Pic of Chicken cacciatore with butterbean mash

Chicken cacciatore with butterbean mash

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Meat mains

Chicken cacciatore with butterbean mash

Main Serves 2 30 min
This dish is a traditional Italian stew, commonly slow cooked using chicken legs. For a speedier meal, we've used leaner breast meat instead: the stew goes on first and the chicken gets added midway. In true Italian fashion, there is endless debate about what wine to use. We've opted for white, out of preference rather than any regional loyalties. You can try with red if you prefer. Gently frying the rosemary and lemon zest before adding the beans to the pan helps to release their oils and intensify the flavour.

Ingredients

  • 1 onion
  • 1 romano pepper (other types are fine if you can't find a romano one)
  • olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 60g green olives
  • 75ml white wine
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons tomato purée
  • 1 teaspoon bouillon powder
  • 1 bay leaf
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 tablespoons plain flour
  • 300g diced chicken breast
  • 1 lemon
  • 10g rosemary
  • 1 tin butterbeans

Method

Prep time: 5 min
Cooking time: 25 min

  • Step 1

    Peel and dice the onion. Deseed and slice the pepper. Warm 2 tbsp oil in a large saucepan. Fry the onion and pepper over a medium heat for 6 mins, until starting to soften.

  • Step 2

    Meanwhile, peel and finely chop 2 garlic cloves. Roughly slice the olives.

  • Step 3

    Add half the garlic to the saucepan. Cook for 1 min before adding the wine. Let it bubble and reduce by half.

  • Step 4

    Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, olives, bouillon powder and bay leaf. Fill the empty tomato tin one-third full of water, add that too. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 mins.

  • Step 5

    Meanwhile, tip the flour into a shallow dish and season. Coat the chicken in the flour, shaking off any excess.

  • Step 6

    Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan. Fry the chicken for 3-4 mins, until lightly browned. Add it straight into the sauce to cook for the final 12 mins or so. Give the frying pan a wipe clean.

  • Step 7

    While the stew cooks down, peel 3 long strips of zest from the lemon. Finely chop the leaves from half the rosemary. Drain the butterbeans.

  • Step 8

    Warm 2 tbsp oil in the frying pan. Gently cook the lemon zest, rosemary and remaining garlic for 1 min, until smelling fragrant. Add the beans and 3 tbsp water. Warm gently for 3-4 mins.

  • Step 9

    When heated through, remove the lemon zest and mash the beans with a potato masher or fork. Season, to taste, with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

  • Step 10

    Taste the stew, adjust the seasoning and remove the bay leaf. Garnish with a small amount of freshly chopped rosemary and serve with the bean mash. Serve with any remaining lemon for squeezing.