Chicken cacciatore with pasta and roasted potatoes.
This was last night's dinner, with a little help from OS. I started with a package of bone-in chicken thighs and ended up with a cacciatore-like dish served over pasta. The roasted potatoes were a suggestion from Nick Carraway and it's something that I forget I know how to make - simple peeled and sliced potatoes, tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted in a single layer for about 45 minutes at 400 (I flip them mid-roast for even tanning.). The 4-year old claimed they were the best French fries she's ever eaten. I topped off the meal with homemade lemon pudding made with Meyer lemons - outstanding. Not bad for a Tuesday night meal! Thanks to everyone for their suggestions, I will definitely give them all a try and write about them.
This is how I cooked the chicken:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Have an oven-ready dish with lid, such as a Dutch oven, standing by. In a skillet over medium heat, fry until crisp two strips of bacon cut into 1-inch pieces. Remove bacon and place in Dutch oven. Slice two medium onions into wedges and cook them until soft. Remove to Dutch oven.
2. Remove chicken from package and rinse thoroughly. Remove skin and visible fat. Dry, season with salt and pepper and brown on both sides in skillet. Place in Dutch oven.
3. I used leftover pizza sauce for part of the sauce, but essentially you'll need the equivalent of 28 oz. of diced, seasoned tomatoes. A clove or two of pressed garlic is nice, dried basil and oregano, or Italian seasoning are good, too. Place all in skillet and bring to a simmer. Pour over chicken and vegetables in Dutch oven, cover with lid.
4. Place Dutch oven in real oven and cook at 350° for a couple of hours. I use convection and turn it down when I run carpool, say 250° for one hour, then turn it back up to 350° for another hour. This is a resilient dish, and meat will fall off the bone when ready. Check on it every so often to make sure the liquid level is adequate - you want it to cover the chicken.
TIP:
Enter the amount, and click "Tip" to submit!
Max Rivlin-Nadler
Tom Cordle
Mary Stanik
keri h
Ande Bliss
Jersey Girl at Heart
Salon.com
Comments
P.S. I'm in love with that lemon pudding post, and will be tucking that recipe in my apron pocket immediately. I really like your writing style, thanks for sharing your kitchen adventures!
RB: Probably not a true cacciatore, but Marcella Hazan wasn't a guest, so I didn't worry about authenticity. And yes, there was cheese, I'm only a little bit embarrassed to confess that my kids had the stuff from the green can sprinkled on their portions. If they complain that we save the good stuff for company, I tell them to write it down and save it for their version of "Mommie Dearest." Thanks for the kind words about the writing and try the lemon pudding, you won't regret it.
Linda: I think I've stumbled on a fun, shticky sort of thing here. I like the feedback in this forum & will probably try this again.