Succulent tender chicken pieces cooked in a rich and rustic sauce, filling your whole kitchen with delicious aromas… Sounds pretty great, doesn’t it? I can understand why so many Italian regions try to claim the origins of this recipe, who wouldn’t want to be the mastermind behind one of Italy’s most famous comfort foods? That also explains why the ingredients vary slightly depending on the region in which it is prepared.  

Chicken alla cacciatora lies in the history of Italian farmers which is where it found its name – “cacciatora” derives from the word “hunter” in Italian. From garlic and onions to carrots and tomatoes, these easily sourced ingredients that farmers would simply harvest from the land, make one of the most scrumptious sauces filled with tantalising flavours! 

This recipe has been handed down many generations as it makes feeding the family a whole lot easier. Foodifox Chef Francesco shares that he always used to eat this dish with his family throughout his childhood: “growing up, my Grandmother used to make chicken alla cacciatora every weekend for the whole family. I used to watch her make it all the time, I still use the very same recipe today”. 

Discover the very same recipe below: 

Recipe:

Serves: 4 

Ingredients:

1kg chicken thigh fillets

2 onion

1 carrot 

5 tsp garlic mince 

2 chillies

1k tomatoes

250g olives

150g capers
6 potatoes 

2 tbsp olive oil 

¼ bunch oregano

¼ bunch rosemary 

¼ bunch thyme 

50g sugar 

1 ½  tbsp white pepper 

3 tbsp salt 

Method: 

Fry the garlic and onion in olive oil in a pot for 5-6 minutes on low heat. Once the onion becomes translucent, increase the temperature to medium-high heat and add the chicken to the pot to sear it so that it releases a little bit of juice. Once seared, take the chicken out of the pot and set it aside. 

In the same pot, add the capers and half of the olives and fry them on medium-high heat to give them a crispy texture. Stir in the oregano.

Add the tomato passata, a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar. The sugar removes the acidity produced by the tomatoes. Add the thyme, rosemary, carrot, potatoes and a couple of chillies, and cook for 35 minutes on low-medium heat.

Add the chicken back into the pot, and let it simmer for 15 minutes or until cooked through. Add the remaining amount of olives and continue to let it cook for a further 5 minutes.