Kitchen Chaccatori

Sadly, every time I make this dish, my husband decides to maul the name/pronunciation into this ridiculous phrase… and after a year of living together, I sometimes refer to it as kitchen chaccatori as well… I guess it’s love, what can I say? Anywho… it’s amazing and surprisingly healthy and did I mention amazing?

The usual suspects…

Chicken Cacciatore                           Karla Cowan for RR
EVOO
S&P
4-6 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 ½ cups orzo pasta
Bunch of fresh basil (finely chopped)
1 medium onion (finely chopped)
1 pint of mushrooms (finely chopped)
14.5oz can diced tomatoes
8oz can tomato sauce
2 Tbsp capers

Add a couple tbsp of EVOO to a large skillet over medium heat. Season both sides of your chicken with S&P. Cook for about 7min on each side and then transfer to a plate tented with foil.

Grab a large pot and get some water boiling. Don’t add too much salt this time, since the orzo is so small. (I’ve made this mistake before) Cook it for about 5 minutes and then drain. Put it in a large bowl, add 2tbsp of EVOO and season with Pepper and a handful of the fresh basil. Sometimes I skip this step, because the sauce on the chicken is enough for the orzo… you decide.

When the chicken is done, add a bit more EVOO if needed and get the onion with some S&P in the skillet to soften. If you have a non-mushroom eater in the house, like we know I do, put the mushrooms in a separate pan (dry) and sauté them for about 8-10 minutes. Otherwise, you can cook them with the onions. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, capers and basil and bring it to a bubble. Let it thicken for about 7-8 minutes and add the chicken back in the pan the last few minutes to warm it up. Your kitchen should smell heavenly at this point. And the pan is beckoning you to dip your finger in a give it a lick…

But a decent person would wait until it’s properly plated… who am I kidding… I never wait.

But it does look pretty huh? Enjoy ya'll!