coq au vin

I'm not certain how this recipe has remained unwritten on this blog (or I didn't tag it properly), but I am here to redeem that today.

My husband is visiting this weekend, and requested this dish. I am happy to oblige. It is a great "Sunday dish", when you have time to really take your time enjoying making this beautiful dish. Like making sauce, this is cooking therapy.
First, you need to prepare the chicken. I marinated mine 7 hours in advance. You could marinade the chicken up to 12 hours in advance, especially if you have a light wine.


For marinade, you will need:

1 whole chicken, cut up (Frenched) - remember: save the neck, wing tips, and backbone for stock!
3 cloves of garlic, crushed or rough chopped4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme
kosher salt & fresh ground pepper (with all recipes, always assume kosher salt and fresh pepper unless specified)about 2/3 bottle of red wine.
Choose a light-bodied red, such as pinot noir, burgundy, or chianti. I went with a pinot blend. Use actual wine, not cooking wine, even if you choose a cheap real wine, such as two buck chuck. For a nice touch, marinate the chicken in a wine you will serve with the chicken, or at least use the same berry wine. It is fine to use a pre-opened bottle you didn't quite finish.

Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towel. Generously salt and pepper both sides of chicken. Lay into a tupperware (preferably in one layer). Add thyme, garlic, and wine (to cover). Marinate for at least 4 hours, and up to 12. Any longer may overpower the chicken. Shake or flip the chicken every once in a while. The marinade serves the purpose of making the chicken moist, not saturating it.

Next step:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
You will need:

4 slices of bacon, chopped
1/3 bag pearl onions (no sauce)about 10 button or baby bella mushrooms (if larger, slice)
a "pat" of butter
about 1-2 tsp EVOO
a large dutch oven (one that all the chicken can fit into in one layer, even if it is a crowded layer)
a saute pan
Remove chicken from marinade, reserving marinade. Let drain while fixing the bacon.
In the dutch oven, over medium heat, brown the bacon. (Tip: Add bacon to a cool pan, give plenty of space, and don't rush. It will brown evenly and crisp without burning this way.)
Once the bacon is brown, remove to a bowl and pat the chicken dry. Brown the chicken in small batches (I usually do one thigh, drum, and breast at a time - overcrowding will steam the chicken, and you won't get the golden sear you are looking for), about 5 minutes on each side.

Once all the chicken is browned, return all chicken and bacon to the pot along with about 1/2 of the marinade - enough to go 1/2 way up the chicken - not cover.
Cover, and place in the oven.
Now, get out that saute pan.
Melt butter over medium heat. Add EVOO, and do not let brown. Once the butter is melted, add the pearl onions.
The trick with pearl onions is to not break up their delicate layers. You can gently flip them with a spoon, but the more fun way is to flip them in the air. If you do not know how to do this, pearl onions in a slew of butter is about as easy as it gets, so go ahead and try. I found this lovely tutorial in the event you would like to try. I tried for an action shot, but it ended badly.

Don't flip them too frequently, as they will never get the chance to brown. Since I love to flip food, I usually need to walk away for 3-5 minute intervals, to ensure I don't over-flip.
This is a great time to flip your chicken.
Once they are browned - and don't expect an even brown (10 - 15 minutes), remove to a bowl (use a slotted spoon, or try and keep the juices in the pan), and saute the mushrooms in the same manner, adding more EVOO as needed.
Once the mushrooms are sauteed, return the onions to the pan, and add the rest of the marinade along with any garlic and thyme that may remain. Add a bay leaf to the pan. Throw a little salt and pepper into the pan. Let this simmer over medium heat until you've reduced the sauce to a thick glaze. It should look like this:

It should smell amazing and then some.


Once the sauce is reduced, flip your chicken and add the onions, mushrooms, and glaze into the dutch oven. Cover, and let cook for 45 minutes or longer.


After cooking, the juices will have reduced more than in the above picture. (This was right after adding in the glaze.)

This is the most basic, pure form of coq au vin. Tonight, I stuck to the classics, but there are many things you can do from here.

For a health boost, peel carrots and cut them into 4 or 5 pieces (at an angle, so they look fancy) and add when adding the glaze. This will also impart a sweetness to the dish, which is excellent if you used a dry or tart wine.

If you add too much liquid and your chicken is swimming, or you like more of a thick gravy, you can either reduce the liquid on the stove (like you did with the onions) or make a roux and whisk that into the juices after removing the chicken from the dutch oven (over medium heat on the stove top).

On colder nights, add fingerling or small white potatoes. Depending on the size, either halve or quarter the potatoes, or (for the very small), peel a strip around the potatoes and set on top of the chicken.

To make this a heartier dish (also great for cold nights), serve over egg noodles. This is also great for leftovers.

Enjoy!