Dad's Famous Chicken Cacciatore

This is our family favorite chicken cacciatore recipe I grew up eating on Sundays. Chicken thighs braise in rich, homemade tomato sauce with peppers.

I was really lucky growing up, almost all of my meals (breakfast, lunch AND dinner) were home-cooked. My mom did almost all of the cooking, but on weekends, my dad could be found by the stove making his famous chicken cacciatore.

I always loved helping my parents in the kitchen. My mom enjoys baking and breakfast foods, no one makes a better pancake, quick bread, or bundt cake. My dad loves Italian and Mediterranean flavors. You can usually find him by the grill with lots of protein and veggies, or slaving over some sort of pasta sauce.

My dad and I joke that there MUST be some secret Italian member of our family…but there’s not. We’re just a bunch of Irish blokes wishing our ancestors had more culinary expertise. We’re making up for it 🙂

Anywho, on Sunday nights, my dad usually gave my mom a night off in the kitchen. I’d walk downstairs from my room and Kenny G would be blaring from the speakers and he’d be moving around the kitchen. “What’s for dinner, daddy-o?”, I’d say. The reply was most often “chicken catch-my-tory” (aka chicken cacciatore in dad speak).

My husband Jared also really loves this recipe, so when he requested I make it the other day, I knew it had to go on the blog. So, here it is.

What is chicken cacciatore?

Traditional chicken cacciatore is a rustic Italian dish made from braising chicken thighs in tomato sauce. Commonly, green peppers are involved. My dad always cubed our chicken and peppers, making everything bite-sized, which was probably easier when we were little. So, that’s still how I make it today.

How is it usually served?

To my understanding, traditionally it is served on it’s own. Some recipes call for whole or breaded whole chicken thighs, so it’s really a great main dish as it.

But, we serve it over pasta. Because why not. I like rigatoni, but I’ve had this over just every pasta under the sun. Spaghetti is also especially good. So, we may move a bit from the traditional way of preparing and serving this hearty, healthy and filling dish, but it sure is easy…and crazy delicious.

Did you make this recipe? Come tag me and share a picture with me on Instagram!

Dad's Famous Chicken Cacciatore

This is our family favorite chicken cacciatore recipe I grew up eating on Sundays. Chicken thighs braise in rich, homemade tomato sauce with peppers.

• Author: Miss AK
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Yield: about 6 servings 1x
• Category: Dinner
• Method: Stovetop
• Cuisine: Italian American

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Ingredients

• 1 and 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into chunks
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 green bell peppers, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• pasta or zoodles, for serving

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Instructions

1. Once you have the chicken cubed into large bite-sized pieces, add 1 tablespoon of the oil to a large skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken and brown it all over, this takes about 8-10 minutes.
2. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set it aside on a plate. Add the remaining oil to the skillet and add the onions and peppers. Cook for about 5 minutes until they start to soften, and then add the garlic, Italian seasoning, sugar, salt and pepper. Cook for 2 more minutes.
3. Deglaze the pan with the wine and allow it to cook down and cook out the alcohol for about 3 minutes. Then, add the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Mix everything together well and add the chicken back to the pan.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil, cover and turn it down to simmer for at least 20 minutes. And hour or two is better.
5. When you’re ready to serve, ladle a heaping serving of the chicken, veggies and sauce over al-dente pasta, veggie noodles or a mixture of both.

Keywords: chicken, chicken thigh, Italian, pasta