Chicken with Red Wine Sauce

By corlear

Coq au Vin
A classic Burgundian dish, this is found in different guises all over France. Make sure you use an older bird with more flavour. Use a robust wine, but not an etpensive one, as the aromas of a subtle wine will be destroyed during the long cooking.

Ingredients

• FOR THE GARNISH:
• 3 lb free-range chicken, jointed
• 1 1/3 Pt red Burgundy wine
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 1 leek, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 oz butter
• 1 bouquet garni
• 7 fl oz chicken stock
• 4 tbsp marc or brandy
• 1 oz plain flour or arrowroot
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 7 oz streaky smoked bacon, rinded and diced
• 20 small pickling onions
• 5 1/2 oz button mushrooms, trimmed
• 1 oz butter
• 2 slices of white bread, quartered
• 1 garlic clove, halved

Details

Servings 4

Preparation

Step 1

In a large saucepan, bring the wine to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes, then leave to cool.

Place the chicken together with the onion, carrots, leek, garlic and bouquet garni in a large non-metallic bowl, pour in the wine, then cover tightly with cling film and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Drain the chicken pieces and vegetables, reserving the marinade liquid. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Set aside the vegetables.

Sauté the chicken pieces in the oil and half the butter in a large flame-proof casserole for 5 minutes on each side. Drain off most of the fat, then add the vegetables. Sauté for 5 minutes, then add the reserved marinade liquid with the bouquet garni and enough of the stock to cover the chicken pieces. Simmer gently, covered, for 40 minutes or until the meat is tender and the juices run clear if the meat is pierced with the tip of a knife.

Meanwhile prepare the garnish. Sauté the bacon for 5 minutes in a frying pan. Add the onions and cook until browned, then add the mushrooms, and butter if necessary, and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the bacon, mushrooms and onions and set aside. Rub the bread with the garlic, then sauté in the same pan until browned. Add more butter if necessary. Remove from the pan and reserve.

When the meat is cooked, strain off the liquid into a saucepan. Discard the vegetables and bouquet garni. Add the marc to the saucepan and, over a medium heat, thicken with the flour, stirring constantly. Season to taste.

Serve the chicken pieces covered with the sauce and garnished with the mushrooms, onions, bacon and sautéed bread triangles.