Mme Maigrets Coq Au Vin Food

MME MAIGRET'S COQ AU VIN

Steps:

• Finely slice a carrot, a leek and an onion. Cut up a chicken of about 2kg into pieces. Put the vegetables, a bouquet of parsley and the chicken bones and skin into a pot. Add 300ml water and simmer for 30 minutes to obtain chicken stock.
• Meanwhile cut 2 carrots in round slices and chop 4 shallots and 2 garlic cloves.
• In another pot brown the remaining chicken pieces in 2 tablespoons lard (shortening) over a brisk heat.
• Take these out and put in the carrot slices and the chopped shallots and garlic. Reduce the heat and lightly brown for 10 minutes.
• Put the chicken pieces back into the pot. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon flour and stir.
• Pour over the chicken stock - there should be about 100ml after reduction with the same quantity of Riesling. Season it with salt and pepper, little grated nutmeg and dried thyme.
• Cook for about 90 minutes (depending on the age of chicken).
• Take out the chicken pieces and place them on a warm dish. Thicken the sauce away from the heat with an egg yolk thinned with 100ml single cream.
• Finally, add the juice of lemon and 2 teaspoons sloe brandy. Pour the sauce over the chicken in its pot and serve.

30-MINUTE COQ AU VIN

Steps:

• Put the bacon into an unheated large, high-sided skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring periodically, until the bacon is browned and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a small bowl with a slotted spoon; set aside.
• Discard all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat in the pan. Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the mushrooms, 1/4 teaspoon salt and several grinds of pepper and cook until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, flour and tomato paste and cook, stirring, until the tomato paste darkens a little, about 1 minute. Add the chicken broth, wine, onions, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt and more pepper. Bring to a boil, then let simmer until thickened, about 4 minutes.
• Turn the heat down to medium, and whisk in the butter a little at a time. If the sauce tastes a little too acidic, add the sugar. Nestle the chicken and cooked bacon into the sauce, and simmer gently until the chicken is heated through, 6 to 7 minutes. (This could take up to 10 minutes if the chicken is cold, or as little as 3 minutes if it is warm.) Spoon the sauce over the chicken pieces periodically to coat completely. Toss the chicken in the sauce, remove the thyme stems, sprinkle with the parsley and serve.

COQ AU VIN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
• Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove the bacon to a plate with a slotted spoon.
• Meanwhile, lay the chicken out on paper towels and pat dry. Liberally sprinkle the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. When the bacon is removed, brown the chicken pieces in batches in a single layer for about 5 minutes, turning to brown evenly. Remove the chicken to the plate with the bacon and continue to brown until all the chicken is done. Set aside.
• Add the carrots, onions, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper to the pan and cook over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Cognac and put the bacon, chicken, and any juices that collected on the plate into the pot. Add the wine, chicken stock, and thyme and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and place in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is just not pink. Remove from the oven and place on top of the stove.
• Mash 1 tablespoon of butter and the flour together and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. In a medium saute pan, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and cook the mushrooms over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until browned. Add to the stew. Bring the stew to a simmer and cook for another 10 minutes. Season to taste. Serve hot.

COQ AU VIN

Steps:

• Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan or flameproof dish. Tip in 3 trimmed and chopped smoked back bacon rashers and fry until crisp. Remove and drain on kitchen paper.
• Add 12 peeled shallots to the pan and fry, stirring or shaking the pan often, for 5-8 mins until well browned all over. Remove and set aside with the bacon.
• Take 2 chicken legs, 4 chicken thighs and 2 boneless chicken breasts, all with skin removed and pat dry with kitchen paper.
• Pour ½ tbsp olive oil into the pan, then fry half the chicken pieces, turning regularly, for 5-8 mins until well browned. Remove, then repeat with the remaining chicken. Remove and set aside.
• Scatter in 3 finely chopped garlic cloves and fry briefly, then, with the heat medium-high, pour in 3 tbsp brandy or Cognac, stirring the bottom of the pan to deglaze. The alcohol should sizzle and start to evaporate so there is not much left.
• Return the chicken legs and thighs to the pan along with any juices, then pour in a little of 600ml red wine, stirring the bottom of the pan again.
• Stir in the rest of the wine, 150ml good-quality chicken stock and 2 tsp tomato purée. Drop in 3 thyme sprigs, 2 rosemary sprigs and 2 bay leaves to make a bouquet garni, season with pepper and a pinch of salt, then return the bacon and shallots to the pan.
• Cover, lower the heat to a gentle simmer, add the chicken breasts and cook for 50 mins - 1hr.
• Just before ready to serve, heat 1 ½ tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Add 250g chestnut mushrooms, halved if large, and fry over a high heat for a few mins until golden. Remove and keep warm.
• Lift the chicken, shallots and bacon from the pan and transfer to a warmed serving dish. Remove the bouquet garni.
• To make the thickener, mix 2 tbsp plain flour, 1 ½ tsp olive oil and 1 tsp softened butter in a small bowl using the back of a teaspoon.
• Bring the wine mixture to a gentle boil, then gradually drop in small pieces of the thickener, whisking each piece in using a wire whisk. Simmer for 1-2 mins.
• Scatter the mushrooms over the chicken, then pour over the wine sauce. Garnish with a handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley.

COQ AU VIN

Steps:

• Season chicken with 2 1/4 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. In a large bowl, combine chicken, wine, bay leaf and thyme. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or, even better, overnight.
• In a large Dutch oven or a heavy-bottomed pot with a tightfitting lid, cook lardons over medium-low heat until fat has rendered, and lardons are golden and crisp, 10 to 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer lardons to a paper-towel-lined plate, leaving rendered fat in pot.
• Remove chicken from wine, reserving the marinade. Pat chicken pieces with paper towels until very dry. Heat lardon fat over medium heat until it's just about to smoke. Working in batches if necessary, add chicken in a single layer and cook until well browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side. (Add oil if the pot looks a little dry.) Transfer chicken to a plate as it browns.
• Add diced onion, carrot, half the mushrooms and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt to pot. Cook until vegetables are lightly browned, about 8 minutes, stirring up any brown bits from the pot, and adjusting heat if necessary to prevent burning.
• Stir in garlic and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, then stir in flour and cook for another minute. Remove from heat, push vegetables to one side of pot, pour brandy into empty side, and ignite with a match. (If you're too nervous to ignite it, just cook brandy down for 1 minute.) Once the flame dies down, add reserved marinade, bring to a boil, and reduce halfway (to 1 1/2 cups), about 12 minutes. Skim off any large pockets of foam that form on the surface.
• Add chicken, any accumulated juices and half the cooked lardons to the pot. Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 hour, turning halfway through. Uncover pot and simmer for 15 minutes to thicken. Taste and add salt and pepper, if necessary.
• Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon butter and 2 tablespoons oil in a nonstick or other large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pearl onions, a pinch of sugar and salt to taste. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, shaking skillet often to move onions around. Uncover, push onions to one side of skillet, add remaining mushrooms, and raise heat to medium-high. Continue to cook until browned, stirring mushrooms frequently, and gently tossing onions occasionally, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove onions and mushrooms from skillet, and wipe it out.
• In same skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat until bubbling. Add bread and toast on all sides until golden, about 2 minutes per side. (Adjust heat if needed to prevent burning.) Remove from skillet and sprinkle with salt.
• To serve, dip croutons in wine sauce, then coat in parsley. Add pearl onions, mushrooms and remaining half of the cooked lardons to the pot. Baste with wine sauce, sprinkle with parsley and serve with croutons on top.