Lighter coq au vin
100 min · 45 g protein · 498 cals / serving
Chicken braised slowly in red wine until it falls apart into a dark, glossy sauce with smoky bacon, whole golden shallots, carrots and a mountain of browned mushrooms, scented with thyme and garlic. It tastes like a Sunday in Burgundy. Skinless thighs and a little bacon keep it lean; serve it with small boiled potatoes to catch every drop.
Ingredients
- 2 slices bacon, thick-cut, in strips (cooked weight)
- 1 1/2 lb chicken thigh, about 7 thighs, halved
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 lb crimini mushroom, halved or quartered
- 8 small shallots, peeled, left whole (or pearl onions)
- 4 large carrots, in thick slices
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup red wine, a dry Burgundy, Pinot Noir or other fruity red
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
To serve
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- 2/3 lb gold potatoes, small new potatoes, boiled
Steps
- Cook the bacon in a large, heavy casserole over medium heat for 5 minutes until crisp and the fat has run. Lift it out with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper and toss with the flour. Brown it in the bacon fat in two batches over medium-high heat, 3 minutes a side, until deep golden. Set aside with the bacon.
- Add the mushrooms, shallots and carrots to the pot and cook 8–10 minutes, stirring, until the mushrooms have given up their water and browned and the shallots are golden in patches.
- Add the garlic and tomato paste and stir 1 minute. Pour in the wine, scraping up every brown bit from the bottom, then the broth, thyme and 2 bay leaves if you have them. Return the chicken and bacon.
- Cover and simmer gently for 45 minutes, then uncover and simmer 15 minutes more, until the chicken is very tender (well past 165°F) and the sauce coats a spoon. Taste for salt.
- Boil the potatoes in salted water while the sauce reduces. Scatter the coq au vin with parsley and serve with the potatoes.
Good to know
Does the alcohol cook off?
Most of it does over an hour's simmer, but not all. If you are cooking for children or avoiding alcohol, use 1 cup of beef broth with 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar instead; it is less deep but still very good, and about the same score.
Can I use bone-in chicken?
Yes, and it is more traditional. Use 8 bone-in thighs and drumsticks, pull the skin off before browning and simmer 15 minutes longer.
Is it better the next day?
Much. Make it a day ahead, cool, refrigerate, lift off any fat from the top and reheat gently.
Per
- Calories
- 87
- Protein
- (39%)
- 8 g
- Fat
- (27%)
- 2 g
- Carbohydrates
- (34%)
- 8 g
- of which sugar
- 2 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
- Sodium
- 221 mg
About 25% of the alcohol remains after cooking; the label counts only that.
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 1992 kcal goes into the pot and 3135 g of ingredients comes out as about 2300 g of food: 87 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.