Chicken Cacciatore with Shiitakes, Cherry Tomatoes, and Fresh Herbs
A rustic Italian “hunter’s-style” braise: bone-in chicken thighs simmered with shiitake mushrooms, sweet peppers, zucchini, and cherry tomatoes, finished with fresh herbs, capers, and a bright gremolata, and served over greens with toasted walnuts.
Yield: Serves 4 · Active: 25 min · Total: 1 hour · July through October, when cherry tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini overflow gardens and farmers’ markets (jarred cherry tomatoes work the rest of the year) · Cuisine: Italian, rustic central Italy · Best eaten: early evening
Cacciatore means “hunter’s style.” In the Italian countryside, it was the way a hunter’s catch, often rabbit or chicken, was braised with whatever the garden and hillside offered: onions, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, and fresh herbs. This version keeps that spirit, with pasture-raised chicken thighs, meaty shiitakes, sweet cherry tomatoes, and a handful of fresh herbs. A couple of anchovies melt invisibly into the base for deep, savory flavor (even if you think you don’t like anchovies), and a Parmigiano rind simmers in the sauce.
Ingredients
Braise
2 lbs pasture-raised bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (6–8 thighs)
Baja Gold sea salt and black pepper
2 tbsp pasture-raised lard, grass-fed ghee, or avocado oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 salt-packed anchovy fillets, rinsed (optional, but recommended)
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup shiitake mushrooms, sliced (save the stems for broth)
Optional: ½ cup dry white wine (or ½ cup more broth plus 1 tbsp white wine vinegar, for alcohol-free)
½ cup chicken bone broth
1½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 zucchini, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried thyme
A 2-inch piece of Parmigiano-Reggiano rind (optional)
To finish
1 tbsp fresh oregano, minced
2 tbsp fresh basil, torn
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbsp salt-packed capers, rinsed
Gremolata
2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
Zest of 1 lemon
1 small garlic clove, finely minced
To serve
Arugula, radicchio, or spinach
¼ cup walnuts or pine nuts, toasted
Shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano (or 2 tbsp nutritional yeast, for dairy-free)
A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Swaps:
Chicken breasts: Use 1½ lbs boneless breasts, sear them 3–4 minutes per side, and simmer just 10–15 minutes, until they reach 165°F.
Deeper tomato flavor: Roast the halved cherry tomatoes with a little olive oil and salt at 400°F for 15 minutes before adding them.
Other ways to serve it: over spaghetti squash (see my Spaghetti Squash, Eight Ways), cauliflower purée, or soft polenta, if you eat grains.
Method
Season and sear. Pat the chicken dry, and season generously with salt and pepper. Heat the lard in a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the thighs skin-side down for 6–8 minutes, until the skin is deep golden and crisp, then flip and sear 2 minutes more. Move them to a plate, and pour off all but 2 tbsp of the fat.
Soften the aromatics. Lower the heat to medium. Add the onion, and cook 4–5 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and anchovies, and cook 1 minute, stirring, until the anchovies melt away.
Add the peppers and mushrooms. Add the bell pepper and shiitakes, and cook 5 minutes, until softened and the mushrooms have browned.
Deglaze. Pour in the wine (if using), and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Let it bubble 2 minutes.
Build the sauce. Add the broth, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, dried rosemary and thyme, Parmigiano rind (if using), and a pinch of salt. Stir, and bring to a simmer.
Braise. Nestle the chicken back in, skin-side up, keeping the skin above the liquid so it stays crisp. Cover, and simmer gently 30–35 minutes, until the thighs reach 175°F and the tomatoes have melted into a sauce. For the last 5 minutes, uncover to let the sauce thicken.
Make the gremolata. Mix the parsley, lemon zest, and garlic.
Finish. Take the pan off the heat, and remove the Parmigiano rind. Stir the oregano, basil, parsley, and capers into the sauce, and taste for salt.
Serve. Arrange the greens on plates, and top with the chicken and vegetables. Spoon the sauce over, and finish with the gremolata, toasted walnuts, shaved Parmigiano, and a drizzle of olive oil.
A note on the wine: Simmering cooks off most, but not all, of the alcohol. Use the alcohol-free swap for children or anyone avoiding alcohol.
Storage
Refrigerator: up to 4 days. It’s even better the next day.
Freezer: up to 3 months (add the fresh herbs and gremolata after reheating).
To reheat: Warm gently on the stove, covered, with a splash of broth.
Nourishment Notes
Pasture-raised chicken thighs — complete protein, B vitamins, selenium, zinc, and iron. Dark meat is the traditional choice for cacciatore: it has more flavor, stays tender through a long braise, and enriches the sauce with collagen from the bones.
Cooked tomatoes — lycopene, a carotenoid studied for supporting heart health. Cooking tomatoes with fat, like the chicken fat and olive oil here, makes much more of their lycopene available.
Shiitake mushrooms — B vitamins, copper, selenium, and beta-glucans studied for supporting the immune system. Mushrooms make vitamin D when exposed to sunlight, so set your sliced shiitakes gill-side up in the sun for an hour or two before cooking for a boost.
Bell peppers and zucchini — vitamin C, carotenoids, and potassium.
Anchovies — omega-3s (EPA and DHA), calcium, and deep savory flavor, with no fishy taste once they melt.
Capers — quercetin and rutin, flavonoids studied for their antioxidant effects.
Walnuts — the nut richest in omega-3 ALA, plus polyphenols and magnesium.
Fresh herbs and gremolata — oregano, basil, and parsley bring vitamin K, vitamin C, and aromatic compounds like carvacrol, and the lemon zest brightens everything. The vitamin C also helps your body absorb the iron in the greens.
Leafy greens — folate, vitamin K, and a fresh bitterness that balances the rich braise.
As a circadian food, this is a satisfying early dinner. As a seasonal food, it’s at its best from late summer into fall, when tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini are at their peak and the evenings start to cool.
For your cycle: With protein, iron, zinc, and B vitamins, plus vitamin C to help you absorb the iron, this braise is lovely during and after your period, and comforting in the luteal phase.
Sourcing
Chicken thighs — pasture-raised, ideally a heritage breed like Freedom Ranger, from a local farm, White Oak Pastures, or Cooks Venture
Cherry tomatoes — organic, from a farmers’ market or your garden in season; jarred organic cherry tomatoes, like Mutti or Bionaturae, the rest of the year
Shiitake mushrooms — organic, ideally log-grown, from a local mushroom grower
Anchovies and capers — salt-packed, from Sicily or Pantelleria (rinse before using)
Bone broth — homemade, or Bonafide Provisions or Kettle & Fire
Parmigiano-Reggiano — DOP, aged 24 months or more (save the rinds in the freezer for soups and braises)
Walnuts — organic, ideally sprouted, from Living Tree Community
Onion, pepper, zucchini, garlic, herbs, lemons, and greens — organic, from a farmers’ market
Dry white wine (optional) — organic, from a small producer
Lard, ghee, or avocado oil — pasture-raised lard, grass-fed ghee, or organic cold-pressed avocado oil
Extra virgin olive oil — organic, single-estate, harvest-dated, in dark glass
Salt — Baja Gold sea salt
— Anna aka Food Marshall