Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients

Convert cups to grams →

• 4 chicken leg quarters thigh and drumstick attached, bone-in, skin-on, about 10 oz (300 g) each
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion sliced
• 2 bell peppers one red and one yellow, cut into 3/4-inch (2 cm) pieces
• 3 clove garlic sliced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 150 ml (5.1 fl oz) dry red wine dry
• 1 can diced tomatoes 14-oz (400 g) can, with the juice
• 2 sprig rosemary
• 3 sprig thyme
• 80 g (2.8 oz) black olives pitted, halved
• 0.5 bunch flat-leaf parsley chopped
• salt to taste
• black pepper freshly ground, to taste

Method

1. Rinse the chicken, pat it thoroughly dry and season all over with salt and pepper. Slice the onion, slice the garlic, cut the bell peppers into 3/4-inch (2 cm) pieces and halve the olives.
2. Heat the olive oil in a wide Dutch oven with a lid over medium-high heat. Brown the legs skin side down for 6 to 7 minutes until golden, flip and brown for another 4 minutes, then remove them. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat.
3. Cook the onion and bell peppers in the pot over medium heat for 6 to 8 minutes, until the onion is soft and the edges start to brown. Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
4. Pour in the red wine and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Boil vigorously for about 2 minutes until the wine has reduced by half. Only part of the alcohol cooks off this way; for a version without wine, use 150 ml (scant 2/3 cup) of vegetable broth.
5. Add the tomatoes with their juice, the rosemary and the thyme and bring to a boil. Nestle the legs back in, skin side up, so they sit only halfway in the sauce, cover and braise over low to medium heat for 20 minutes.
6. Remove the lid, add the olives and braise uncovered for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the sauce is thick and the meat is tender at the bone. The chicken is done when the internal temperature at the thickest part, without touching the bone, reaches at least 176 °F (80 °C).
7. Remove the herb sprigs, season the sauce with salt and pepper and serve the legs with the sauce. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley.

Tip: Crisp skin needs dry meat and enough room in the pot: brown the legs side by side without stacking them, or they steam.

Tip: Crusty bread, polenta or pasta soak up the sauce. The sauce can be made a day ahead; reheat the chicken in it until it is steaming hot all the way through.

Food safety: Always cook poultry all the way through: the core temperature at the coldest point must reach at least 158 °F (70 °C) and be held there for at least 2 minutes; use a kitchen thermometer.