Classic Chicken Cacciatore Recipes

Steps:

• Place 1 cup flour in a large bowl. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and toss in flour to coat evenly. Transfer chicken to a platter, and set aside.
• Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the reserved chicken skin, and cook, stirring occasionally, until fat has been rendered and skin is golden brown and crisp. Discard skin. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of fat from pot. (Alternatively, if desired, use olive oil, heating until it is hot but not smoking.)
• Add half the chicken to the pot, and cook, turning occasionally with tongs, until well browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter; set aside. Repeat with remaining chicken. Add onion to pot; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms; cook, stirring, until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes more. Raise heat to medium-high. Add the wine; scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated.
• Add stock, tomatoes with reserved juice, bay leaf, oregano, and rosemary to pot; stir to combine. Using tongs, return chicken to pot along with any juices that have accumulated on the platter. Submerge chicken in sauce. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and cook until the chicken is cooked through and very tender, about 30 minutes.
• In a small bowl, mix together the butter and remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons flour to form a smooth paste. Stir half the paste into the simmering stew, and cook about 3 minutes. If the stew is still not as thick as desired, stir in the remaining paste, and cook 3 minutes more. Remove and discard bay leaf; serve stew hot over warm polenta. Stew can be refrigerated up to 3 days or frozen up to 1 month in an airtight container. Cool completely before storing.

Steps:

• Place the dried mushrooms in a bowl or heat-proof glass measuring cup and pour on 2 cups boiling water. Let sit 15 to 30 minutes, until mushrooms are softened. Drain through a strainer lined with cheesecloth or a paper towel and set over a bowl. Rinse the mushrooms in several changes of water, squeeze out excess water and chop coarsely. Set aside. Measure out 1 cup of the soaking liquid and set aside.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy nonstick skillet. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and brown, in batches, for 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken pieces to a bowl as they are done. Pour the fat off from the pan and discard.
• Turn the heat down to medium, add the remaining oil and the onion, carrot and celery, as well as a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes and salt to taste. Cover, turn the heat to low and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes, until the mixture is soft and aromatic. Stir in the fresh and dried mushrooms, turn the heat back up to medium, and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are just tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the wine and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, for a few minutes, until the wine has reduced by about half. Add the tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down a little and smell fragrant. Stir in the mushroom soaking liquid that you set aside.
• Return the chicken pieces to the pan and stir so that they are well submerged in the tomato mixture. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes, until the chicken is tender. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve with pasta or rice.

Steps:

• Coat chicken with flour. In 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in oil 15 to 20 minutes or until brown on all sides; drain.
• Cut bell pepper and onions crosswise in half; cut each half into fourths.
• Stir bell pepper, onions and remaining ingredients except cheese into chicken in skillet. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 30 to 40 minutes or until juice of chicken is clear when thickest part is cut to bone (at least 165°F). Serve with cheese.