Chicken Cacciatore
on Nov 28, 2021, Updated Sep 25, 2024
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Tender chicken stewed with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, herbs, and red wine is one of the most comforting cold-weather dinners ever.
Cacciatore is the Italian word for “Hunter,” and when the term is used, it basically refers to a food that is prepared, “Hunter-Style,” which means stewed with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, herbs, and often wine. In Italy, this dish might be made with rabbit, but in the U.S., it is almost always made with chicken. I like using chicken thighs instead of breasts, which have a deeper flavor and a lot of rich juiciness.
Chicken Cacciatore (or pollo alla cacciatora) is a dish that is enjoyed throughout all of Italy, especially central Italy. It’s often served with pasta, such as spaghetti, but truly anything that will soak up the delicious cacciatore sauce will work. Serve this with Herb Mashed Potatoes or Polenta, and to stay on theme, toss some greens with Homemade Italian Dressing.
Table of Contents
Chicken Cacciatore: Tender chicken stewed with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, herbs and red wine is one of the most comforting cold weather dinners ever.
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs – Make sure to get skin-on to help create a delicious depth of flavor.
- Salt and pepper – To taste.
- Yellow onion and garlic – Creates a flavorful base.
- Bell pepper – I like red bell pepper, but any color will work.
- Mushrooms – Add a greater umami flavor.
- All-purpose flour – To help thicken the sauce. Use gluten-free flour if you want to make this classic Italian dish gluten-free!
- Dry red wine – Any dry red wine will work. Read more below.
- Chicken broth – I like to use less sodium so I can control the salt content.
- Can crushed tomatoes – Offers a flavorful and acidic base.
- Fresh or dried thyme and oregano – Adds a great earthy, savory, and herby flavor.
- Red pepper flakes – For a bit of spice.
- Flat-leaf parsley – For freshness.
How to Make Chicken Cacciatore
- Brown the chicken: Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven or large heavy pot with a lid, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the chicken and allow the skin to brown undisturbed, flipping after about 5 minutes. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and discard or reserve it for stock.
- Make the sauce: Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pot, and return the pot to medium-high heat. Add the onion, pepper, and mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and sauté. After the vegetables are browned and some liquid has evaporated, add the garlic. Stir in the flour. Add the wine, broth, tomatoes, oregano, thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes, and half the parsley.
- Cook the chicken: Add the chicken to the pot, simmer, and then cover the pot and transfer it to the oven. Bake at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes or so, until the chicken is cooked through.
- Finish and enjoy: Sprinkle the remaining parsley on the chicken. Serve with pasta or the starch of choice, if desired.
FAQs
Cacciatore is pronounced kach-uh-taw-ree!
The chicken skin often adds a lot of fat to the sauce, sometimes making it a bit greasy. But, thanks to a tip from Cook’s Illustrated cookbook The Best Recipe, I found a way to extract that great flavor and avoid the greasiness.
The chicken is browned with the skin on, but then the skin is removed from the chicken before the chicken continues cooking in the sauce. The fat and flavor from the skin aren’t lost, but there is no soft chicken skin to contend with and no greasiness to the sauce. My overall recipe is different from theirs, but I definitely borrowed that smart technique.
Don’t throw out that partially crisped skin! You should add extra chicken skin, crispy or not, to any chicken or poultry stock you are making. If you keep a freezer-proof zipper-seal bag in the freezer, you can add bits of trimmed chicken and skin to the bag as you cook. When the bag is full (or you are making stock anyway), just add the assortment of bits and pieces to enrich your stock. Even if you end up skimming fat from the final stock, it’s still a nice way to bump up the flavor of the broth.
The Best Wine for Chicken Cacciatore
I like to use dry red wine in most recipes, and this chicken cacciatore is no exception. And the same wine you use to cook the chicken will also be the perfect pairing for the dish, so get something you are excited to drink.
Many wines will be terrific choices: Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sangiovese, or a Shiraz are some options. This is a good question to ask of the person who works at your local wine store.
Make Ahead and Storage
You can make the chicken cacciatore up to 4 days ahead of time and store it in the fridge (providing the chicken you used is quite fresh) in an airtight container. Reheat it slowly on the stove or in the oven. Leftovers are amazing, even at room temperature.
What to Serve With Chicken Cacciatore
More Chicken Dinner Recipes
- Chicken and Dumplings
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Creamy Garlic Parmesan Chicken and Potatoes
- Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)
- Homemade Chicken Tenders
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Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 medium yellow onion (halved and sliced)
- 1 bell pepper (any color; cored and sliced)
- 8 ounces sliced button or cremini mushrooms (or diced portobellos)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup dry red wine
- ½ cup less-sodium chicken broth
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh oregano (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (divided)
- Cooked pasta, rice, polenta or mashed potatoes (to serve; optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 F.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven or large heavy pot with a lid, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of the chicken, skin side down, and let cook, undisturbed, for 5 minutes until the skin has become crispy and browned. Flip the chicken and cook for 5 more minutes, until the underside is browned. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and repeat with the remaining chicken thighs. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and discard or reserve it for stock (see Note).
- Pour off all but one tablespoon of fat from the pot, and return the pot to medium-high heat. Add the onion, pepper, and mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for about 8 minutes until the vegetables start to brown and any liquid that is released has evaporated. Add the garlic and stir for one more minute until you can smell the garlic. Add the flour and stir for a minute until well combined. Add the wine, scraping the bottom of the bottom to release any browned bits stuck to the bottom. Stir in the broth, tomatoes, oregano, thyme, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Stir in half the parsley.
- Add the chicken to the pot, tucking the chicken into the sauce so that it is at least mostly submerged. Bring to a simmer and then cover the pot and transfer it to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes or so, until the chicken is cooked through.
- Serve the chicken in a shallow serving bowl with the vegetables and sauce sprinkled with the remaining parsley. Serve with the starch of choice, if desired.
