Quick Pork Cacciatore

I hate watching paint dry! I can’t bear having to wait around for ages for anything, I want things done yesterday. Which makes me a bit of an impatient cook. If there is a quick and easy way, I will find it. This attitude has lead to many a downfall but sometimes it just works. I recently came across pork cacciatore in one of my internet searches. There were several recipes all producing the same dish with multiple variations. Cacciatore, it appears, is a one pot Italian peasant dish; akin to our own hunter style dishes; and providing you stick with the basic ingredients of tomatoes, bell peppers and a slosh of wine you can chuck just about whatever other vegetables and herb combinations you please into the pot; which is just as well since, even when I buy specifically for a recipe, I always end up with something missing. Neither is your choice of meat limited to just pork. Apparently it is just as good with chicken, venison or, as a treat, veal. Most of the recipes I found, whether cooked on the stovetop or in the oven, had really long cooking times. Whilst I have no objection to a good long stew it isn’t always convenient, especially if we’ve come in late from a long day at the allotment or we’ve been out and about with the grandkids and we want something quick and tasty. Now, I could have made it all up and thrown it into the slow cooker, but since I had managed to blow the bottom out of that a while back and we hadn’t got the Ninja-Foodi yet I needed a quick version. When I landed on one recipe with a 30-40 minute cook time my impatience prayers were answered. After looking in the fridge to see what we hadn’t got, berating Paul for using the mushrooms I had earmarked, seeing what we had that I could use as a substitute and re-checking the recipe sites I got cracking. I used pork tenderloin but you can use chops if you prefer. I also reduced the amounts given since most recipes were to feed six and we are only two but, oh dear, I forgot to reduce the amount of wine so sloshed in a little too much. Can you slosh in too much wine? No matter, it tasted awesome, served with baby new potatoes and a glass or two of Merlot; well the bottle was already open! So here is my version of a quick pork cacciatore 

1. Heat some olive oil in a large skillet and fry the pork for 3-4 minutes on either side until it is browned and cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside. 
2. Fry the celery, carrots and red pepper until they start to soften. Add more oil if required. 
3. Add the pork along with the bay leaves and rosemary and cook for a further minute. 
4. Add the wine and cook until it has evaporated. 
5. Add the tomatoes, courgettes and cream. Stir to combine. 
6. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 30-35 minutes.
7. Remove lid for the last 10 minutes to allow sauce to reduce and thicken. 
8. Serve with baby new potatoes.