I really love the regular coq au vin. The first dinner i ever made for my husband when I first met him, was coq au vin. Little did I know, that he didn't like wine. Well I didn't scare him off completely and now I learned him to drink wine. I must be a bad influence...
Normally I'll make coq au vin with red wine, but at a cooking class at Sur La Table we learned to make it with white wine, and it was so delicious, the perfect simmer food.
Ingredients:
- 200 g thick-cut bacon, cut into cubes
- canola oil, as needed
- salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 1 good sized chicken for roasting (4 to 5 pound), cut into 8 serving pieces
- 1 large onion, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 large celery ribs, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 leek, trimmed, white and light green parts only, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 3 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 head garlic, halved
- ⅓ cup (30 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 bottle full-bodied dry white wine, such as white Burgundy.*
- 2 teaspoons chicken paste
- 500 ml water
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 teaspoon cracked black peppercorns
- 3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, for garnish
Gremolata:
- handfull Italian parsley
- 2-3 lemons, the zest of
- 3 garlic cloves
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place a rack in the bottom third.
Place bacon in a large Dutch oven and heat over medium heat. Cook bacon until crispy and fat has rendered, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving some of the fat in the Dutch oven.
Season the chicken pieces generously on all sides with salt and pepper. Place chicken in the Dutch oven and sear to a deep brown on all sides, about 8 to 10 minutes, working in batches as needed. Transfer chicken to a rimmed baking sheet.
Add onion, carrot, celery, and leek to Dutch oven and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are browned, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and garlic and cook, stirring often, until tomato paste turns a deeper red, another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle flour over vegetable mixture and cook, stirring to incorporate, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine to Dutch oven and, using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan to release any browned bits. Cook until wine mixture begins to thicken, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Return chicken to Dutch oven along with any juices from the baking sheet and add chicken base and enough water to barely cover the chicken. Add thyme, bay leaves and peppercorns, stirring to combine. Cover the Dutch oven and place in the preheated oven. Braise the chicken until fork-tender, about 50 to 60 minutes.
Remove Dutch oven from oven and, using tongs, carefully transfer the chicken to a rimmed baking sheet. Cover loosely with foil to keep warm.
Discard the thyme sprigs and the bay leave. Place dutch oven over high heat and cook braising liquid until reduced and thickened, about 10 to 12 minutes, skimming the surface for excess fat. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
Serve family style with gremolata, mashed potatoes or vegetables.
Serve immediately.
Gremolata:
Rinse the parsley, zest the lemons and peel the garlic cloves. Finely chop the ingredients together. I use the mini chopper that came with my Immersion Blender.
* Don't use a oaked wine, since oakey wine can turn bitter when reduced.
