I have made this classic French chicken stew twice so far using 2 different recipes..the first one I tried was that of Alton Brown’s, and then a recipe from a college batchmate who I “met” again in facebook  (Hi Minette!).

Coq au Vin is very yummy but this is clearly not an everyday dish, at least not  for me as  it involves a lot of steps, lots of ingredients.. (that pearl onion is quite tricky to find here, I used shallots instead in both recipes). 

I’m planning on making this again on a special occasion, my birthday perhaps or on Holidays and I’m going to splurge (just a little) on a bottle of red wine that I think this dish deserves (I just used a Burgundy from a supermarket, you know, the kind that Fraser Crane would throw in the garbage bin ^-^ lol ).  
 

left-over coq au vin, reheated ;)…this is an awesome dish, really worth trying  and if you decide to try it too,   please use a bottle of really good red wine..I know I will next time! :)

COQ AU VIN
This is Minette’s recipe that she e-mailed to me; I’m posting it as is, I didn’t change anything here..thanks so much again Mrs. Salud!  ;)

Ingredients
Olive Oil
4 carrots ( peeled and diced … divide)
4 small ribs celery, chopped
2 handfuls baby portabella mushrooms
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
3 stems rosemary
8 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
Salt
6 whole peppercorns
1 bottle dry red wine (any kind but I used Cabernet Sauvignon)
1 sack of fresh pearl onions
12 small-cut pieces of bone-in, skin-on chicken
6 slices of bacon, diced
Ground pepper
2 cups chicken broth
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour

Heat pot then add olive oil.

Add carrots, celery, onion and garlic. Tie thyme and rosemary together and drop into pot with bay leaves. Season with salt and add peppercorns into pot. Cover and cook veggies until tender-crisp. Turn off heat and let cool.

In a different pot, bring water to a boil, add pearl onions and boil 3 minutes. Drain and cool onions in an ice water bath. Trim at root end and squish the onions away from their skins. Place in fridge.

Add wine and chicken to the pot with the cooled veggies then place pot in fridge and chill overnight.

The next day….

Remove chicken from wine and pat dry. Strain the wine and reserve it, throw marinated vegetables and herbs. Rinse and dry pot, heat on stove and add olive oil and the bacon. Brown and crisp then remove and reserve.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper, brown in batches until deep golden.

Throw some of the excess fat …add reserved wine to pot and scrape up any drippings. Add stock and set chicken and bacon back into pot. Add the chopped carrots and pearl onions. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook at a low boil for 20-25 minutes.

Remove chicken, onions and carrots, raise heat and thicken the reddish-brown liquid until it becomes a thin, shiny gravy. Skim the impurities.

In a small skillet, melt butter and whisk in flour (bechamel). Then whisk becahmel into the wine sauce and let thicken.

Serve chicken, carrots and onions topped with plenty of sauce. Makes 6-8 servings.

Enjoy!

♥ Thanks for dropping by..have a nice day!! :) ♥

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