Pork Cacciatore is a tender slow cooked all-in-one-pan meal mom made easily right on the stovetop and it was certainly a comfort food that everyone always raved about with all these flavorful ingredients that went into the pot.
Back in the 1960s, you may be more familiar with a chicken cacciatore, which was what we had most of the time but also if we happened to be able to afford pork that week, she would use bone-in or boneless pork which was a favorite, especially in this delicious sauce it's simmered in.
With the addition of freshly sliced mushrooms, tomatoes, and peppers this all one-pan meal was a banquet to us, plus often it was perfect to stretch out when served with rice, pasta, or eaten with a massive hunk of hard-crusted Italian Bread and fed a large family economically.
Of course, we also loved the slow-cooked meal for Chicken Cacciatore the popular classic Italian style recipe with pork was a treat when we had it.
This delicious cacciatore recipe can be served plain, over rice, with a side of pasta of any kind you like, or even on Italian bread which happens to be my favorite way!
During the winter months, this cacciatore was often a weeknight easy meal!
Scroll down to get this simple printable cacciatore recipe and how to make it.
Italian Style Lamb Shank Cabernet Stew is one of my favorite meals when it's a little chilly out!
Lamb is a favorite of mine.
I just love the flavor, tenderness that comes along with slow cooking and what a fine wine can do to enhance the flavor of a dish.
This is made with a good grade Cabernet wine and is just a perfect blend of flavors.
A wonderful stew with bold flavors.
If you are looking for a great recipe with lamb this is bursting with flavors and we love our recipes for Italian Stew, Beer Stew and mom's mushroom stew if you love to make one-pan meals!
A comfort meal that's made all in one pan and easy.
If you love lamb, don't miss this delicious stew.
Scroll down to the recipe card to print off the recipe.
Venison Mushroom Cacciatore is slow-cooked perfectly and will taste very much like beef stew.
My husband loves hunting in the woods in Upstate New York.
When he came back to Florida from the New York woods of Rome New York in the fall of 2015, I was eager to learn how to prepare venison all different ways.
This flavorful cacciatore was a big hit!
I have had a ball making my venison Italian style all winter long all different ways.
The meat is tender, melt in your mouth delicious.
If you already love venison try my fried venison steaks, they're totally addicting!
Don't forget you can use beef, chicken, pork or whatever meat you like, but it sure is fabulous if you happen to have deer meat on hand!
Easy to make in a slow cooker, you will be amazed it's really deer meat and not beef!
Julia Child’s Coq Au Vin recipe is a basic stewed chicken in a rich buttery red wine sauce traditionally made with sauteed mushrooms and pearl onions and we adapted this 1960s recipe just slightly to our taste.
This easy dish is another classic win-win for the French Chef's expertise in fabulous cuisine in French food meals and the flavors are magnificent.
This easy chicken stew is really forked tender and we have adapted the recipe and can be made on the stovetop or finished in the oven.
If you're a stew lover, this delicious pot of seasoned vegetables in a wine sauce is one to add to your collections, as always Julia's recipes won't disappoint plus very simple to make.
During the years of making different types of Italian, Irish, and now French-style stews, they are all started with basic ingredients you can choose to mix or match and adapt to your family's preference.
Our family prefers less onion and more garlic, however, the recipe is written with alternatives you can make it in its original form or experiment like we did.
Scroll down to our printable recipe card and hit print and let's get this delicious meal on your tables from the 1960s easy dinner inspired by Julia Child the great French Chef.
Chicken Legs and Thighs
You can use any parts of the chicken you like but this recipe called for legs and thighs which we use and it's super tender.
The sauce is a nice butter and flour paste to thicken the sauce and works perfectly.
If you prefer to not make this with mushrooms or onions add the peppers and potatoes like we did, the recipe is perfectly seasoned for whatever vegetables you like, just cooking times will vary.
Just adapt away as you like your stewed chicken.
Tips
brown the chicken on both sides till brown
save the bacon fat and do not drain the bacon fat is flavor in this recipe
burgundy or merlot are both good choices for wines make sure it's one that is a good drinking wine
always use fresh herbs
use some cubed fresh whole tomatoes if you like them stead of tomato paste
use an instant-read meat thermometer to ensure chicken is cooked
Coq au vin is a traditional French dish, but Julia Child put her own memorable stamp on it with her 1960s cooking show, The French Chef.
This version of her timeless comfort food is adapted as you can see by adding or removing whatever your palettes love about stew.
This adapted recipe was creatively remastered from Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking and still packs a great flavor.
I can safely say is this version is much more on the Italian side than probably French in some ways, so by all means change the recipe to your own taste buds.
Julia Child’s Coq au Vin
Yield: 8
Author: Claudia Lamascolo
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 55 Min
Ingredients
8 chicken thighs and legs, bone-in and skin on
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
6 slices of thick bacon
8 ounces fresh cremini mushrooms, washed and sliced
20 pearl onions, peeled (Tip: Julia pierces the bottom of the root so they won't come apart when cooking)
2 large carrots, sliced into 1-inch pieces
1/2 yellow onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 bay leaf
6-8 sprigs of fresh thyme
1/4 cup brandy
2 1/2 cups dry red wine (burgundy, merlot)
1 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Additional Option: add small cubed potatoes, and sliced peppers (add when chicken is simmering you may need more chicken broth if it gets too dry)
Optional Cooking Method: this can go in a dutch oven at 325 degrees for 2 hours.
Instructions
Add 1 1/2 tablespoon of flour and butter and mix together to form a paste set this aside,
On medium heat, in a large deep pan add 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Place the bacon in the pan and fry for around 10 minutes as it starts to crisp up remove it to a plate and save the fat in the pan.
Let it cool then chop it up leaving this on the same plate.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
Place the seasoned chicken in the bacon grease and brown on both sides this should take around 6 minutes on each side.
Remove the chicken and set it aside.
Add the onion, garlic carrots and tomato paste to this pot.
Cook it for 4 minutes stirring until the vegetables are softened do not burn the garlic.
Add the chicken and bacon to the pot.
Shut the burner off.
Add the brandy and let it sit for around 2 minutes.
Using a long lighter or match light the brandy on fire to a flambe' and as the flame lowers down, pour in the wine to put out the flames.
Place back on the heat to medium.
Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.
Simmer this down on low heat and the bay leaf and thyme.
Cover this pot and simmer for around 30 to 35 minutes, chicken is cooked through and the internal temperature is 165 degrees on an instant-read meat thermometer.
In a clean pan heat some olive oil and butter remaining on high heat. Add the mushrooms, and pearl onions and cook for 8 minutes.
Place the vegetables into the simmering chicken and add the butter-flour mixture.
Simmer for around 7 minutes or until the sauce thickens, stirring occasionally.
Remove the thyme and bay leaf.
Season if needed..
Notes
Tips
brown the chicken on both sides till brown, don't burn the garlic remove it
save the bacon fat and do not drain the bacon fat is flavor in this recipe.
burgundy or merlot are both good choices for wines make sure it's one that a good drinking wine
Always use fresh herbs
Use some cubed fresh whole tomatoes if you like them stead of tomato paste.
use an instant-read meat thermometer to ensure chicken is cooked
