French Coq au Vin Recipe
User Reviews
5.0
9 reviews
Excellent
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Prep Time
40 mins
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Cook Time
1 hr 40 mins
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Additional Time
1 d
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Total Time
1 d 2 hrs
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Servings
5 people
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Calories
782 kcal
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Course
Main Course
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Cuisine
French
French Coq au Vin Recipe
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Authentic French casserole with chicken in red wine. Recipe has a long marinade time to intensify flavours which cuts down final cooking time.
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Ingredients
- 1.5 kg (3lb 5oz) Organic/free range chicken cut into 8-10 pieces
Red Wine Marinade
- 75 cl (1 bottle) red wine e.g. Pinot Noir, Shiraz, Grenache
- 4 medium carrots peeled and cut into large chunks
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 spring onions cut into 4 (or 15 baby pearl onions)
- 1 bouquet garni (2 bay leaves, large sprig fresh thyme and parsley stalks)
- ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns
Rest of the Sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon cognac (if none, use Whisky)
- 400 g (about 15) mushrooms sliced in half or quartered
- 75 g (3oz) pearl onions
- 200 g (7oz/½ cup) bacon bits or lardons smoked
- 30 g (2 tbsp) plain flour or 1 tablespoon cornflour/cornstarch
- salt and pepper to taste
- 15 g (1 tbsp) fresh flat-leaf parsley chopped (to garnish)
Instructions
Marinade
- First get your butcher to cut the whole chicken into pieces or, if you have a good knife, do this at home. As a result, you have a mixture of on and off-bone chicken. (I like to keep the skin on just for the thighs and remove the rest to cut down on the fat but this is personal. If you prefer it all with the skin, then go ahead but it will make the sauce even richer.)
- Boil the red wine in a saucepan until reduced by a third then cool. (This removes the alcohol and intensifies the colour and flavours.)In a large bowl with the chicken bits, add the carrots, bay leaf, thyme, garlic, peppercorns and onions and pour over the cooled wine.
- Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
Preparing the Chicken & Sauce
- Next day, drain the marinade into a colander over a bowl to separate the juices.
- Dry the chicken pieces with kitchen paper. Then, over a high heat in a heavy-based casserole dish, fry the chicken in olive oil on all sides for about 10 minutes or until cooked through. Flambé with the Cognac.
- Sprinkle over the chicken with the flour and toss around the pan to coat it all evenly. Gradually add the marinade liquid while tossing the chicken around (this will stop any lumps from forming). Boil up the sauce until it's bubbling and thickened.
- Add the marinade vegetables minus the bouquet garni. Lower the heat and leave to simmer with the lid on for about an hour (or more, depending on the sizes of your chicken pieces)*.
- Dry fry the bacon bits (there's enough fat in the bacon already), mushrooms and pearl onions in a separate pan. Then add to the dish. Leave to reduce together for a further 15-20 minutes.
Notes
- Note: please don't use dried herbs - fresh thyme and parsley are not an option. For more, see the market page on bouquet garni and aromatic herbs.
- Note: please don't use dried herbs
- - fresh thyme and parsley are not an option. For more, see the market page on bouquet garni and aromatic herbs.
- Serve with good, crusty fresh baguettes. Alternatively serve with sautéd potatoes or a gratin dauphinois.
- * The kind of chicken used does change the cooking time. If you do use a coq, then cooking time will be another hour. If chicken is already soft and tender, cooking time can be about an hour to 2 hours.
- Nutritional Information: 782 calories for 5 portions (74g protein)
Genuine Reviews
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5.0
9 reviews
Excellent
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