BeanScene Magazine

Spezzatino di pollo con caponatina leggera profumata al basilico

Serves 4
1 whole size 14 chicken
250ml vegetable stock
200g black & green pitted olives
1 eggplant
1 zucchini
1 red capsicum
50g capers
2 fresh chillis
2 medium onions
2 cloves garlic
5 Roma tomatoes
¼ bunch basil, roughly chopped
¼ bunch Italian parsley, chopped
300ml extra virgin olive oil
150ml cooking olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Some of the best food we will ever eat is also the least complicated.  A fresh, free range chicken cooked very simply and served with beautiful vegetables, herbs and flavourings has graced tables for generations. If you prefer a more rustic approach then leave the vegetables chunkier. But, cutting your vegetables into uniform-sized cubes and cooking them in the right order for the perfect end result turns simple into spectacular.

Step 1 Heat the oven to 180 degrees C. Cut the chicken into eight pieces and trim any excess fat. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper.	Step 2 Sear the chicken in a pan with olive oil until golden brown. Transfer the chicken to the oven to finish cooking through.	Step 3 Cut the eggplant, capsicum and zucchini into dice of about 1cm. Dice the tomatoes. Finely chop the onion and cook until transparent with the whole cloves of garlic.
Step 4 Add the capsicum to the pan and allow to cook until soft. Then, add the tomatoes, olives, parsley, capers and basil. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Cook for around 5 minutes or until the vegetables are evenly cooked.	Step 5 Serve the caponata on a large plate with the chicken pieces placed on top. Serve with crusty bread for mopping up the juices.