Chicken Cacciatore

Last night I got home from work and was really craving chicken cacciatore.  Not sure why exactly but I blame the cafeteria at work for serving a chicken cacciatore soup – which I didn’t get but which smelled really good.  Regardless, I decided that since I had the ingredients I would make it – without a real recipe... but I knew what flavor I wanted.

This isn’t classic cacciatore... I didn’t have any wine and I don’t like mushrooms, but overall the dish was very tasty so I’m ok with it.

I hadn’t thawed the chicken so the first hour or so was spent trying to get the large package of chicken to thaw (planning ahead would have been a good thing...).  Since I have a sparsely stocked kitchen this summer on Long Island I don’t even have a microwave to thaw things.  I eventually go it thawed to the point that I could break the chicken breasts apart and start butterflying so that’s when I managed to start cooking.

This didn’t take too long to make overall.  Once the chicken was ready to go it came together fairly quickly.  I served this over steamed rice which I made while the chicken cacciatore was simmering (Step 5).  It can certainly be served with pasta depending on your taste.  But I’d eaten pasta (I made mac-and-cheese) the last two nights so I was in the mood for a change.

This recipe made two servings for me – and I’ll probably save the second one for sometime this coming week when I don’t feel like cooking after work.  The recipe can certainly be scaled up to accommodate more people but since I’m alone on Long Island (with Jeremy still in Albany this summer) I’m trying to make meals which don’t leave me with too many leftovers.  I’d get sick of having the same thing before I finished it otherwise.

Overall, this was a delicious meal.  And nice and quick.  I will certainly be making this again.  And when I told Jeremy what I was making he was hoping I’d post the recipe so he could make it too.  Hopefully he lets me know how it turns out.  J

Since I don’t have great internet access my posts will likely be more infrequent this summer but I’ll do what I can.  Challenge kale will likely be coming up next – as soon as I get to the grocery store to get some.  J

1 chicken breast, butterflied into two halves

1 bell pepper, diced

1 onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 c. crushed tomatoes

½ c. chicken stock

3/4 tsp. dried oregano leaves

1 tsp. dried parsley flakes

¼ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat a medium to large saucepan over medium high heat.  Add 1 tbs. of olive oil.  Lightly salt and pepper both sides of the chicken.  Put chicken in pan and sear on both sides, approximately 3 minutes per side, until cooked through.  Remove from pan.

2. Add bell pepper and onion to pan (add more olive oil if necessary), salt and pepper to taste.  Sauté for 4-5 minutes until veggies begin to soften.  Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.

3. Add crushed tomatoes, chicken stock, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper flake.  Mix to combine.  Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer.

4. Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces.  Add back to pan and stir to combine.

5. Simmer for approximately 20 minutes until slightly thickened and veggies are tender.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

6. Serve over rice or pasta.