Easy Chicken Cacciatore

About 15 year ago Kenneth's mother used a Prego prepared jar of cacciatore. It was a hit and I remember keeping this in my pantry as a new wife.  After a while my grocer stopped carrying the sauce and I forgot about it.  Years later when I was teaching myself to cook I learned that Chicken Cacciatore is a classic Italian dish.  It was traditionally made with the dark meat of rabbit or chicken.  Stewed with mushrooms until it was very tender and creating a beef like gravy.  Today people make it with tomatoes and often serve over pasta.  Although the long stewed recipes looked good I never bothered to try them until one day Rachael Ray talked about enjoying this rustic dish in Italy.  She came up with a quick version to add to her 30-minute meal collections.  Rachael used portabello mushrooms and some beef stock to give the sauce a meaty, stewed all day taste.  Easy made with ingredients I always have on hand (besides to portabello's) it's a entry in our Family Everday Dinners book! 

I will share Rachaels quick version, but you can do a search for her 'stoup' and vegetarian version if you are interested.  I think next time I will add some onion and celery.  Enjoy!  Let me know if your family enjoys this one!

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast (3 pieces) or, 1 package boneless, skinless chicken thighs, if you prefer dark meat

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons (2 turns around the pan) extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 portobello mushroom caps, halved crosswise and thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, crushed and minced

1/2 cup beef broth or stock

1 (28-ounces) can crushed tomatoes

A handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1 pound egg ribbons or egg fettuccini, cooked to al dente

Crusty bread and grated Parmigiano or Romano
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add half of the extra-virgin olive oil and brown chicken breasts or thighs for 3 or 4 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from pan and season with salt and pepper.

Return pan to stove, reduce heat to medium and add the remaining. Add crushed pepper, sliced mushrooms, and garlic. Season with salt (salt is a magnet for drawing out liquid). Cover and cook mushrooms 5 minutes or until mushrooms are dark, tender and have given off their juices. Add about 1/2 cup of beef broth to intensify the wild mushroom flavor, then stir in the tomatoes and parsley. Cut the chicken into bite-size chunks or slices and add to sauce. Simmer sauce 5 minutes to finish cooking chicken pieces and to allow the flavors to combine. Toss pasta with cacciatore and serve with crusty bread and grated cheese.

Enjoy!