Classic Coq au Vin (Printable)

Tender chicken slow-cooked in red wine with mushrooms, bacon, and pearl onions for deep flavor.

# What You'll Need:

→ Protein & Main

01 - 1 whole chicken (approximately 3.3 lbs), cut into 8 pieces
02 - 5.3 oz smoked bacon or pancetta, diced

→ Vegetables

03 - 7 oz pearl onions, peeled
04 - 8.8 oz cremini or button mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
05 - 2 medium carrots, sliced
06 - 2 garlic cloves, minced

→ Liquids

07 - 2 1/2 cups dry red wine (e.g., Burgundy or Pinot Noir)
08 - 1 cup chicken stock

→ Pantry & Herbs

09 - 2 tbsp tomato paste
10 - 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
11 - 2 tbsp olive oil
12 - 2 tbsp unsalted butter
13 - 2 bay leaves
14 - 4 sprigs fresh thyme
15 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

# Directions:

01 - Pat chicken pieces dry with paper towels and season evenly with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
02 - Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the diced bacon and cook until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.
03 - In the same pot, brown chicken pieces in batches until golden on all sides. Remove and set aside.
04 - Add sliced carrots, pearl onions, and minced garlic to the pot and sauté over medium heat until lightly golden, about 5 minutes.
05 - Stir in tomato paste and all-purpose flour, cooking for 1 minute to eliminate raw flour taste.
06 - Return browned chicken and cooked bacon to the pot. Add red wine, chicken stock, bay leaves, and fresh thyme sprigs, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom.
07 - Bring mixture to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook on low heat for 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until chicken is tender.
08 - In a separate skillet, heat 1 tablespoon unsalted butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Sauté mushrooms until golden brown, approximately 5 minutes. Set aside.
09 - Remove the lid from the Dutch oven for the final 15 minutes to reduce sauce slightly. Stir in sautéed mushrooms and adjust seasoning with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
10 - Remove bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Serve hot, optionally garnished with fresh parsley.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The chicken becomes so tender it practically falls off the bone, and the wine sauce tastes nothing like wine—it's pure, deep, savory richness.
  • It actually improves when made a day ahead, which means you look brilliant at dinner without last-minute stress.
  • The smell alone is worth the two-hour wait, and it makes your kitchen feel like somewhere people want to linger.
02 -
  • Browning the chicken and bacon first isn't optional—it creates flavor that nothing else can give you, and it's where most shortcuts fail.
  • If your sauce looks too thin at the end, don't panic; remove the lid and let it bubble gently until it coats the back of a spoon, which usually takes 10 to 15 minutes.
  • Pearl onions will look impossible to peel, but if you blanch them for a minute first, the skin slips off easily—this small trick saves your sanity.
03 -
  • Let the braise go dark and deep—that mahogany color in the sauce is where all the flavor lives, so don't stop cooking when it looks pale.
  • Taste the salt at the very end; as the liquid reduces, the salt concentrates, and you might need less than you'd expect.
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