Chicken two ways.

Winter is here. Actually it is almost here, because until yesterday winter has been very kind to us here in New York. Temperatures started to fall only in the last couple of days, and with cold temperatures we need something hearty to keep us warm. In these cases I prefer to have one dish meals. Somehow they are the best way to fight the cold weather: it's comforting to have everything you need on one dish served hot, instead of going through several courses.

Today we are making a classic Italian recipe: Chicken cacciatore. It's a kind of peasant dish, where chicken is cooked with vegetables. This makes it a perfect choice if you have young children and you want them to learn to eat their veggies: being a one dish meal it will be difficult to separate the vegetables from the chicken, and since they are cooked together, everybody will consider them a package.

As usual I tweaked the basic recipe to make it lighter, and I am giving you two versions of the basic recipe. You can mix and match ingredients, quantities and how to cook, according to your taste. To give you an example, today I made the first recipe: I used 4 thighs, mini sweet peppers that I had on hand, and some Lima beans, just because my mom likes them. Instead of tomato sauce, I used half a can of crushed tomatoes, and didn't need to add the paste.

CHICKEN CACCIATORE 

                                                 

I like to think that this dish was born out of necessity. There are some staple dishes in every culture that are some kind of "catch all", and they are served on days when the family is otherwise occupied. I remember that way back when washing machines were not that common, they used to have a "laundry day" where everyone was busy doing something related to this huge endeavor, so dinner had to be something they had at hand in the pantry or in the kitchen. So, if the name tells us anything, I think the "chicken cacciatore" was created for the days when everybody went to hunt and this is what came out of that necessity.

When making this dish you have a lot of choices: you can use whole legs, thighs only or thighs and drumsticks. You may consider one leg per person or one thigh and one drumstick or two thighs, maybe even breasts, but make sure to cut them in half at least. Use any combination you like. You'll need:

3 thighs and 3 drumsticks (with or without skin)

1 small onion chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

1 green bell pepper sliced

1 ½ cup sliced mushrooms

3 stalks of celery chopped

½ to 1 cup frozen small Lima beans thawed (optional)

1 16 ounces can tomato sauce (or chopped tomatoes) + 2 tbsp tomato paste

½ cup green olives sliced (optional)

1 to 2 cups chicken stock or water

2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

                                                      

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Set aside until you prepare the vegetables.

In a large skillet slightly brown the chicken pieces in 1 tbsp of oil until there is no blood near the bone. If you are using chicken with the skin on, start with the skin side first, then turn the pieces to cook on the other side, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Remove the chicken to a dish. In the same skillet add the 2^nd tbsp of oil, stir the onion until translucent and then add the garlic. Stir for a moment, then add mushrooms and salt/pepper. Stir. Mushrooms will render their liquid. When it’s almost absorbed add celery and bell pepper. Stir. Add Lima beans. Stir and when liquids are almost all absorbed add back the chicken and any liquid that may have accumulated in the dish. Stir to mix well, then add olives, tomato sauce. In ½ cup of water or stock dissolve the tomato paste and add to the skillet. Stir to check on liquids. The sauce should be of medium thickness to allow for the vegetables and chicken to cook until done. Add more liquid if needed, and adjust seasoning as needed. (Remember if you used green olive they are salty, so don't put too much salt at the beginning).

Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve over yellow rice or small pasta.

Note: You can change the ratio of the ingredients according to taste.

You may also change the vegetables and use bite size asparagus pieces, or ½ inch quartered zucchini slices. Do not use potatoes in this dish.

When adding the vegetables you have to take into consideration the time each one needs to cook and add them to your skillet accordingly.

Ex: start with mushrooms, then peppers, then asparagus, zucchini and finally frozen veggies. Zucchini slices should be rather thick so that they don’t become mushy.

CHICKEN CACCIATORE II

1 whole chicken cut in 8 to 10 pieces

1 medium onion chopped

3 cloves of garlic minced

1 red bell pepper chopped

1 can chopped tomatoes, or whole tomatoes 

2 to 3 tbsp capers, drained

1 cup red wine (optional)

Chicken stock

½ tsp dried oregano

2 to 3 tbsp all purpose flour

2  tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

You can use chicken with or without skin.

Lightly flour chicken pieces and season with salt and pepper. In a non-stick skillet brown the chicken in one tbsp oil until there is no more blood near the bones. Start with the skin side first if you are using chicken with the skin on. When done, remove to a plate. In the same skillet add the remaining oil, the chopped onion and stir. Next add the garlic and follow with the red pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Stir and add the wine, followed by the tomatoes. Break the tomatoes with a spoon, sprinkle with oregano, then add the capers and 1 cup of stock. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken back to the skillet, the liquid should be almost covering it. Add stock if you need. Bring again to a boil, then let simmer on medium heat covered until done.

Serve over rice or small pasta.

NOTE: You may have noticed that I used a finely chopped onion in these recipes. The reason is that in such recipes the onion pieces will disappear when cooked, so I have no problem with that.

YELLOW RICE

This is a delicious way to make a different side dish of rice. By now you already know that I don't like to boil rice or make it simply white, except for special dishes. So, cooking it this way adds a little something extra to your side dish. I usually serve it with fish cooked in tomato sauce, or chicken, also cooked in sauce. I like the contrast in colors. You'll need:

1 small onion finely chopped

1 good pinch of saffron threads or 1 tsp of turmeric

2 cups of rice

1 tbsp ghee (at Indian stores) or clarified butter or vegetable oil

Liquid (water or chicken stock) according to rice package

Salt to taste

Rinse the rice until the water runs clear. Drain well.

In a non-stick pot melt the ghee, add the onion and stir until translucent. Add saffron and stir to coat and release the flavor and color. Add the rice and stir to completely coat and to make sure that all the liquid from rinsing is absorbed (you will hear crackling). Add water according to package directions and salt to taste. Cook covered over high heat until all the liquid is absorbed. Lower the heat, fluff the rice, adjust seasoning, cover and let simmer until completely tender.

TIP: You can replace the ghee with a mix of equal parts of butter and oil. The aim here is to prevent butter from browning during all the dry stirring and thus giving a bitter taste to the rice.

Stirring the rice until you hear it crackling will guarantee that grains will be separated  and rice will be fluffy, not sticky.