Coq au Vin (Chicken in Red Wine)
This is classic French comfort food dish consists of chicken braised in a red wine sauce with mushrooms, pearl onions, and bacon.
Servings 4 to 5
Equipment
- 12-inch pan with lid
Ingredients
- 5 large chicken thighs - skin removed or left on depending on your preference 5 thighs = 3 lbs or 1.36 kg
- ½ pound bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces 1/2 lb = 225 grams = about 6 strips
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup of mushrooms thinly sliced
- ½ cup pearl onions
- 3 garlic cloves pressed through a garlic press
- 1 ½ cups red wine pinot noir, 355 ml
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 1 cup carrots peeled, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley minced, plus more for garnish
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- Salt and pepper to taste
To serve:
- Noodles or pasta or
- Mashed potatoes or
- Rice
Instructions
- Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
- In a large pot or pan, cut bacon into ½ inch pieces, brown bacon until crisp, 6-8 minutes. Remove bacon from the pan, place on a paper towel lined plate, set aside. Pour excess grease from the pan.
- In the same pan heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Brown chicken on each side until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove chicken from the pan, set aside, chicken will not be fully cooked.
- Reduce heat to medium, add sliced mushrooms, cooking until lightly browned, stirring regularly, 6-8 minutes. Add the pearl onions, cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the garlic and onions, cook until fragrant, 1 minute.
- Slowly add the wine and broth, scraping up any cooked-on bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Return the chicken and any accumulated juices from the plate to the pan, add the carrots, parsley, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover, and reduce heat to a low simmer. Cook for 35 minutes, turning chicken halfway through cooking if not completely submerged in the cooking liquid.
- While the chicken cooks, make a beurre manié, by mixing the flour and softened butter together into a paste and no streaks of flour remain, set aside.
- After the chicken is done thicken the sauce. Remove the chicken from the pan, add the prepared butter and flour paste, stirring until incorporated and mixture has thickened.
- Add half of the bacon to the pan, stirring to incorporate, return chicken to the pan. Garnish with additional minced parsley and remaining bacon.
- Serve warm with buttered egg noodles or mashed potatoes.
