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Coq au Vin for Two – a Classic French Provencial dish

Name: Coq Au Vin
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 110 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 6 slices bacon (diced); 8 ounces mushrooms; 6 small white onions (cut in half or quartered depending upon size); 2-3 cloves garlic (mashed); 2 carrots (peeled and rough cut); 1/2 bottle of full-body red wine; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 8 ounces Chicken Stock (made with Better Than Bouillon® Premium Roasted Chicken Base); unsalted butter; 1 sprig thyme; 1 sprig rosemary; sea salt and black pepper (to taste); 4 large skin on, bone in chicken thighs

October 28, 2019 by Chef Dennis Littley 72 Comments

Coq au Vin, Better than Bullion and Swiss Diamond

You'll love the flavors of this classical provincial dish, Coq Au Vin. Enjoy the taste of France in your own home with this delicious dish.

Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes

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If you’ve ever had Coq Au Vin then you understand how I feel about this classic French dish. The rustic provencal stew has a complexity of flavors that brings moans to the table.

I encountered this classic French dish on my first trip to Paris and it’s been a family favorite ever since. Although there are a few extra steps in this dish, it’s not difficult to make and you don’t need a long list of exotic ingredients.

What is Coq au Vin?

Coq au Vin is a French dish of chicken braised with wine, lardons, mushrooms, and garlic. A red Burgundy wine is typically used.

You can also find this farmhouse dish made in many regions of France make variations using different wines. So if Burgundy isn’t your favorite or available you can swap it out for your favorite wine.

What do I need to make Coq au Vin?

But enough shop talk lets get to the star of the post, Coq Au Vin. As always I like to gather my ingredients together before I start to make the cooking process easier and more enjoyable. This is your Mise en Place (everything in its place).

Since I’m using easily accessed ingredients I’ve swapped out the lardons for bacon. I would suggest trying to find fresh herbs for this dish. They can usually be found in any chain grocer these days in the produce section, conveniently packed in small plastic containers.

I do suggest using Burgundy for your first attempt at this classic dish. Once you see how easy it is to make you can try other wines.

One of a chef’s greatest tools and secret in any restaurant are good quality soup bases.

Yes, we do make stocks from scratch when time permits, but even those need a little boost from time to time or just don’t make enough.

Do I have to marinate the chicken?

As expected my Coq Au Vin was ah-mazingly delicious. And one of the contributing factors was marinating the chicken ahead of time.

Testing has revealed that marinating for as little as 20 minutes can really help the flavor, but I always like to marinate overnight whenever possible. Use a ziplock bag and squeeze all the air out as you seal the bag. Place it in your fridge overnight (on a plate, just in case it leaks) massaging the bag a few times during the process.

Use a ziplock bag and squeeze all the air out as you seal the bag. Place it in your fridge overnight (on a plate, just in case it leaks) massaging the bag a few times during the process.

Important Steps in making Coq au Vin:

There’s not a lot to the dish in terms of difficulty, but if there were two points I’d emphasize they’d be to braise the chicken without moving it for 7-8 minutes to get that rich crispness to the skin. And to sauté the mushrooms for at least 5-6 minutes to allow them to caramelize, building rich flavors in the process.

Coq Au Vin is a simple dish but as I stated in earlier, there is a complexity of flavors that makes you moan.

This classic is generally served with parslied buttered baby potatoes, but my wife loves mashed so I made a buttery mashed potato to go with my Coq Au Vin. Happy wife = Happy life.

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4.86 from 27 votes

Coq Au Vin

You'll love the flavors of this classical provincial dish, Coq Au Vin. Enjoy the taste of France in your own home with this delicious dish.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time1 hr 30 mins

Total Time1 hr 50 mins

Course: Entree

Cuisine: French

Servings:

Calories: 803kcal

Author: Chef Dennis Littley

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 slices bacon diced
8 ounces mushrooms
6 small white onions cut in half or quartered depending upon size
2-3 cloves garlic mashed
2 carrots peeled and rough cut
1/2 bottle of full-body red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
8 ounces Chicken Stock made with Better Than Bouillon® Premium Roasted Chicken Base
unsalted butter
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig rosemary
sea salt and black pepper to taste
4 large skin on, bone in chicken thighs

Instructions

Add chicken to a 1-gallon zipper-lock bag. Pour in one cup red wine and seal bag, pressing out air. Let stand while you prepare the remaining ingredients or overnight for the best results.
Preheat oven to 350°
In a large Dutch oven or rondeau, cook bacon over medium-high heat, stirring and reducing heat as necessary to prevent scorching, until browned and fat has rendered, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and, using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate.
Remove chicken from zipper-lock bag, discard wine, and pat dry.
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Return Dutch oven with rendered bacon fat to medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs skin-side down, and cook until browned, about 7 minutes. Turn and brown the other side, about 5 minutes. Don't move the chicken around while cooking, allow it to sear in place. Use a spatula to get under the chicken when turning being careful not to rip the skin.
Remove Chicken from pan setting aside until needed
Add mushrooms to pan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Add onions, carrots, and garlic and cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add bacon, the remainder of the wine, tomato paste, chicken stock, thyme and rosemary and bring to a simmer, stirring up any browned bits.
Add chicken back to pan, leaving skin side up and not submerged if possible. Transfer to oven and cook, uncovered, for 1 hour.
Remove pan from the oven and take the chicken out of the pan.
Add in two tablespoons of unsalted butter that has been rolled in flour, getting as much flour into the butter as possible. This is called a beurre manie and will thicken your sauce. Mix the beurre manie in well and allow to simmer over medium heat.
Return chicken to pot, spooning sauce on top. Garnish with remaining sprig of thyme or rosemary. Serve with potatoes, pasta, or rice.

Nutrition

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About Chef Dennis

Chef Dennis is a semi-retired Chef, writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer and creator of A Culinary Journey with Chef Dennis aka Ask Chef Dennis®. Chef Dennis worked professionally in White Table Cloth Restaurants for 40 years and has been developing easy to make, restaurant-style recipes since 2009. The second phase of his reinvention from chef to blogger has earned him a place at the Worlds Dinner Table. Join him on his Culinary Journey enjoying his easy to make Restaurant Style recipes and travel adventures. For more details, check out his About page.

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