Thursday, January 8, 2009

Chicken Cacciatore Recipe


For my first recipe, I figured I would choose one of my best tasting and relatively easiest recipes - my signature Chicken Cacciatore. I took part of this recipe from The Joy of Cooking, but I found their version to be a bit tasteless, so I spiced it up a bit. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

Ingredients:
  • 3-4 Large Chicken pieces of your choice (I prefer thighs and breasts) - preferably with the bone and skin for flavor
  • 1/2 Box of pasta of your choice (we use Penne or Spiral)
  • 1 can of tomatoes - 24 ounces (can be diced, crushed, or whole, make sure it is NOT tomato sauce)
  • 1 small can of tomato paste
  • 1/2 cup of red wine
  • 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar (this should be approved by Modena and be good tasting, don't skimp here)
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic, diced
  • 1 tin of anchovies (or 6 anchovy fillets) - packed in oil - drained
  • 1-2 dried bay leaves
  • Dried rosemary, thyme, and sage (or dried Herbes de Provence)
  • Shot glass of Vodka
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1. Dice the onions, garlic, and cut the chicken pieces to fit your pan (best to use a deep pan or even a large pot). Add a little oil to the pan, turn on to medium-high heat and begin cooking your chicken pieces. You do not need to fully cook the chicken, just brown them a little on each side (braise them) and get the chicken drippings into the pan. Once the chicken pieces are browned, remove them carefully from the pan to a plate, cover, and reserve.

2. Without removing any of the chicken grease from the pan, lower the heat slightly and add the tin of anchovies (six fillets works well, but vary this to taste). Even if you do not normally like anchovies, they add remarkable flavor to this dish and they will not taste the same as they do raw, rather they add natural salt and a rich undertone to the tomatoes. Learning to use anchovies has been one of the best skills in my cooking. Let the anchovies disintegrate, mixing them into the oil with a spatula or spoon until they form a grey-brown paste in the oil. Add your garlic to this paste, let it brown slightly, about 30 seconds, then add your diced onion, the bay leaves, and about 1 tablespoon of Rosemary and Thyme (crushing them with your fingers as you drop them in) and about 1/2-1 teaspoon of sage. I actually just toss the herbs in without measuring them - but you can put them in to your own tastes. Be careful, a little goes a long way.

3. Cook the onions and the herbs, being sure to scrape up any brown bits of chicken grease or anchovy paste from the pan. Once the onions are browning and softening, add the chicken pieces back into the pot. Immediately pour the red wine and baslamic vinegar over the chicken and onion mixture. Let this cook down, stirring and turning the chicken pieces to make sure both sides soak in the wine-vinegar mix. Cook until the liquid is mostly gone, around 5 minutes.

4. Add the tomatoes and juice to the pot. If they are whole tomatoes, use your hands to crush them as you add them. Stir the mixture together, then add about two heaping tablespoons of the tomato paste. I typically add a little more balsamic vinegar here, because we like really rich sauce. Stir in the shot of vodka (the high alcohol content of vodka chemically opens up certain tastes from the tomatoes). Bring to a simmer then turn heat to medium-low. If the sauce is a bit watery (depends on your tomatoes) then let this cook, on low heat for about 10-20 minutes, uncovered, making sure the chicken is getting cooks. If the sauce looks thick, you can cover the pot and let it cook the same amount of time. Be sure to check frequently, stir to prevent burning on the bottom, and make sure all parts of the chicken get covered by the sauce.

5. Begin cooking your pasta to your tastes so that it will be finished the same time your sauce if finished. We serve the chicken on the pasta, but you could just as easily use rice or quinoa.

6. If you like mushrooms or green peppers, you may add these to the sauce. I suggest cooking the peppers with the onions in the beginning, but I have never done this as my wife hates peppers. Mushrooms should be saved until about 10 minutes before the sauce is done, then added and the pot covered. Portabello mushrooms add a nice flavor. One could also add 1/2 cup of beef stock with the wine (reduce amount of balsamic) for a richer, browner sauce.

7. It doesn't hurt to turn the sauce down to a simmer and let it cook for 30 minutes or so, as long as you make sure the bottom isn't burning. Actually, the longer the sauce cooks, the better it will taste, as it gives more time for the different flavors to alchemically mix. It takes time to learn proper timing, so keep tasting your sauce until it taste right to you! The chicken will be tender no matter what, as long as it remains covered.

I enjoy Cacciatore with a deep, dry, red wine. Here in France it is easy to get nice Bordeaux reds for rather cheap. In the US, I suggest a decent Pinot Noir, Cabernet-Sauvignon, or Shiraz. I find it is often best to use the same wine you added to the sauce to drink (you want good quality no matter what). California and Australian reds can offer cheap and tasty choices (such as Alice White or Mark West). Eating this meal with soda is a slap in the face!

Bon appetit!