After returning from a week in Paris for the French Open, I was inspired to recreate this French Classic for Mike. This is not Julia Child's coq. I've tried this many times and I do have to say the secret ingredient is cooking everything in bacon fat. I know, I know. But it makes all the difference in taste. I also substitute sweet (Vidalia) onion thick slices for pearl onions, but feel free to use pearl onions if that's your preference. This takes about 2 hours to make from start to finish, so give yourself plenty of time. I bought a pre-cut chicken at TJ's for about $7. Since I'm not a butcher, this was the easiest way for me. This dish is obviously wine-based, so you want to buy an under $10 Burgundy or Bordeaux to use in the recipe. Don't use pre-opened wine for this. And then you can drink what you don't use while you're preparing the dish!
COQ AU VIN
1 chicken, rinsed and cut into 8 serving pieces
2 cups of thickly sliced onions
6-8 strips of bacon
1 stalk of celery
1/2 cup of sliced carrot
6 fresh parsley sprigs
1 fresh thyme sprig
1 dried bay leaf
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 cups of dry French burgundy or bordeaux
3/4 low sodium chicken stock/broth
1 lb. small mushrooms, halved
1/4 cup cognac or brandy
3 tbsp. flour
1 1/2 tbsp. unsalted, softened butter
Cook bacon in large heavy skillet until it's brown but not too crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels.
Sprinkle chicken with salt & pepper. Brown chicken in skillet with bacon fat. Depending on the size of your skillet, it might take 2 batches, so make sure you have enough bacon fat reserved for both batches. It will take about 5 minutes per side to brown the chicken. Transfer to a plate.
Cook onions in skillet, until starting to brown -- no more than 10 minutes.
Take a 5 quart pot. Add the onions, a few pieces of chopped up bacon, the wine & the stock. Add the herbs and simmer (covered) to 10 minutes.
Now, add the chicken to the pot and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, re-heat the bacon fat in the skillet to cook the mushrooms & carrots for about 5 minutes. Add the cognac and cook on high heat until the liquid starts to reduce, in about another 3 minutes.
Add the shrooms and carrot mixture to the chicken pot. Continue to simmer until chicken is tender and fully braised, another 30 minutes at least.
Once the chicken is cooked to your liking, remove the chicken, bacon & vegetables with a slotted spoon and place on a serving platter.
Mash the butter and flour in a small bowl. Bring the remaining liquid to a simmer and whisk in the butter/flour mixture a small but at a time. Whisk until sauce is smooth and thickened, about 2-3 minutes.
Season to taste with salt & pepper, then spoon over chicken. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley.
Bon Appetit!
Mike thought this was the best version of this recipe I've ever made.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I don't remember the name of the wine I picked up for this meal. It was a decent bordeaux from the St. Emilion region.
For dessert, I brought home some overpriced La Duree macaroons from Paris. They were a hit and went quickly!
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