Umbrian-Style Chicken Alla Cacciatora
- Total Time
- 45 to 60 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:3 to 4 servings
- 1tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1small chicken (about 2½ pounds), cut into serving pieces, or use bone-in, skin-on thighs and drumsticks
- 1onion, sliced
- 2 to 3cloves garlic, very finely minced
- 1tablespoon capers
- ¼cup good-quality brine-cured olives, black or green, with pits
- 1sprig rosemary
- 1handful sage leaves
- Salt and black pepper
- 1cup dry white wine
- Zest and juice of ½ lemon
- 1tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
594 calories; 32 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 15 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 11 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 53 grams protein; 957 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large non-stick pan. Add chicken pieces and sear over medium heat until golden on all sides, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a plate and wipe the pan clean before proceeding.
- Step 2
Turn heat to low, add remaining 1 teaspoon oil, and return the chicken to the pan. Add onions and stir frequently until caramelized, about 18 minutes. Add minced garlic, capers, olives, rosemary sprig and sage leaves. Season with just a sprinkle of salt and black pepper.
- Step 3
After a couple of minutes, when everything smells fragrant, add wine. Cover and simmer very slowly until the chicken is tender and cooked through (165 degrees). Start checking the temperature of the chicken after 15 minutes to avoid overcooking. Add some water if the sauce gets too dry while simmering.
- Step 4
When ready to serve, reheat if necessary, then add lemon juice and zest and balsamic vinegar. Taste and add more lemon if desired. Remove the rosemary sprig and serve.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Daniel Kamin
In Step 2 of this recipe, do you really mean to add the chicken back to the pan with the raw onions? that seems strange-- usually you add the seared meat back when the veggies and aromatics have been carmelized--- thanks for clarifying-
Letizia Mattiacci
Absolutely, the purpose is not to caramelize the onions per se, they will fall apart in the wine anyway. The aim of this method is to sautee the chicken with the aromatics, as a consequence the meat will absorb more flavor. When everything is fragrant, add the wine and simmer slowly, covered until fork tender and almost falling off the bone.
Letizia Mattiacci
How wonderful to see my recipe here! This is really a very simple dish and it's one of the most popular at my cooking classes. I think the misunderstanding on timing is that if you are searing several pieces of chicken, you might need to do it in batches and it takes quite a bit of time. I always add the raw onions to the chicken and *never* pit the olives. The pit imparts a good flavor to braised meats. If you use organic chicken it will then simmer for a long time and not get overcooked.
Chef Abby Gray
I had the honor of cooking this recipe with the author/chef, in her beautiful kitchen in Assisi, on 10/12/2016. If I were you, I would not change one thing. The end result is perfection - if you add other ingredients, you are making it your own - if you want the authentic taste - don't change a step or an ingredient. The olives with pits add flavor - like a bone does to meat!
elle
I agree -- and to cook until the onions are caramelized means the chicken will be overcooked if including the extra simmer time.
NYT Editor: Please let us know.
Letizia Mattiacci
Thank you so much MW, lovely to know you like my recipe. Indeed I don't wipe the pan because I use organic chicken and it's not fat. However I never pit the olives - this is quite normal in Italian cuisine - because the pit imparts a lovely woody flavor to the braise.
John Edelmann
I have made this dish by roasting in the oven- very easy and always comes out terrific with out the mess of stove top cooking.
Jilli Robertson
If you use "skin-on" thighs, as I did, and follow the directions, the first sear had primarily the effect of rendering a great deal of fat. The small amount of new oil in clean pan with sizzling chicken going back in the pan with onions (for no more than and possibly less than 18 mins) until onions start to caramelize. The other ingredients come together beautifully (as directed) if you simmer at a very, very low temperature and the chicken is done perfectly.
Letizia Mattiacci
Yes, olives with pit matters. First of all most pitted olives are colored with ferrous gluconate through a process named "artificial ripening". They are therefore quite devoid of flavor. Second, the pits impart a delicius woody aroma to the chicken. I feel this balances the incovenience of having to eat the olives with the pit.
Sue
In response to a few of the readers. Follow the recipe or go ahead and caramelize the onions first. It is wonderful! I attended Laticia's cooking class and we created this dish. I also prepared it at home. Get the best chicken you can!
Anne Lorenzetti
Step 1. 0K to remove chicken and excess fat. But if the pan us wiped clean, the fond holding the flavor of the chicken is lost. Other than that, this is real Umbrian home cooking!!!
Charlie
Made this tonight, it was awesome! Used sage powder, no problem. A cast iron pan normally used for fried chicken...and I caramalized the onions by themselves, not enough room in the pan, then added the rest of the stuff and then the chicken. came out great.
Kris
Hello Letizia - I had to google you, apologies. Read your recipe and since I'm not a trained northern Italian chef, I followed your directions...except wiping out the pan. It was terrific. Gave the onions a few minutes to pick up the fond and added the chicken. The onions caramelized nicely with the chicken (used kosher chicken), and the rest came together as advertised. Served with creamy polenta. I've liked your Facebook page - Wish me luck for the drawing - A Kitchen with a View.
Lucia Hatch
People, DO NOT wash raw chicken! It spreads germs around. Pat dry with paper towels if it's overly moist.
Jab
Really? Chicken back in pan WHILE carmelizing onions?
Beth
Made this pretty much as written for company, except I must have been rushing because I missed the bit about adding the chicken back with the onions and added it a little later. I also added some chicken stock because our family likes lots of sauce. I didn't think my husband would enjoy this - he has been pretty much anti-capers. He did like it though, so you've made a convert.
m
Added kale. Could have taken canned tomatoes or tomato sauce. Added a good amount of chicken stock
John
The recipe calls for carmelizing the onions under the chicken. I found this didn’t work well and wouldn’t do it again. It was hard to stir and control the temperature with all the chicken in it. Then on top of the chicken and onions, you’re supposed to stir in the garlic, olives and herbs before adding the wine. This too didn’t work well and didn’t seem to add anything. I would re-add the sautéed chicken and wine at the end.
susan
Good. I like led it Ravi and CK said okay. They did not eat left overs.
James
A great dish to make for company, I made it ahead and rewarmed when we were ready to serve. A dish that won't get in the way of enjoying time with friends.
Rebecca T
Super good! I added mushrooms, increased rosemary to several sprigs and made sure not to overcook the chicken. It's a simple dish to prepare and delicious.
lovesagoodbreakfast
This made for a beautiful and very simple meal, which was even better as we ate the leftovers on days 2 and 3. After making it according to the recipe, I would consider adding another 1/2 onion and slightly increasing the quantities of sage, capers and olives. The olives, in particular, were a treat. It reminded me of the kinds of dishes my dad would cook on picnics in a Dutch oven an open fire. Maybe that's how I'll do it next time.
Mark Schlossberg
This recipe looks delicious. I wanted to clarify. In Step 3 is it recommended to cook the chicken about 15 minutes? I do not have a cooking thermometer. Thank You.
PAM
I made this recipe almost as directed. About 15 minutes searing the chicken, carmelizing onions IN the juices for about 10 minutes before I threw the chicken back into the pot, olives with pits etc. Smelled fabulous, but even after 30 minutes of stewing in all its fragrant juices, I couldn't get the sauce to thicken or the chicken to cook through. Taking a cue from others and my own recipe for Provencal chicken, I put the whole creuset pot into the oven at 400 for 20 minutes to finish. Perfect!
tracy
I stumbled on this recipe looking for something to do with odds and ends in my pantry, on a day when it snowed 3 feet and I could not get to the store: some leftover roasted duck legs,a few pieces of veal saltimbocca, and 4 chicken thighs (not enough to feed my whole family). I modified the method a bit, but the end result was fantastic. Served with polenta, it was a perfect Winter night dish.
tracy
I doctored this up using some boneless chicken thighs, a leftover duck leg, a chopped up hunk of veal saltimbocca, dry sage and rosemary powders, and a slightly flat cup of champagne. It was terrific. A great “pantry” dish for using up leftovers on a wintry night when there was no way I was going to the store.
jss
Delicious! Followed the recipe (mostly) after reading all the comments... we had chicken breasts only, so didn’t cook them as long... also discovered at the last minute that we did not have fresh or frozen rosemary, used a few shakes of dried instead.. tasted sauce after 1/2 TBS of balsamic and decided that was sufficient ..served over risotto
Jocelyn
Love to double the recipe with only bone in thighs. For the leftovers, shred off the bone, vacuum seal and freeze. Fabulous the second time around.
Barbara
This was great. We did leave the pits in the olives. There were a few posts that explain why so first time on the recipe -- we went with. In the future - I'd use pitted. I like having a bite of chicken with olive and with the pits it's just too clunky. I don't think our palates are refined enough to really notice the "woodiness" the pits are supposed to provide but we'll know next time we make it. We didn't wipe out the pan -- that seems counter to everything we've learned.
Meg Fox
Great, clear recipe, and incredibly delicious. Yes, the instructions about caramelizing the onions with the chicken work just as described. I served it with risotto alla milanese (saffron scented, Marcella Hazan's recipe), baby peas sauteed in olive oil with minced garlic, and a great, simple salad of Jerusalem artichokes (raw, sliced paper thing) and baby spinach, dressed with olive oil, a drizzle of balsamic, and sea salt.
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