Chicken slow-braised in red wine with mushrooms, pearl onions and bacon, a rustic French classic traditionally made with rooster.
Coq au vin, literally 'rooster in wine,' was traditionally made with an older, tougher bird whose meat needed a long, slow braise in wine to become tender — modern versions use chicken, which cooks faster but retains the dish's essential character. Bacon renders first, its fat used to brown the chicken deeply before red wine, stock, garlic and herbs go in to create a rich braising liquid that reduces and thickens as the chicken cooks low and slow until it's completely tender. Pearl onions and mushrooms sauteed separately are folded in near the end, keeping their shape against the fall-apart chicken, and like many braised French dishes, coq au vin is often even better the following day once the flavors have fully settled.
Serves 4
Cook diced bacon in a heavy pot until crisp; remove with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pot.
Brown the chicken pieces in the bacon fat, in batches, until deeply colored, about 10 minutes total; remove.
Add olive oil and diced onion to the pot, cooking until soft, then add garlic for 1 minute.
Sprinkle flour over the onions and cook 2 minutes, stirring.
Pour in the red wine, scraping up browned bits, then add chicken stock, tomato paste, bay leaves, thyme and salt; return the chicken and bacon to the pot.
Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook on low heat for 60-75 minutes until the chicken is very tender.
Keep the braise at a gentle simmer, never a hard boil, for the most tender result.
In a separate pan, saute pearl onions and mushrooms in butter until browned, then stir into the pot for the final 15 minutes.
Remove bay leaves and thyme sprigs, garnish with parsley, and serve with crusty bread or mashed potato.
Use a decent drinking-quality red wine, ideally a Burgundy or Pinot Noir, since its flavor concentrates considerably during the braise.
Brown the chicken well in batches without crowding — this deep sear builds much of the dish's underlying flavor.
Cook the pearl onions and mushrooms separately and add them near the end so they keep their shape rather than turning mushy in the long braise.
Some regions use white wine instead of red for a lighter version called coq au vin blanc.
A splash of cognac added along with the wine deepens the flavor further.
Using chicken breasts instead of thighs works but requires a shorter braising time to avoid drying out.
Refrigerate up to 4 days in an airtight container; the flavor deepens noticeably the next day. It also freezes well for up to 3 months.
Coq au vin has roots as a rustic French farmhouse dish, historically made with an older rooster whose tough meat required a long wine braise to tenderize, and it became internationally famous through classic French cookbooks and culinary tradition throughout the 20th century.
Red wine gives the classic dark, rich version, but white wine produces a lighter, equally traditional variation called coq au vin blanc.
Yes, but reduce the braising time significantly, since breast meat dries out much faster than dark meat in a long braise.
Uncover the pot for the final 10-15 minutes of cooking to let the liquid reduce and thicken naturally.
Per serving (400g / 14.1 oz) · 4 servings total
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