This simple plate, which is appealing to almost everyone, has a lot of debates held in regards to its origins and the story behind its name.
First let’s get the translation settled. Cacciatore means hunter. In Italian alla cacciatora means having to do with a hunter, as in accessories and tools like a hunting jacket, hunting pants, etc..
There are plenty of romantic tales that claim a hunter’s wife created this dish for her husband’s return from a hard day’s work. She added some fresh ingredients from her garden to a plain plate of chicken in order to prepare him a fancier meal.
Then there are other stories that tell of the need to invent a chicken-based dish that was presentable enough to serve at important feasts.
Finally, there’s the most believable version that recounts a story of hunters using the chicken they had in season to cook up a lunch worthy enough to keep them going strong all afternoon.
This last one is the most accepted version because, as it turns out, there are other dishes with alla cacciatora in the title which share the same basic seasoning ingredients that hunters used for all of their game – garlic and rosemary.
This now famous dish has been found in the recipe books of many regions of Italy with moderate variations in the ingredients used, but for one constant presence: garlic and rosemary!
Another common denominator, whether from Piemonte, Emilia-Romagna, Toscana or elsewhere, is that Pollo alla Cacciatora has always been found to be historically related to farming families.
Whatever added ingredients that distinguish this dish from region to region, there is always the familiarity of its wholesome goodness and its history of cultural traditions.