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Overhead view of a pot of coq au vin.
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Coq au Vin

This coq au vin recipe tastes fancy, but all you need to make it are a few pantry staples! The rich, flavor-packed red wine sauce and unbelievably succulent chicken will knock your socks off.
Course Main Course
Cuisine French
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes
Servings 4 to 6 servings
Calories 962kcal
Author John Kanell

Equipment

  • Dutch oven
  • Large skillet

Ingredients

  • 4 chicken drumsticks (bone-in)
  • 4 chicken thighs (bone-in)
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper plus more for seasoning
  • ¼ teaspoon salt plus more for seasoning
  • 4 ounces pancetta or bacon diced (113g)
  • 3 medium carrots chopped
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 3 cups red wine (720ml)
  • 2 cups chicken stock (480ml)
  • 8 fresh thyme sprigs
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups pearl onions peeled (300g)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 8 ounces mushrooms quartered (225g)

Instructions

  • Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels. Season well on all sides with salt and pepper.
  • In a large Dutch oven, cook the pancetta over medium heat until rendered and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels, reserving the drippings in the pot.
  • Place the chicken pieces skin-side down and cook until the skin is brown and easily released from the pot, about 8 minutes. Remove from the pot.
  • Add the carrots and onion to the pot, and cook stirring frequently until the onion starts to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato paste. Cook stirring frequently until the tomato paste darkens in color, about 3 minutes. Carefully pour in the red wine to deglaze the pot and scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen and brown bits. Add the chicken stock, thyme sprigs, bay leaf, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Nestle the chicken pieces back into the pot. Bring back to a simmer.
  • Cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Once the chicken is done, remove the pieces from the pot.
  • Increase the heat to medium-high and simmer the sauce until reduced by about a third, about 15 minutes. It should coat the back of a spoon. (If the sauce is too thick, add some additional stock. If the sauce is too thin, continue simmering or stir in a teaspoon or two of flour.)
  • Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the softened butter and flour until a paste forms. Once the sauce is reduced, stir the butter mixture into the sauce and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.
  • Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Stir in the pearl onions. Nestle the chicken pieces back into the sauce and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for a few minutes until the chicken is warmed through again.
  • While the chicken is warming, heat the olive oil and remaining tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until browned, about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Scatter over the top of the chicken along with the cooked pancetta. Serve immediately garnished with thyme, if desired.

Notes

  • Use dark meat for succulent chicken. While Julia Child’s popular coq au vin recipe calls for a whole bird, I prefer using chicken thighs and drumsticks as they remain juicy during the long cooking time. White meat is much more prone to drying out.
  • Avoid cooking wine. As I mentioned earlier, red Burgundy wine is the typical choice. However, most red wines will work well. Avoid cooking wine, and instead opt for a wine you enjoy drinking as it will make a rich sauce with much better flavor. It doesn’t need to be an expensive bottle!
  • Blanch pearl onions to make them easy to peel. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and carefully add the pearl onions. Boil for about 2 minutes before transferring the pearl onions to an ice bath. Then, cut off the root end of the onions. The onion should pop right out of the peel if you squeeze the stem end.
  • Use frozen pearl onions instead. If you don’t want the hassle of peeling fresh pearl onions, use frozen ones that have already been peeled. Measure them while frozen and let them thaw before adding them to the sauce.
  • Make coq au vin a day in advance. Like beef stew (and pretty much all other kinds of stew), this dish tastes even better the next day. The flavors meld beautifully overnight, so if you’re able to, cook this dish a night in advance.

Nutrition

Calories: 962kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 57g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 23g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 240mg | Sodium: 784mg | Potassium: 1470mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 8444IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 109mg | Iron: 4mg