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This special variety of tomatoes makes this San Marzano chicken cacciatore extra special.
San Marzano Chicken Cacciatore
Sometimes it’s funny when you realize how long it’s been since you’ve eaten something that you enjoyed so much. That was the case here. A recent bout with sciatica left me chair bound with a heating pad planted firmly on my butt. There was not much else to do than binge watch movies and shows. So, I re-watched The Godfather and there was some chicken cacciatore.
Since I was reading all the hype about San Marzano tomatoes and how awesome they were, I decided to make San Marzano chicken cacciatore.
I usually buy the store-brand canned tomatoes. They’re good and they’re inexpensive. San Marzano tomatoes will at first produce some sticker shock because they’re expensive; almost twice the cost of the store brand. Are they worth it? A big YES there. However I only use them when the flavor of tomatoes is the dominant flavor.
The Chicken
Chicken cacciatore is a stew. In fact, it’s sometimes referred to as “hunter’s stew.” And just like beef stew, using a less tender and more inexpensive cut of beef to get the best flavor, the same applies here with the chicken.
Dark meat produces the very best flavor. Because the flavor is everything, you’ll want skin and bone chicken. Boneless skinless breasts won’t produce the flavor necessary; it will be rather bland with the taste of the chicken completely overpowered by the tomatoes. Bone-in skin-on chicken breast would work a little better but won’t be as good as thighs and drumsticks.
Fresh Basil
Using fresh basil is important here.
You don’t let it cook with the sauce. You stir it in when the chicken and sauce is done. It adds a lovely pop of color because it’s still bright green and gives a bolder flavor to the sauce because it’s not cooked down.
If you don’t grow basil yourself, it’s readily available in supermarkets.
The Recipe
San Marzano Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 4 chicken leg quarters separated into thigh and drumstick
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/2 cup flour
- 3 tbs olive oil
Sauce:
- 28 oz San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 1 small onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3/4 cup dry white wine
- 3/4 cup chicken stock
- 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Dredge chicken in the flour and brown well on both sides; remove to a plate.
- In the same pan you browned the chicken, add the bell pepper, onion and garlic and cook until the onion just begins to get tender. Stir frequently so this mixture doesn't burn.
- Add the wine and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half; about 5 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, stock and oregano. Stir well. Add the chicken back to the skillet and turn so it's coated with sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the chicken tests done (160F/80C) about 30-40 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped fresh basil.
- Serve immediately--nice with pasta.
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