Chicken Cacciatore

I've had my eye on this Chicken Cacciatore recipe in my Better Homes & Garden New Cookbook. As you recall I cooked a chicken alfredo dinner back in October! Well I conveniently froze some of the extra chicken thighs and was secretly saving them for this!

Chicken Cacciatore
Makes: 6 servings
My notes in red italics!

2 1/2 - 3 lbs meaty chicken pieces (breast halves, thighs, and drumsticks)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1 medium onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes, undrained I used a 28 oz can of chunky tomatoes since I had this in the pantry. The sauce was a little extra tomatoe-y but Patrick and I liked it.
1 6-oz can tomato paste
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp dried Italian seasoning, crushed
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp snipped fresh parsley
Hot cooked fettuccine or linguine (optional) We served with rotini and liked the small pasta.

1. Skin chicken. In a large skillet brown chicken on all sides in hot oil over medium heat about 15 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove chicken from skillet, reserving drippings in skillet; set chicken aside. My thighs were boneless and did not take this long!

Patrick chops the veggies while the chicken browns

2. Add mushrooms, onion, and garlic to skillet. Cook and stir about 5 minutes or until vegetables are just tender. Return chicken to skillet.

3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, sugar, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Pour over chicken in skillet. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 30 to 35 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (170F for breasts; 180F for thighs and drumsticks), turning once during cooking. Sprinkle with parsley. If desired, serve over hot cooked pasta.
Once again Patrick and I had an easy time splitting things up! I worked at the stove and browned the chicken while he prepared the sauce. Then we let everything simmer! This was super yummy too. I was very impressed with how it turned out.

Patrick preparing the sauce

Simmering! yum!

Chicken cacciatore atop rotini sprinkled with parmesan cheese and served with a side salad of green lettuce, fresh green beans, sliced almonds, and more parmesan.