Coq Au Vin is a famous French chicken dish where chicken thighs are braised in red wine, vegetables and aromatics to make a rich chicken that falls off the bone. The meat is super moist, rich from the red wine, and saucy perfection.
I have been making Coq Au Vin for years and have adapted my recipe many times to get to this one. It is shockingly easy, and only takes about an hour and a half total. I like to make this dish to impress guests, and it never disappoints!
Ingredients & Substitutions:
- Bone in, skin on chicken thighs – these are ideal for this dish because they have a higher fat content than breast which makes for more shreddy meat that is super moist. This dish was originally made with rooster, which can be tougher meat, which is why it is marinated in wine and cooked for a long time. So if you feel so inclined, you could also use rooster thighs / legs.
- Button mushrooms – I use standard crimini or button mushrooms here, however, any mushroom would work!
- Pearl onions – if you can find fresh ones, more power to you, however they are hard to find. Feel free to use the frozen ones, which are much easier since they are already peeled! Work smarter not harder people!
- Red wine – I always get asked how people can omit alcohol, however, this recipe is literally all about the wine. If you don’t want to cook with wine, this recipe isn’t for you. Choose a red wine that is lighter, like a pinot noir. A cab or syrah would overpower the chicken.
Key Tips for Coq Au Vin:
- Marinate overnight or up to two days! You don’t want to speed up this step, you really want to get that wine flavor in there.
- Thoroughly pat the chicken dry before you sear it, if it is wet, you will have oil splattering everywhere. Save your kitchen, trust me!
- Keep the wine you marinated the chicken in, this is what we use for the braising liquid.
- Make sure the liquid comes up 3/4 of the chicken before braising, it reduces a lot in the oven.
- Bring up to a simmer before placing in the oven! If the liquid is cold, it will take MUCH longer in the oven to cook.
- Cook in the oven until the meat is fall off the bone tender, you can test this by shredding with two forks.
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SERVINGS: 4
- PREP TIME: 20 Mins
- COOK TIME: 60 Mins
- TOTAL TIME: 1 Hr 20 Minr
This recipe is the perfect fall recipe to go with mashed potatoes or burnished potatoes!
Ingredients:
- 2 lb skin on, bone in chicken thighs
- Salt and pepper
- 3 cups burgundy / pinot noir
- 1 bay leaf
- 2-4 sprigs thyme
- 4 oz bacon, diced
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 1 leek, white part only, diced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 6 oz button mushrooms, quartered
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 1.5 tsp tomato paste
- 8 oz pearl onions, peeled
- 1-2 tbsp arrowroot starch + 2 tbsp water (optional to thicken)
- ¼ cup parsley, chopped
Preparation:
STEP 1.
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Marinate chicken with wine, bay leaf and thyme overnight in a ziploc bag.
STEP 2.
Preheat the oven to 375*F. Remove chicken from wine marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Reserved the marinade. Add chicken to medium heat dutch oven, skin side down, until golden brown. Flip and brown the other side. Set aside.
STEP 3.
In the same pot, cook the bacon until crispy. Add the onions, leeks, carrots and mushrooms. Saute until translucent, salting as you go, around 10 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook another 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste and coat all the vegetables. Cook for another 5 minutes. Deglaze with the wine from the bag of marinade.
STEP 4.
Add the chicken, and pearl onions. Make sure there is enough liquid to come up half the side of the chicken. Bring up to a simmer and transfer to the oven to braise for 1 hour, uncovered.
STEP 5.
Remove from the oven and if the sauce is thick enough, serve. If you want it thicker, remove the chicken. In a bowl whisk together 1 tbsp of arrowroot starch with 1 tbsp of water. Bring the pot up to a simmer and whisk in the mixture, this should thicken the sauce. If you want it thicker, do this step again. Serve the sauce over the chicken and top with parsley.
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