Chicken Cacciatore- Classic Italian

Fill your kitchen with the heady aromas of slowly cooking chicken in a tomato wine sauce.  Throw in flavourful vegetables and herbs for a great old style cacciatore  your family will love.

Chicken "hunters' style" is a classic Italian dish and every cook has her own version.  This recipe is based on  the winning dish from Bobby Flay's TV show "Throwdown".  That throwdown was won by firefighter Keith Young.

To serve six to eight.

Ingredients:
3/4  cup all purpose flour
Salt and pepper to taste
1     cup olive oil
2     3-lb chickens, cut into eight pieces
6     cloves, garlic, halved
10   oz mushrooms, sliced
1     large onion, halved then cut into 1/2-inch slices
2     green sweet peppers, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2     red sweet peppers, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1     cup dry white wine
3     tbsp tomato paste
1     28-oz can whole tomatoes, with juice, crushed
1     tsp red pepper flakes
1     tsp dried oregano
12   leaves, fresh basil, chopped
1/2  cup green olives, pitted and sliced
2     tbsp capers, drained and rinsed

1     lb, spaghetti, cooked and drained

Directions:
Stir the flour, 2 tbsp of salt and 1 tbsp pepper together in a resealable plastic bag.  Heat the oil in a pot over medium-high heat.  Toss the chicken in the bag and toss to coat with the flour, shaking off any excess.  Place in the pan and fry until golden all over, about five minutes per side, removing the chicken to a plate.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the garlic to the pot and cook until golden brown, then transfer to the plate with the chicken.

Raise the heat to medium-high, add the mushrooms and cook until they release their liquid, about five minutes.  Add the onions and the peppers and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half.  Stir in the tomato paste, tomatoes, red pepper flakes, oregano and salt to taste.  Return the chicken, garlic and pan juices from the plate, capers and olives to the pot, cover, reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Uncover the pot and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, another 15 minutes.  Sprinkle in the fresh basil just before serving over spaghetti.