So, decided to go with an Italian classic for dinner tonight - chicken cacciatore. (Cack-a-tor-ray). It means 'hunter' in Italian so that's cool. You could add lots to it, peppers, mushrooms, beans, anything you like really. Recipe to start, pictures are at the bottom.
It's good, simple cooking that produces great food for not much effort that anyone can do and it's pretty healthy and filling. 40 minutes from start of cooking to eating. I hope you enjoy reading (it's my first cooking thread!) All pictures taken on my HTC Wildfire™®.
Ingredients (for two, I'll eat it all for me but it'll do 2 as a reasonable sized dinner).
2 Chicken Breasts
2 Shallots, finely chopped.
2 Garlic Cloves, crushed.
500g Passata (sieved tomatoes, a fancy tomato puree) but you could use cherry tomatoes, or normal tomatoes that have been blended, chopped tomatoes, anything tomatoy really. I like passata, so I went with that (and it's very very cheap). Possibly a bit to much unless you are a big fan of tomato sauces.
2.5 tablespoons Mascarpone.
Handful of basil.
A glug of Red Wine, I used Le Pre Du Moine Bordeaux but you could use whatever you want, white if you prefer would be acceptable or you don't have to put any in!
Seasoning
Pasta (to serve)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 190c.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper a fry in some olive oil, a dash will be enough.
Put chicken in an baking dish and keep to one side.
1. Chuck the chopped onions and crushed garlic into the pan you fried the chicken in (keep the fat/juice/oil) and fry until softened.
2. Get the cook a drink!
3. Add the tomatoes, the wine and season (won't need that much as the chicken has been salted already) and a teaspoon sugar (cuts through the acidity of tomatoes).
4. Simmer this (on a low setting, I went to high and had a tomato volcano all over my hob) for 10 minutes or so, until it thickens up and goes glossy.
5. Take off the heat, and stir in the mascarpone and about half the basil. Just tear the basil and throw it in!
6. Pour this oven the chicken, and sprinkle over the rest of the basil.
Put it into the oven at 190 (170 if you've got a fancy fan oven) for 20 - 30 minutes.
7. Serve with pasta, or whatever you want. Lemon and rosemary roasties would be really good I think and some nice crusty bread if you have it. Pour some wine into a glass, and get drinking/eating.
Pictures!
Ingredients. I have chillis out, as I was going to chuck one or two in but decided against it. Ingredients used but not shown - Red wine, sugar.
Cut shallots and crushed garlic, and my cat.
Get a drink, you can't cook without drinking. And yes, that's a litre of Finlandia that did actually cost £7!
Fry that chicken. (It's seasoned on the other side)
Add onion/garlic/wine and tomatoes, and heat.
Add marscapone and basil, and stir until it's all combined.
Pour sauce over the chicken (That's the wine I used) and chuck it into the oven (190c) for 25 minutes or so.
Take it out of oven, duh.
Serve with whatever you fancy! Sit down and gobble that up! I was going to serve it with some runner beans, but I forgot to cook them! Woops.
It's good, simple cooking that produces great food for not much effort that anyone can do and it's pretty healthy and filling. 40 minutes from start of cooking to eating. I hope you enjoy reading (it's my first cooking thread!) All pictures taken on my HTC Wildfire™®.
Ingredients (for two, I'll eat it all for me but it'll do 2 as a reasonable sized dinner).
2 Chicken Breasts
2 Shallots, finely chopped.
2 Garlic Cloves, crushed.
500g Passata (sieved tomatoes, a fancy tomato puree) but you could use cherry tomatoes, or normal tomatoes that have been blended, chopped tomatoes, anything tomatoy really. I like passata, so I went with that (and it's very very cheap). Possibly a bit to much unless you are a big fan of tomato sauces.
2.5 tablespoons Mascarpone.
Handful of basil.
A glug of Red Wine, I used Le Pre Du Moine Bordeaux but you could use whatever you want, white if you prefer would be acceptable or you don't have to put any in!
Seasoning
Pasta (to serve)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 190c.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper a fry in some olive oil, a dash will be enough.
Put chicken in an baking dish and keep to one side.
1. Chuck the chopped onions and crushed garlic into the pan you fried the chicken in (keep the fat/juice/oil) and fry until softened.
2. Get the cook a drink!
3. Add the tomatoes, the wine and season (won't need that much as the chicken has been salted already) and a teaspoon sugar (cuts through the acidity of tomatoes).
4. Simmer this (on a low setting, I went to high and had a tomato volcano all over my hob) for 10 minutes or so, until it thickens up and goes glossy.
5. Take off the heat, and stir in the mascarpone and about half the basil. Just tear the basil and throw it in!
6. Pour this oven the chicken, and sprinkle over the rest of the basil.
Put it into the oven at 190 (170 if you've got a fancy fan oven) for 20 - 30 minutes.
7. Serve with pasta, or whatever you want. Lemon and rosemary roasties would be really good I think and some nice crusty bread if you have it. Pour some wine into a glass, and get drinking/eating.
Pictures!
Ingredients. I have chillis out, as I was going to chuck one or two in but decided against it. Ingredients used but not shown - Red wine, sugar.
Cut shallots and crushed garlic, and my cat.
Get a drink, you can't cook without drinking. And yes, that's a litre of Finlandia that did actually cost £7!
Fry that chicken. (It's seasoned on the other side)
Add onion/garlic/wine and tomatoes, and heat.
Add marscapone and basil, and stir until it's all combined.
Pour sauce over the chicken (That's the wine I used) and chuck it into the oven (190c) for 25 minutes or so.
Take it out of oven, duh.
Serve with whatever you fancy! Sit down and gobble that up! I was going to serve it with some runner beans, but I forgot to cook them! Woops.
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