France • Regional Dish • Main Course

French Coq au Vin

Chicken braises slowly in red wine with bacon, mushrooms and onions until the sauce turns deep, glossy and savory.

Servings4

Prep Time20 min

Cook Time70 min

DifficultyModerate

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Ingredients

US Metric

3 lb bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks

5 oz smoked bacon or lardons

9 oz button mushrooms, halved if large

6 oz pearl onions, peeled

1 medium yellow onion, sliced

1 large carrot, sliced

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tbsp plain flour

2 cups dry red wine

1 cup chicken stock

1 tbsp brandy

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp tomato paste

1 tbsp butter

4 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

3/4 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1.4 kg bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks

150 g smoked bacon or lardons

250 g button mushrooms, halved if large

180 g pearl onions, peeled

120 g yellow onion, sliced

120 g carrot, sliced

3 garlic cloves, crushed

15 g plain flour

500 ml dry red wine

250 ml chicken stock

15 ml brandy

15 ml olive oil

10 g tomato paste

15 g butter

4 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

4 g salt

2 g black pepper

10 g flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Instructions

Pat the chicken dry. Season it with the salt and pepper.
Heat a heavy casserole over medium heat. Cook the bacon for 5 minutes until lightly crisp. Lift it out and keep the fat in the pan.
Add the olive oil if the pan looks dry. Brown the chicken skin-side down for 6 to 8 minutes, turning once, until deep golden. Work in batches so the pieces don’t steam. Transfer to a plate.
Add the sliced onion, carrot and garlic. Cook for 4 minutes until softened. Stir in the flour and tomato paste. Cook for 1 minute to remove the raw taste from the flour.
Pour in the brandy and let it reduce for 30 seconds. Add the red wine and stock. Scrape the pan well.
Return the chicken and bacon to the pot. Add the thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover and cook on low heat for 35 minutes. The liquid should bubble softly, not boil.
Melt the butter in a frying pan. Cook the pearl onions for 6 minutes until glossy and lightly golden. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes until they release moisture and start to brown.
Add the onions and mushrooms to the casserole. Simmer uncovered for 20 to 25 minutes until the chicken is tender and the sauce coats a spoon. Turn the chicken once during this stage to keep it moist.
Remove the thyme and bay leaf. Taste and adjust seasoning. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and finish with parsley.

Cultural Context

Coq au vin belongs to Burgundy, where wine doesn’t just get poured into glasses. It gets drafted into dinner. The name means “rooster in wine,” though most home cooks now use chicken because it’s easier to find and less likely to behave like a farmyard endurance test. The heart of the dish stays steady: poultry, red wine, lardons or pork, mushrooms, onions, aromatics and a slow braise until everything turns rich and deeply savory. Some versions marinate first. Others add cognac, stock or a little flour to finish the sauce. The trick is keeping the bones of the classic while making it doable at home.

Fun Fact

The “coq” in coq au vin originally meant rooster, not ordinary chicken, because older, tougher birds needed long cooking in wine to become tender.

Cook’s Tip

Use chicken thighs only if that’s easier. A Burgundy-style red works well, but any dry red wine with moderate tannin is fine. Taste before salting because the bacon already seasons the sauce.

Trivia

Burgundy’s best-known version uses red wine, but regional white-wine versions also exist, including coq au vin jaune in Jura and coq au riesling in Alsace.

About This Recipe

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French Coq au Vin

Instructions

Cultural Context

Fun Fact

Cook’s Tip

Trivia

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