicken and set aside.
    • Next, add the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, and mushrooms to the pan and sauté for 6 to 7 minutes or until browned over medium-high heat.
    • Deglaze with the wine and cook over medium heat until the liquid is almost gone, which takes about 5 minutes.
    • Pour in the reserved porcini mushroom liquid, tomatoes, herbs, salt, and pepper and stir.
    • Add the browned chicken back in and add a lid to the pot and simmer over low heat for 25 to 30 minutes.
    • Garnish with chopped parsley.

    Notes

    Make-Ahead: You can make this up to 30 minutes ahead of time. Just keep it covered over low heat.
    How to Store: Place this covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This will freeze covered for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating.
    How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of chicken cacciatore to a rondeau pot and cook over low heat while occasionally stirring. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper and serve.
    Feel free to use chicken breasts, thighs, or drums.
    When searing the chicken, be sure not to crowd the pan too much so you can get a good sear. If you need to sear it in batches, then please do it.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 474kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 31gFat: 29gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 114mgSodium: 373mgPotassium: 855mgFiber: 3gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 4567IUVitamin C: 23mgCalcium: 88mgIron: 4mg
    Course: Main
    Cuisine: Italian