An Old Favorite

I decided to go back to my Italian palate tonight and cook an old favorite of mine, Chicken Cacciatore.  It is so simple to make and just the smell of it cooking takes me back to my childhood, in the kitchen while my grandmother made this.

Now, I don't have a set recipe for this.  This is traditional, old-school Italian cooking with a little bit of this and a little bit of that.  Truly, this recipe is what you make it.  You add as much or as little of each ingredient as you want.  To make this, you must learn over time how many pinches, or dashes of spices you like.

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Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients:

bone-in split chicken breast
yellow onion
green, red, or yellow bell pepper
stewed tomatoes
minced garlic
salt
pepper
parsley
rosemary
thyme
marjoram
basil
oregano
pecorino romano cheese

Directions:

You'll want to use a large frying pan with a lid.  Heat your pan up on medium-high heat.  Add in some olive oil and ensure it the oil gets hot but does not burn.

When the oil is hot, reduce heat to medium and add in your sliced onion.  Saute until the onion starts to become clear.  Do not caramelize the onion.

Add in the bell peppers and stewed tomatoes.  Add in your spices.  Place the chicken breasts skin side down.  Cover and reduce heat.  Let simmer for a half hour.

After a half hour, flip your chicken breasts and stir your vegetables.  Cover and simmer for another half hour.

When you're ready to serve, spoon out the vegetables and broth that formed.  Cut your chicken off of the bone and mix in with the vegetables.  Serve with grated pecorino romano cheese on top.