Coq au vin

A classic French stew: cockerel (or chicken) slowly braised in red wine with bacon, carrot, onion and mushrooms. It takes some preparation and time, but rewards you with a deep, full sauce and tender meat.

Serves: 4
Preparation: about 30 minutes
Cooking: 60 min
Total time: about 1 hour 30 min

Ingredients

• 1 bottle (approx. 750 ml) dry red wine
• 3 onions
• 1 large carrot
• 3 sticks celery
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 sprigs of thyme
• 3 sprigs of sage
• 1 cockerel, cut into pieces, or 8 chicken thighs (together approx. 1.5–2 kg)
• 250 g smoked streaky bacon or bacon lardons
• 250 g mushrooms (e.g. chestnut mushrooms)
• 1 small jar pearl onions (approx. 200 g drained weight)
• 2–3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

• Peel the onions and roughly cut them into wedges.
• Peel the carrot and cut into thick slices.
• Wash the celery and cut into pieces.
• Peel the garlic cloves and halve them.
• Tie the bay leaves, thyme and sage together into a bouquet garni (for example with kitchen string).
• Place the cockerel pieces or chicken thighs in a large bowl or casserole.
• Scatter the onion, carrot, celery and garlic over the top.
• Add the bouquet garni.
• Pour in the red wine until the meat and vegetables are mostly submerged.
• Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for 12–24 hours. If you like, turn the meat once halfway through.

Method

1. Remove the bowl with the cockerel/chicken and marinade from the fridge and let it come up towards room temperature.
2. Lift the meat out of the marinade and pat the pieces very dry with kitchen paper. Set aside.
3. Strain the marinade into a bowl: catch the wine and keep the vegetables. Discard the bouquet garni.
4. Cut the bacon into cubes or strips.
5. Clean the mushrooms with a brush or cloth and halve them (quarter large ones if needed).
6. Drain the pearl onions.
7. Heat the casserole over a medium-high heat and fry the bacon lardons without extra fat until lightly browned and the fat has rendered.
8. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.
9. If necessary, add a little olive oil to the fat left in the pan.
10. Lightly season the meat with salt and pepper.
11. Brown the cockerel or chicken pieces in batches until golden all over. Remove the meat from the pan and set aside.
12. Add the vegetables from the marinade (onion, carrot, celery, garlic) to the pan and fry for a few minutes in the cooking fat.
13. Add the mushrooms and fry briefly.
14. Then add the fried bacon and the drained pearl onions to the pan.
15. Return the browned meat to the pan, among the vegetables.
16. Pour in the strained red-wine marinade until the meat is mostly covered.
17. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat.
18. Put the lid on the pan and let it simmer gently for 45–60 minutes, until the meat is tender and comes away easily from the bone.
19. If you like, in the last 10–15 minutes set the lid slightly ajar so the sauce can reduce a little. Taste and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
20. Wash the parsley, pat dry and chop finely.
21. Scatter the parsley over the stew just before serving.
22. Serve the cockerel or chicken in deep, warmed bowls with the vegetables, bacon and plenty of sauce.