French Coq Au Vin Recipe

Coq au vin recipe, a classic French dish in which chicken is braised in a red wine sauce. Authentic coq au vin is made with chicken, red wine, bacon, mushrooms, onions and garlic. This stew is deeply savoury and taste best when served with mashed potatoes. 

Coq Au Vin

Coq au vin, the name can be quite intimidating for many, but it is a true classic french dish which is braised chicken in red wine. I have made it before, may be few years back and loved it.

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• About Coq au vin
• Ingredients
• Step by Step Pictures
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This is an updated version which is more easy to follow and taste more authentic. In fact I bought a bottle of red wine exclusively for making this recipe. Finally I made this recipe few days back and loved it.

What does Coq Au Vin Means?

French Coq Au Vin is a Popular french chicken dish in which chicken is cooked in a wine sauce which taste amazing with mashed potatoes or rice.

The word "coq au vin" means "cockerel in wine" in which coq means chicken and vin means wine. The main ingredients in this classic French dish are bacon, mushrooms, chicken, red wine and shallots.

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About Coq au vin

Coq au vin is a French classic chicken dish. In which bone-in chicken is simmered in red wine along with garlic, tomatoes, herbs. This delicious stew is finished with sauted mushrooms and shallots.

The dish starts with rendering bacon fat. The chicken is then seared in this fat to golden perfection and cooked in a sauce made with garlic, tomato puree, bouquet garni (bay leaf, parsley, rosemary) until cooked.

Once chicken is cooked, the sauce is thickened with a flour and butter paste also known as beurre manié in French to create a silky smooth textured stew. The finishing touch which truly elevates the dish is sauted mushrooms and pearl onion.

This thick glossy chicken stew taste perfectly with mashed potatoes, rice or serve with crusty bread.

More French Recipes

• Creme brullee
• Eclairs
• Onion Soup
• French Bread
• French Almond Cake

There are few easy steps involved in making a good coq au vin

• Searing chicken - which is very important to add colour and flavour to the chicken.
• Make sauce - base sauce made with garlic, tomato, herbs, red wine, chicken stock. chicken is cooked in this sauce.
• Saute mushrooms and pearl onion - these are sauted separately in either olive oil or butter till golden. Mixed in the end for flavour.
• Thicken sauce - beurre manié, a french thickening paste is mixed in the stew to create a thick glossy stew.

Ingredients

• Chicken - use bone-in chicken for so much flavour. chicken thighs and drumstick are preferred.
• Herbs - bouquet garni made with bay leaf, parsley, rosemary is used.
• Garlic & tomato - adds flavour the sauce and gives full body to the stew.
• Red wine - good quality red wine preferably Burgundy (Pinot Noir) or Beaujolais (Gamay) is used.
• Chicken stock - traditionally beef stock or brown chicken stock is used in the stew.
• Shallots, mushrooms - these are sauted separately in oil or butter until golden brown and mixed in stew.
• Plain flour & butter - these two are mixed to make a paste which is used to thicken the stew.

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Step by Step Pictures

Make beurre manié

1)Start by making thickening sauce for the stew. It is called as beurre manié which is just butter and plain flour mixed together.

2)Mix butter and plain flour to form a smooth paste. Set this aside.

Searing Chicken

3)Heat butter and olive oil in a heavy bottom casserole. The oil will prevent the butter from burning.

4)Add in bone-in chicken in the hot oil and butter. Sprinkle top with salt and black pepper powder. Allow the chicken to sear for 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

5)Once chicken is seared, flip over and sear on other side too.

6)Remove the seared chicken in a clean plate and set aside.

Cooking Chicken

7)Now in the same oil, add in chopped garlic, tomato puree and the bouquet garni in which bay leaf, rosemary, parsley tied together with a kitchen thread. Stir this into the butter and oil.

8)Pour in chicken stock.

9)Pour in good quality red wine preferably Burgundy (Pinot Noir) or Beaujolais (Gamay).

10)Mix this really well and bring it to a full boil.

11)Now add in the seared chicken back into the sauce.

12)Season with salt and black pepper powder.

13)Now reduce the flame to low medium. Cover with a lid and cook on low for 25 to 35 minutes until it cooked and tender.

Sauted shallots & mushrooms

14)Heat olive oil in a separate pan, once oil is hot, add in peeled whole shallots.

15)Saute this on high for couple of minutes until you see brown spots all over it. Sprinkle some salt and black pepper powder and toss well. Now remove and set aside.

16)In the same pan, add some more oil and place mushroom caps. Cook on high heat until the bottom is seared.

17)Flip over and cook mushrooms on other side as well. Let it cook until both side gets golden brown. Sprinkle some salt and black pepper powder and toss well. Remove this and set aside.

Thickening Stew

18)Once the chicken is completely cooked, remove the bouquet garni from the stew and discard it.

19) Add the beurre manié which we made earlier to the sauce in the pan.

20)Use a whisk to mix the paste into the sauce till it is completely melted.

21)The sauce will get thick and glossy immediately. Let it cook for 3 minutes on very low heat.

22)Add in the sauted mushrooms and shallots into the sauce and mix gently. Turn off the heat and keep it covered.

23)Sprinkle lots of parsley. Serve with mashed potatoes

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