Chicken Cacciatore (Italian Hunter's Chicken Braised with Tomatoes, Peppers, Olives and Rosemary)

Chicken cacciatore (pollo alla cacciatora, literally hunter's-style chicken) is the Italian braise every home cook should have in their repertoire: bone-in chicken thighs browned until the skin is deep gold, then simmered slowly with onion, garlic, sweet bell pepper, mushrooms, a splash of wine, tomatoes, rosemary and bay, and finished with briny black olives and capers. It is rustic, deeply savory and forgiving, and it fills the kitchen with the kind of smell that makes an October evening feel like a reward. Every region of Italy has its own version; this one leans toward the tomato-rich style of central Italy, with the peppers and mushrooms that make it a complete one-pan meal.

A few choices make the difference between a cacciatore with real depth and a watery chicken stew. Use bone-in, skin-on thighs: the bones add body to the sauce and the meat stays juicy through a 40-minute braise in a way breasts never do. Brown the chicken properly and in batches, so you get a real crust and a layer of browned fat to cook the vegetables in. Sear the mushrooms before the onion so they caramelize instead of steaming. And braise partially covered, at a gentle simmer, so the sauce concentrates while the chicken cooks through. The olives and capers go in with the tomatoes, so their brine seasons the whole dish rather than sitting on top.

Ingredients

• 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, about 1.2 kg (2.6 lb)
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 250 g (9 oz) cremini or button mushrooms, quartered
• 1 large yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1 cm (1/2-inch) strips
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 150 ml (2/3 cup) dry white wine (or a light dry red)
• 1 can (400 g / 14 oz) whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand, with their juice
• 150 ml (2/3 cup) chicken stock
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 bay leaf
• 80 g (1/2 cup) pitted black olives, such as Gaeta, Taggiasca or Kalamata
• 1 1/2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
• 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley, to finish
• Soft polenta, crusty bread or cooked pasta, to serve

Instructions

1. Pat the chicken thighs very dry with paper towels and season all over with the salt and pepper. Let them sit at room temperature while you prepare the vegetables; dry, room-temperature skin browns far better.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy sauté pan or Dutch oven (at least 30 cm / 12 inches) over medium-high heat. Add 4 thighs skin side down and cook without moving them for 6 to 7 minutes, until the skin is deep golden and releases easily. Flip and brown the other side for 3 minutes, then transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining 4 thighs.
3. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the fat in the pan. Add the mushrooms in a single layer and cook over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring only once or twice, until they are browned at the edges.
4. Add the onion and bell pepper with a pinch of salt and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, until fragrant but not browned.
5. Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to lift up every browned bit. Let it bubble for 2 to 3 minutes, until reduced by about half and the sharp alcohol smell has gone.
6. Add the crushed tomatoes with their juice, the stock, rosemary, bay leaf, olives and capers. Stir, season lightly with salt (the olives and capers are salty, so go easy) and bring to a simmer.
7. Nestle the chicken thighs into the sauce skin side up, so the skin stays above the liquid, and pour in any juices from the plate. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan partway and simmer gently for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is very tender and the juices run clear (75°C / 165°F at the bone). The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon; if it is still thin, lift out the chicken and boil the sauce hard for 3 to 5 minutes.
8. Discard the rosemary stems and bay leaf, taste the sauce and adjust the salt and pepper. Scatter with parsley and serve straight from the pan, with soft polenta, thick slices of crusty bread or a bowl of pasta to catch the sauce.

Tips

• Substitutions: chicken drumsticks or a whole chicken cut into 8 pieces work just as well; a mix of thighs and drumsticks is the most traditional. If you only have boneless thighs, reduce the braise to 25 minutes. Red wine gives a darker, more robust sauce and is what many Tuscan cooks use, so use whichever bottle is open. No fresh rosemary? Use 1 teaspoon dried rosemary or 2 sprigs of thyme.
• Do not crowd the pan when browning. If the thighs are packed together they steam instead of searing, and you lose the crust and the flavorful browned fond that the sauce is built on. Two batches take 10 extra minutes and are worth every one.
• For a silkier sauce, add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste with the garlic and fry it for a minute before adding the wine. For a touch of heat, add a pinch of dried chili flakes at the same time; it is common in southern versions of the dish.
• Make-ahead and storage: like most braises, cacciatore is even better the next day. Cool completely and refrigerate in a covered container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat gently in a covered pan over low heat, adding a splash of water or stock, until the chicken is hot all the way through. If you have frozen it, thaw overnight in the fridge first.
• What to serve with it: creamy polenta is the classic partner in northern Italy and soaks up the sauce beautifully; crusty bread or a short pasta such as rigatoni is more common further south. Add a simple green salad with a sharp vinaigrette or some sautéed greens, and pour the same wine you cooked with.
• Leftover sauce with a little shredded chicken makes an excellent pasta sauce or a topping for bruschetta the next day, so it is worth making the full batch even for two people.

Nutrition

Nutrition information is an estimate only: about 560 kcal, 42 g protein, 34 g fat, 14 g carbohydrate per serving of 2 thighs with sauce, not including polenta, bread or pasta.