Coq au vin

classically made with an old rooster, I like using thighs and drumsticks, mostly following the classic Julia Child recipe.

Cook some bacon or lardons and then brown the floured chicken pieces in the fat. Add some cognac and burn off. Sauté some peeled cipollini onions and reserve. (If they cook the entire time with the chicken, they melt away.) Add chicken broth, red wine, thyme, bay leaf, a little
tomato paste,and spices such as parsley, a little garlic, quartered mushrooms (I sauté them first), then cook a while to concentrate flavors. Add onions at the end, thicken with cornstarch (not classic) or flour.

What’s your variation?

I use roux.

FIFY
Sr or Jr?

(Sorry. I always swing at the slow pitches as they say.)

And, FWIW Michel Jr adds a little honey. Been on my todo list but never got around to it yet.

My 3 rules were

Get the best chicken

Slice the bacon carrots onions very thinly

Un oaked wine

Seriously, for red wine version pretty much that. Don’t use drumsticks just thighs. Sometimes add halved chicken breasts part way through cooking (browned with the thighs and reserved).



For white version I go in more Mediterranean direction with chicken thighs, quartered Fennel Bulb, sliced large carrot and onion wedges, seasoned with fennel seed, cinnamon, rosemary and thyme.
Flour the chicken and brown. Remove to large pot. Toast the spices in same pan, quickly sear the vegetables in the spices, add a bottle of wine and the herbs and some lemon juice. Add to the pot. Simmer covered for half an hour. Remove lid simmer another 15 mins. Sauce not thickened with flour just reduced significantly at the end with chicken and vegetables kept warm.

The Wife uses the version from The best of America’s Test Kitchen with boneless thighs. One of my favorite things she makes, and she’s a good cook.

Mine is pretty similar.

I sear largish carrot chunks and sauté diced celery and add them to the oven braise. I try to have the skin side above the braising liquid.

I use beef stock more often than chicken

When the braise is mostly done, I pour off and separate the liquid. I reduce the liquid then I make a roux w the fat and turn it into a slightly thick sauce. Sometimes I kick it up w demi glace if it needs more umami. Sometimes I finish w a bit of butter but almost never.

I prefer bone in (but take the skin off). Seems to help texture as well as flavour.

Would prefer dark meat but I have to use some white in this house. Sigh. Also use classic Julia Child as base. Been a while since made it though

I also only use thighs and legs. I’ve used too many different recipes over the years, but one of recipe I saw (but have not tried yet) from Bistro Jeanty in Yountville added cocoa powder to the sauce. At his restaurant, the dish is great, so been meaning to try his version.

+1 for bones.

For shrooms, I use wild mushrooms, dried or fresh.

I agree with whoever it was that said this dish is too much for aged burg. It’s very good with young pinot, though. Or even young Nebbiolo, if you’re using dried porcini in the dish.

Lighter young Pinot I use less or little chicken stock, heavier wine more stock. In a pinch will use other than Pinot, as long as not oaked or overly jammy etc. And best to make your own stock. Roast the chicken bones.

Years ago, our son had a middle-school project where he had to cook something on his own, with some supervision. He made a simplified variation of coq-au-vin in the crockpot. Around 3 pounds of boneless, skinless thighs, chopped shitake mushrooms, chopped leeks, 2 cups chicken broth and 1 cup of white wine. Add a lot of thyme, a bay leaf, salt, pepper and some garlic and cook on low for around 8 hours. Then he cooked up a pot of white basmati rice to serve over it. Easy to make and delicious, and something we still make.

Ed

I add in fresh chicken gizzards.

Victor Hong wrote:
I add in fresh chicken gizzards.

This was a French class assignment. If there were chicken gizzards, he would have thought it was his biology class. :slight_smile:

Ed

Mine is very close to Alan’s and occasionally we add a couple of chicken livers.

We usually make Nigella Lawson’s Coq au Riesling version (easily found online). We only use the optional cream on day two. And of course drink an Alsatian Riesling with it!

made this again yesterday and nailed it. Key for me is to sauté mushrooms and onions separately in butter and add them late in the cooking. Otherwise they virtually disappear. Thickened sauce w arrowroot, used lots of thyme as the dominant spice, chicken thighs and drumsticks from Pasturebird. Just classic.

Agree about sautéing the mushrooms and onions separately. Makes a difference.

Noticed a slight improvement switching to bone broth if using commercial. Homemade broth still best.