A few months ago (before T-day) I vowed to make Chicken
Cacciatore as soon as I got a number of other previously
planned dishes out of the way.

The T-day turkey and subsequent dishes made from the
leftovers (Creamy Wild Rice and Turkey Soup) lasted until
Xmas. Then I had to make Sauerbraten because I'd been
craving it for several months.)

So yesterday I made the C.C. I used Lidia's recipe.
It's unusual in that it uses white wine rather than
red. It also has red and yellow bell peppers in it.
A very nice touch.

I got a nice German Reisling (Spatlese) and had a glass
of the extra wine with my dinner. I served it with
polenta. This was the first time I had ever had polenta
like this. (The only other time I have cooked with polenta
was a breakfast dish of bacon, eggs, and polenta baked in
little individual casseroles.)

CHICKEN CACCIATORE
(Pollo alla Cacciatore)

2 broiler chickens (~ 2½ lb. each)
salt
freshly ground black pepper
flour
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. olive oil
1 sm. yellow onion, cut into 1" cubes (~ 1 c.)
1/2 c. dry white wine
1 28-oz. can Italian plum tomatoes with liquid, crushed
1 t. oregano
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/2" strips (~ 1 c.)
1 yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/2" strips (~1 c.)

Cut each chicken into 12 pieces. With a sturdy knife or kitchen shears,
remove the backbone by cutting along both sides. Remove the wingtips.
Reserve the backbone, wingtips, and giblets - except for the liver - to
make chicken stock. Or, if you like, cut the backbone in half crosswise
and add it to this dish. Place the chicken, breast side down, on a
cutting board and cut the chicken into halves by cutting through the
breastbone lengthwise. Cut off the wing at the joint that connects it
to the breast, then cut each wing in half at the joint. Separate the
leg from the breast. Cut the leg in half at the joint. Cut the breast
in half crosswise, giving the knife a good whack when you get to the
bone in separate the breast cleanly into halves. Repeat with the
remaining chicken.

Season the chicken pieces generously with salt and pepper. Dredge the
pieces in flour, coating them lightly and tapping off excess flour. In
a wide (at least 12") 5-qt. braising pan, heat the vegetable oil with 2
T. of the olive oil until a piece of chicken dipped in the oil gives off
a very lively sizzle. Add as many pieces of chicken to the pan as will
fit without touching. Do not crowd chicken; if the skillet is not wide
enough to fit all of the chicken, brown it in batches. Remove chicken
pieces from the skillet as they brown, adding some of the remaining
pieces of chicken to take their place. Remove all chicken from the
skillet. Add the onion to the fat remaining in the pan, and cook,
stirring 5 minutes. Pour the wine into the pan, bring to a boil, and
cook until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and
oregano, season lightly with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Tuck
the chicken into the sauce, adjust the heat to a gentle boil, and cover
the pan. Cook, stirring a few times, 20 minutes. In a large skillet,
heat the remaining 2 T. olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the peppers
and toss until the peppers are wilted but still quite crunchy, about 8
minutes. Season the vegetables with salt. Stir the peppers into the
chicken pan. Cook covered until the chicken and vegetables are tender,
10-15 minutes. Check the level of the liquid as the chicken cooks.
There should be enough liquid barely to cover the chicken. If
necessary, add small amounts of water to maintain the level of liquid as
the chicken cooks. Makes 6 servings. (From Lidia’s Italian-American
Kitchen by Lidia Bastianich.)

(Notes: I didn't use whole chickens. I bought a 10-lb. bag of
leg/thigh quarters at Walmart. I sectioned them and used the
drumsticks for the C.C. I also added garlic, the absence of which I
can't fathom. (It's an *Italian* recipe for cryin' out loud! Isn't it
against the law to make an Italian dish that doesn't contain garlic?
Always excepting dessert, of course.) Much as I love Lydia I don't
agree with her in this case. And I cut the peppers into somewhat
smaller strips so it would be easier to eat - cut them about 1/4" wide
and then in half. And I cooked them over high heat to char them
slightly.)

This dish was awesome. As much as I loved my version of C.C. which I
used to make 45 years ago and have now forgotten how I made it and don't
remember what recipe I used since I haven't made it for maybe 20 years,
this is my new go-to recipe. Although it's a bit more work than some
other recipes I have seen. I really liked the peppers being cooked
separately the way they were. And I'm now a huge fan of polenta.

Ciao
Kate

--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?