You’ve probably heard of chicken cacciatora (or more likely you’ve seen it as “cacciatore”). But, what does it mean? Thought to have originated during the Italian Renaissance, it literally translates as “hunter’s chicken,” as wild herbs, plants, and mushrooms were tossed in the pan along with the catch of the day. It’s a typical recipe popular in Italian cooking and can be prepared in multiple ways. We love it because not only is it easy to prepare, it is full of flavor. Make sure to have your scarpetta, or bread slice, ready – you’re going to want to mop up every last drop!
Tag Archives | Italian food recipes
Minestrone Soup
Minestrone soup is the most traditional Italian soup made in households all over Italy. Most families have their own version, but my absolute favourite is when the right mix of fresh vegetables and herbs come together in the pot and infuse to create the most mouth-watering broth – the most important part of the minestrone soup. Add some cracked pepper and a generous serve of pecorino cheese and you’ll warm hearts through every season!
Cacio e Pepe
Cacio e pepe recipe is the original mac and cheese. This simple cacio e pepe recipe, originating in Rome uses four main ingredients but there are a few techniques to make it simply spectacular.
Chicken Broth
CHICKEN BROTH WITH CREPES:
Chicken broth served with parmesan crepes is a traditional recipe from my Nonna’s region of Teramo in Abruzzo. It is a deliciously tasty slow cooked broth served with light, thin crepes filled with salty parmesan cheese. This twist on classic chicken broth warms my heart (and my tummy!) with as it’s truly one-of-a-kind. Passing on this recipe to me felt like I was gaining a part of Nonna’s history and I will treasure it forever and hope you do too! While it’s a perfect dish for the changing weather, it can be enjoyed as an entrée in smaller portions and will surely become a family favourite in your homes too.
INGREDIENTS FOR CHICKEN BROTH:
½ organic chicken (cut into pieces)
5 pieces of veal
1 whole onion
3 celery stalks (complete with leaves)
1 carrot (peeled)
1 cinnamon stick
3-5 cherry tomatoes
Rock salt
INGREDIENTS FOR CREPES:
8 tablespoons of flour
8 eggs
Water
Pinch of fine salt
Grated parmesan cheese
UTENSILS:
1 XL pot
Knife
Chopping board
Small-medium size fry pan
Tablespoon
Extra virgin olive oil
Whisk
Ladle
Kitchen paper
Hand held sieve
METHOD TO MAKE THE CHICKEN BROTH:
1. To make chicken broth with parmesan filled crepes, put the pieces of chicken into your pot, add the veal and fill it almost to the top with water.
2. Put the pot on the stove at a medim heat, and once it starts to boil, you will notice foam at the top of the water. This needs to be skimmed off the top and discarded.
3. Leave this to boil for up to 10 minutes and keep removing the foam.
4. To add extra flavour to your chicken broth, add 1 whole onion (skin peeled off), the celery, carrot, cinnamon stick and cherry tomatoes, along with a generous pinch of rock salt.
5. Leave this to boil for up to 2 hours.
METHOD TO MAKE THE CREPES:
1. To make the crepes filled with parmesan cheese for your chicken broth, start by placing 8 tablespoons of flour into a bowl.
2. Crack open the 8 eggs into a separate bowl and whisk well. Then, add a pinch of salt to flavour and keep whisking.
NONNA IGEA’S TIP: One of the eggs will be used as a measure. Try to crack it open from the very top, so it remains almost whole. Rinse it out with water, and this will be used to add the water to your crepe mixture.
3. Next, to make your crepe mixture, add a handful of flour at a time, and sprinkle it into your mixture while whisking it at the same time. Do this carefully to avoid lumps!
4. Now, add 8 “egg-fulls” of water to your mix, and keep whisking through really well.
5. Leave this crepe mixture in the fridge for approx. 5 minutes.
6. Now it’s time to cook the crepes! Get a small-medium size pan and place it on the stove at a low heat, add a few drops of extra virgin olive oil to the pan, and using kitchen paper, wipe the excess off, making sure the pan has enough left on it so the mixture doesn’t stick!
7. Using a ladle, scoop up some of the crepe mixture, hold the fry pan in the other hand, then pour the mixture inside and quickly flick your wrist making the pan move in a circular motion to spread the mix around creating the form of a crepe.
8. Try not to have any holes in each crepe and remember, the more you make, the better you will get!
NONNA IGEA’S TIP: Don’t add too much crepe mixture to your pan as the crepes should be kept nice and thin. The more you practice, the better these will come!
9. After 10-20 seconds (depending on how hot the pan is), use a fork to gently scrape all around the each of the crepe, and if its cooked it will start to peel away, then once ready, flip it over and cook the other side.
10. The crepes will be ready on no time as they are very thin and your pan is hot! Once ready, prepare a tablecloth on top of your table/board and place them on top, next to one another covering them with a tea towel so they don’t dry up.
HOW TO SERVE THE CREPES AND CHICKEN BROTH:
11. Get each crepe, one at a time, and sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top of one side – all over.
12. Now, roll it up gently, and nice and tight, before placing it into a large soup bowl (for serving).
13. Layer them tightly next to one another in one direction until the bottom is covered, and then the other direction, with a layer on top.
14. When you are ready to serve, take the chicken broth off the stove, and using a ladle, scoop out the broth in one hand and pour it into a sieve, over the top of the bowl of crepes, so that none of the vegetable pieces go into the soup.
15. Add another sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese to the bowl and enjoy while its nice and hot!
E ora si mangia, Vincenzo’s Plate…Enjoy!
Pasta al Limone
Pasta al limone is a quick and easy recipe that is refreshing and simple but the mix of lemon and mint will take your tastebuds on an Italian Summer holiday! Keep this delicate dish which comes from the south of Italy, for a mid-week treat; add some Italian music in the background to spoil someone special and surprise yourself with this flavour bomb!
Roasted Chicken with Potatoes
Roasted chicken: it sounds simple because it is! But there are a few tricks to getting this Sunday lunch of roasted chicken with oven crunchy potatoes absolutely perfect; so I asked my Nonna Igea to share her secrets so that you can taste the real flavours I grew up enjoying at her house with my family. Crispy skin roasted chicken with golden potatoes will absolutely warm your heart. Watch my recipe with Nonna now, make them ASAP, then share photos with me later as I would love to see you eating this with your whole family.
Spaghetti Carbonara
Spaghetti carbonara – original and approved by Romans! Before we start, the number one rule is simple –REAL SPAGHETTI CARBONARA RECIPE IS MADE WITH EGGS, NOT CREAM!
Combine fresh eggs, with crispy guanciale, salty pecorino cheese and pepper to create the perfect, classic Roman pasta dish, Carbonara. In this video recipe, I tested out my traditional version with some locals from Rome and they loved it! Make this classic the right way and I promise, your tastebuds will thank you.
Porchetta
Porchetta is deliciously moist rolled pork belly, covered with a crisp, crunchy skin and seasoned with fresh green herbs giving it the most sensational flavour. It is traditionally slow cooked for several hours in a wood fire oven and my Dad, who has been making it for 20 years, is the master who will share his techniques! Not for the faint hearted, good porchetta does require some patience…but the end result is literally MELT-IN-YOUR-MOUTH ridiculously, great.
Italian Food Explained
Italian Food Explained What makes Italian food, “Italian food”? It’s so important to recognize that it’s about SO MUCH more than pizza and pasta. More than anything, Italian food is about culture; an experience that immerses you entirely in history and therefore tradition and maybe most importantly, love. Furthermore, this is a candid vlog, where …
Italian Fish Soup
Italian Fish soup with chickpeas is a flavoursome dish which can be served as a delicious antipasto – and made within less than 30 minutes. The fish is drowned in a light, yet rich tomato sauce and the combination of chickpeas provides the ideal mix of textures.
