Chicken cacciatore is a well-loved Italian dish that has evolved over the years. With ‘cacciatore’ translating to hunter in Italian, this dish was first eaten by hunters and made with their catch —fowl (chicken), rabbit and other game meat.
Today, chicken cacciatore still has the same improvisational spirit; in regions around Italy, there are as many variations as there are cooks. But a cacciatore recipe usually includes wine (often white, sometimes red), tomatoes, garlic, onion, herbs and vegetables.
In our favourite Italian chicken cacciatore recipe, we’ve added mild salami slices and olives, and swapped onion for leek. Plus, we’ve ditched the usual tomato paste for three types of tomato: basil sugo, baby heirloom tomatoes and a can of whole cherry tomatoes. The result: a hearty, tomato-rich and vibrant cacciatore that is primed for midweek dinners.
