Hubby was bummed out when he came home from the doctor last week. The doctor said he needed to reduce his carbs. I was relieved to know that he is ok and only a tweak in his diet is required.
Even though we (because if he has to do it so will I) have to reduce carbs (which we both love, love, love), I refuse to give up flavor. After all, this blog is all about recipes with lots of flavor.
So I wanted to make something healthier, low carb, and roughly trying to follow the guidelines of the Mediterranean diet (I hate that word – DIE-T). So I made Chicken Cacciatore, which I have not made in awhile. Normally this would be served over pasta or rice or polenta. But we had it with just the chicken and vegetables. Yeah!! Hubby loved it. So did I.
I combined several recipes for mine, but primarily from The Pioneer Woman’s Chicken Cacciatore and Giada’s Chicken Cacciatore. However, I added more vegetables such as carrots, and left out the turmeric and butter, using only olive oil, and used Italian-style canned diced tomatoes with basil and garlic just to add more flavor.
Now I had a decision to make. Do I go low fat and use boneless, skinless chicken breast (which I normally use when I make chicken dishes) or do I go with the chicken thighs called for in this dish. For this recipe I decided to go for the extra flavor and used chicken thighs with skin. (Hey….the doctor said low carb…not low fat.)
Lots of my dishes are spicy or use lots of spices, but in this recipe the cooking method add lots of flavor. I could have just thrown the chicken and vegetables in a pot and let them cook. But to add more flavor, I browned the chicken (with the skin on) in olive oil first.
Then I poured off some of the chicken drippings and sautéed lots of vegetables in the remaining oil and drippings.
Both steps of browning the chicken and sautéing the vegetables add flavor to the dish. Now it was time for the the garlic, oregano, thyme, crushed red pepper, and white wine (or chicken broth if you don’t want wine) and let it cook down for about 30 minutes. Then add the chicken broth, Italian-style tomatoes, and last but not least, capers.
Add back the chicken and let everything cook together for about 45 minutes. Then serve either as is, like we had it, or over pasta or polenta. Give it a try! You won’t regret it.
Chicken Cacciatore
Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs
- seasoned salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 onion roughly chopped
- 1/2 each red green, and yellow bell peppers, roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup mushrooms sliced
- 1/2 cup carrots roughly chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 1 (14-ounce) can diced Italian Style Tomatoes
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon capers optional
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- Salt and Pepper chicken
- Dredge chicken in flour to lightly coat
- Heat olive oil in a heavy bottom pan or dutch oven over medium high heat.
- Place chicken, skin side down, in bottom of pan. Cook just until chicken is browned. Remove from heat and place on a plate. Set aside. Drain off any excess chicken drippings.
- In the same pan, add the onion, bell peppers, mushrooms, and carrots and stir until softened. Add the garlic and stir. Add the thyme, oregano, and optional red pepper flakes. Stir until vegetables are browned and softened a little.
- Pour in wine and let it simmer for about 30 minutes. Add canned italian tomatoes, chicken broth, and capers into the pan and stir. Place chicken (skin-side up) back in the pan, sitting on top of the vegetables and let it cook for another 45 minutes.
- Serve by itself or on top of pasta, rice, or polenta and top with chopped fresh basil.
Nutrition
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Miz Helen says
Thank you so much for sharing this awesome recipe with Full Plate Thursday. Hope you have a great week and come back soon!
Miz Helen