This old recipe of mama’s, found in my “Missouri to Maui” cookbook, is a fine winter supper! I posted this recipe here several months ago but the photo was  junk and it didn’t show what a tender and juicy dish this really is. I have rice cooking now, for me, because I enjoy this dish over a bed of white rice (Mahalo, Nanea, for the gifted short grain rice you sent; I’ve saved a stash of it for a dish with a plentiful gravy or sauce!) My valentine will get garlic toast with her serving later tonight as mama isn’t a rice fan like I am. This dish is great also for serving with skillet cornbread with sauce  just made for bread or rice for sopping up every spoonful.

Because I am saving the chicken breasts for another use, I used just six pieces of chicken today. The meat comes out fork-tender flavored a little spicy with stewed tomatoes, white wine, and just a dash of red pepper. Mama will say that her “mouth is hot and too much pepper” but I make this with the amount called for in the recipe and love the boost of  the 1/4 tsp. of red pepper flakes.  The tang only complements the  rice or bread you serve it with. My chicken today had the skin on and I cooked it that way; you can remove the skin if you want or use skinless boneless chicken breasts.

You will need your high-sided electric skillet for easy sautéing of the vegetables and having plenty of room for the chicken to cook evenly. I adjusted the temperature down  and cooked it only 35 minutes after adding the chicken back to the skillet since I had no really thick pieces.  Serve it warm with plenty of sauce.

Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients

1/4 cup cooking oil
1-1/2 to 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or pieces
1/2 cup flour
2 cups onion, sliced in chunks
1/2 cup green pepper, sliced 1” pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-(15 oz.) can stewed tomatoes, undrained, snipped smaller
1-(8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 tsp. salt

Directions Heat oil in large electric skillet set on medium heat. Rinse chicken; dry with paper towels, then coat with flour. Brown chicken in hot oil until golden on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove chicken to plate and set aside. Add onion, green pepper, and garlic to skillet; cook, stirring, over medium heat until tender. Add diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, oregano, red pepper and salt. Stir well. Return chicken to skillet, spooning some of the sauce on top of each piece. Cover, reduce heat and simmer approximately 45 minutes; add water or white cooking wine if sauce becomes dry. Serve warm with hot rice, cornbread or toast.