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Flavorful, robust and foolproof, Chicken Cacciatore! This terrific hunter-style Chicken Cacciatore is one of the most satisfying, delicious and comforting Italian dishes you can make at home.
Really great authentic Italian Chicken Cacciatore!
Flavorful, rich, earthy and hearty are just a few of the characteristics that come to mind when describing this rustic dish. Often served with spaghetti or over polenta, there’s no way you won’t love this amazing braised skillet chicken.
I’ve been making Chicken Cacciatore for more years than I care to admit, but this latest version is by far the best I’ve ever had.
Classic Chicken Cacciatore triggers warm and fuzzy memories
This dish reminds me of good times and the warmth of family, and it also gives me great anticipation for dinner. I have great memories of my mom’s sister June with her fabulous, authentic Italian Chicken Cacciatore.
Some people have signature go-to dishes, you know, something they can make with eyes closed. Aunt June could make Chicken Cacciatore like nobody else in our family. She and Uncle Ralph could also make some seriously eye-popping homemade egg nog, but that’s another story.
I’ve had Aunt June’s recipe in my little index box for years, and years, and made it more times than I can count. But over time I’ve tweaked it and loved it into the slightly different version shared here today. The only thing I need now is a big hunk of crusty Artisan bread.
Many Chicken Cacciatore recipes call for assorted chicken pieces
We’ve found that using similar sized chicken pieces makes this dish a lot easier to cook, perfectly. No worries about undercooked chicken breasts or overcooked legs. For this recipe we start with bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.
Chicken thighs are tender, juicy and considered the most flavorful part of the chicken. If you prefer white meat, use all chicken breasts but be sure to add a little extra time to ensure they’re cooked through.
PRO TIP: Brown the chicken skin to build flavor
Since we don’t care for soggy chicken skin, it’s removed and discarded once browned in the first step of the recipe. This is such a simple but effective step that makes all the difference in the flavor of the sauce and tender juiciness of the chicken.
The little bit of rendered fat from the skin and all those crusty bits on the bottom of the pan is where you start to build the rich flavor. You can use skinless, boneless chicken pieces if desired. However, I encourage you to try this recipe first, as written, for easy but exceptional flavor.
Overview of Ingredients:
- bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or chicken breasts
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- onion
- mushrooms – any small, fresh mushroom will do like button or cremini mushrooms
- garlic
- crushed red pepper flakes – for an extra zing in the sauce
- all-purpose flour
- dry white wine – for deglazing the pan and building flavor in the sauce. Any dry white wine will do. If you like to drink it, use it in this sauce. If you don’t want to use wine, substitute with chicken broth
- canned diced tomatoes – do not drain
- tomato paste
- bay leaves
- Parmesan rind – for adding flavor and body to the sauce. Parmesan rinds can be purchased in the cheese department at any large grocery store.
- fresh thyme leaves – or dried thyme
- oregano – fresh or dried
- red bell pepper
For serving:
- fresh chopped parsley
- hot cooked spaghetti, polenta or your favorite pasta
- crusty bread to sop up the sauce
How to make Chicken Cacciatore
1. First cook the chicken
Season the chicken then cook in a hot skillet until the skin is crisp and well-browned. Turn and continue cooking for another 5-minutes. Remove to a plate and keep warm.
2. Build the sauce
Next, add the onions and mushrooms to the pan drippings and cook until browned. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté until fragrant. Add flour and cook for another minute.
Deglaze the pan with the wine and add the tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves, Parmesan rind, thyme, oregano and red bell pepper.
3. Return the chicken to the pan
Remove the skin from the chicken pieces and discard. Add the chicken back to the pan and cook until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Taste the sauce to check the seasoning and remove the Parmesan rind and bay leaves. Add salt or pepper as needed.
4. Serve
Serve over hot cooked spaghetti or polenta garnished with parsley. This chicken stew is also great served with zucchini noodles for a low-carb option. Enjoy!
Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
- 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on, chicken thighs (about 8)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt
- pepper
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 8 ounces fresh mushrooms sliced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional – more or less to taste)
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 14.5 ounce canned diced tomatoes do not drain
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 small Parmesan rind
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 large red bell pepper ribs and seeds removed, chopped
Instructions
- Heat a large Dutch oven or skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Add half the chicken and cook, skin side down, until crisp and browned. Turn the pieces over and cook another 5 minutes. Remove to a plate and continue browning in small batches until all chicken is browned. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the drippings in the pan.
- Add the onions, mushrooms and a pinch of salt to the pan with the reserved drippings. Cook over medium-high heat until the vegetables begin to brown and the moisture evaporates.
- Add the garlic and red pepper flakes to the pan and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and continue cooking and stirring for 1 more minute. Add the wine, tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves, Parmesan rind, thyme, oregano and red bell pepper.
- Remove the skin from the chicken and discard. Add the skinless chicken pieces to the pan, pressing them down into the sauce so they are covered. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer until the chicken is tender, about 40-45 minutes. Halfway through cooking, move the chicken pieces around and/or turn them over to ensure even cooking.
- Remove the bay leaves and Parmesan rind and discard. Check seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley leaves. Serve over hot cooked spaghetti or polenta.
Recipe Notes
- You can purchase Parmesan rinds in the cheese section of most grocery stores.
Nutrition
The BEST Chicken Cacciatore recipe you can make at home
This is an outstanding recipe for Chicken Cacciatore loaded with sweet red bell pepper, fresh herbs, tomatoes, wine and plenty of mushrooms.
Make it an Italian themed dinner party and serve Chicken Cacciatore with a nice crisp green salad and our creamy Italian Dressing Recipe loaded with fresh and dried herbs, Parmesan cheese, shallots and garlic.
We always serve cacciatore with a big hunk of crusty Artisan bread or fluffy Garlic Butter Breadsticks to sop up all the sauce.
Finally, don’t forget to wrap up this luscious Italian themed meal with our Classic Tiramisu Recipe. It’s so good and easy to make, too! Perfect for company as you can make it a day ahead.
More great Italian Classics!
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Crispy, tender and juicy chicken cutlets coated in a well flavored panko crumb mixture
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This meaty sauce tastes like it simmered all day but cooks in under an hour.
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All the flavors we love in a great lasagna in a fun, easy to make and serve roll-up! This recipe can be made up to 2 days in advance and is perfect for sharing.
View this RecipeOriginally published January 2012, updated April 2025
AliceK
Everyone liked this, and it was so fresh tasting with the herbs and mushrooms. I used a rosé for the wine since that’s what I had handy. I served it over linguine pasta. I left out the pepper flakes, and served them on the side for those who wanted more zip!
Tricia Buice
Hi Alice. I’m so glad everyone enjoyed this cacciatore. We love it too! Thanks for trying our recipe and for commenting. Your input helps all our readers.
Sondra
Very tasty! Followed the recipe and it was delicious.
Tricia Buice
Thanks Sondra! I love this recipe and crave it often. Thanks for commenting and for trying our recipe.
Helen
Think I could use red wine rather than white? It’s all I have in the house aside from cooking white wine. Thanks!
Tricia Buice
I don’t think it will be as good with red wine but that’s just my opinion. It also depends on what kind of red wine. Let us know how it turned out for you!
Susan Carr Romero
Why remove the skin it’ll give the sauce flavor
Tricia Buice
Hi Susan. Great question. The flavor (rendered fat) is already in the sauce when the chicken skin was browned. You can leave it on if you want but it will only become soft and soggy. Some people prefer to remove the skin once browned, as I do. Let us know if you leave it on and how you liked it!
Jane
This chicken cacciatore recipe looks absolutely mouthwatering! Do you think it would work well with boneless chicken thighs, or is bone-in better for flavor?
Tricia Buice
Hi Jane. Skinless, boneless thighs will work but you’ll miss the extra flavor from the browned chicken skin. If you can find skin-on boneless thighs that will work best. I don’t think the flavor will be dramatically different if you use boneless. Enjoy!
Laura Lee Montgomerie
Hi there. Looking to make this for dinner tonite. Can you tell me the oven version of this please? Sounds delish! 😊
Tricia Buice
Hi Laura. In step No. 4 you can cover the pot and place in a preheated 350 F degree oven. Bake for about one hour or until chicken is cooked through. Enjoy!
Debby
What can l use instead of wine ??
Tricia Buice
Hi Debby. You can use more broth or white grape juice. The alcohol in the wine cooks out so there’s no issue with it tasting like a cocktail. Enjoy!
Carol
Delicious! Best chicken caccaitore recipe that I’ve ever made. Thank you!
Tricia Buice
Thank you Carol! We truly appreciate the feedback.
Diane
I figure by now, I would learned my lesson with those red pepper flakes but oh NO, I had to put in the full 1/2 tsp! Well the internet suggests all kinds of things to tone down the heat. It may sound strange but I added about a cup of whipping cream and it turned out great! I also shredded up some parmesan to sprinkle on top. I’m not trying to change your recipe which would of been great hadn’t I used the pepper flakes, I’m just giving a suggestion in case somebody else did the same as me. NEXT time I will follow it without the red pepper flakes!
Tricia Buice
Thanks for the feedback Diane. I’m fascinated that you added whipping cream and loved it. Great job! Glad you’ll make it again with no red pepper flakes. You must have a really intense batch. Sorry!
Nadine Glomboski
Thanks for the suggestions. I did the same thing. I’m not nuts over red pepper flakes,but I was trying to follow the recipe. It is put away in my fridge for another day…hopefully I will be able to tone it down when we go,to eat it. Whipping cream…who would thought!
Martha
Lately i have not been on my game with my cooking, but I have redeemed myself with this recipe!! Thank you! It was a smash hit!
Tricia Buice
Thank you Martha! I’m so glad this was a success. It’s such a wonderful, flavorful meal. I always enjoy this chicken recipe 😁 Thanks for taking the time to comment. Bravo!
Gail
Excellent!! My husband loved it !! And it was easy to follow I’ll be making it often ! A great homemade meal llama. YUMMY !
Tricia Buice
Thank you so much for the feedback Gail. This is the perfect time of year for this dish. I need to make it again soon. Thanks again for taking the time to comment. Bravo!
Sharon
I cannot get the last star to light. This recipe is a 100% I’ve used my old recipe for many many years and this tops it definitely. I make a quick artisan bread and Enjoy.
Tricia Buice
Thanks Sharon! I appreciate the feedback and that you tried my recipe after using a favorite for years. Bravo!
Michelle
This was absolutely delicious. My family loved it. I have never had this meal before so I was excited to try something new. I will definitely be making it again. I doubled the mushrooms and cut up a rotisserie chicken which I added back into the sauce and veggies to simmer and heat through.
Tricia Buice
Thanks for the feedback Michelle. I love that you doubled the mushrooms. Just the way I like it!
Christina
I made this for my family tonight, it was a big hit, the only thing I changed in the recipe was chicken broth in place of the wine, I was asked to make it again and I will, the flavors all blended so well together, and thank you for the easy instructions.
Tricia Buice
Thank you Christina! I’m thrilled you and your family enjoyed it. Thanks for commenting.
Fiorino Bianchi,zouhair
I am Normally very fond and obsessed with Italian Food,,but your Recipe and the very Elegant and Gorgeous presentation Made feel that I need to taste even one Piece of such Stunning Dish..Almost all your recipes are saved and shared on my Facebook,,Pinterest,,Yummly,,Tumblr,,Flipboard,,Twitter,,and Pocket,,wish you everlasting Success And happiness,,Zouhair
Tricia Buice
Thank you Fiorino! We appreciate you sharing our recipes and for the feedback.
Lisa
Easy directions delicious results
Tricia Buice
Thanks Lisa! So happy you enjoyed it.