Coq au Vin

Rating: 3.71 stars
52 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 17
  • 4 star values: 13
  • 3 star values: 15
  • 2 star values: 4
  • 1 star values: 3

In this classic French recipe, the wine in coq au vin mellows into a luxuriously rich, velvety sauce punctuated by smoky bacon. Earthy mushrooms envelope each piece of tender chicken—no wonder it's such a crowd-pleasing dinner option.

Martha Stewart Living, October 2007

Gallery

Credit: Yunhee Kim

Recipe Summary

Servings:
6
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Ingredients

Directions

  • Place chicken in a large bowl, and add wine. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.

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  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Remove chicken from wine, and pat dry; reserve wine. Season chicken with salt and pepper.

  • Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium-low heat until crisp, about 20 minutes. Transfer bacon to a plate, leaving drippings in pot. (You should have 3 tablespoons; you may need to add oil.)

  • Raise heat to medium-high. Working in batches, cook chicken, flipping once, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Add onion to pot, and cook 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, and cook 2 minutes. Add pearl onions and mushrooms, and cook until brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in flour and tomato paste, and cook 2 minutes. Add Cognac, and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

  • Return bacon and chicken to pot. Pour in reserved wine, and add chicken liver and herbs. Bring to a simmer. Cover, and place in oven until chicken has cooked through and vegetables are tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Discard herbs, and skim fat from surface.

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Reviews (13)

52 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 17
  • 4 star values: 13
  • 3 star values: 15
  • 2 star values: 4
  • 1 star values: 3
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/07/2019
You can't get the flavor of bacon in a kosher dish, but you can get some of the smoky flavor by using a tsp of sesame oil. A tsp of soy and some extra creminis chopped finely (or wild mushrooms) might give a little more umami to the dish to substitute for what's missing. Use a good red wine and don't skip the Cognac. Good luck.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/07/2019
Coq au vin and boeuf bourguignon are two of the best dishes in world cuisine. But since the wine is the most important flavoring in the dish, you must have a good tasting, full bodied red (Burgundy, if possible). If you don't want to spend a lot of money on an expensive wine, ask Trader Joe's to recommend one, or try an Aldi's wine. We have found some of the $3 wines to be quite drinkable. If it doesn't taste good, don't use it in this recipe. Good luck!
Anonymous
Rating: 5 stars
06/28/2019
Watched Martha's show on stews. The Coq au Vin is fantastic. Followed the directions and this dish did not disappoint. In the video, Martha served the thighs and legs on a bed of mashed potatoes. With the mashed potatoes this is a hearty dish. We added a simple salad and some roasted asparagus as sides. I prepared this dish to celebrate our 27th anniversary. I will serve it again soon. Thanks Martha!
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Anonymous
Rating: 2 stars
06/30/2014
Eh...I wanted to love it, but it just didn't fly at our house. Followed the recipe exactly and we ended up with purple-brown chicken in brown sauce. It just didn't look appetizing and was really pretty heavy, even after spooning out the fat as Martha directed on her TV show on PBS. Maybe we just aren't fans of French cuisine. Disappointed because it took a lot of time to prep and the result was just okay. Threw the leftovers out. Oh well, I still love you, Martha!
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
08/05/2011
Decent recipe, not the best version I have ever tasted. Simpler version for home cooks, I will try Julia Child's version next time. It recommended removing the chicken from the juices using a fat separator, this helped cut the fat a lot.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/06/2008
To zippybk - Try turkey bacon, Just be sure to check the ingredient listing on the package to be sure it's all turkey.
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Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/06/2008
What would you recommend I use instead of the bacon since I cook kosher?
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/06/2008
What would you recommend I use instead of the bacon since I cook kosher?
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/06/2008
What would you recommend I use instead of the bacon since I cook kosher?
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
05/28/2008
I've made this twice now and it's going to be a regular on our table. My husband LOVES it! The second time I "lightened"the recipe by cooking the bacon ahead of time and reserving only a tiny bit of bacon fat for cooking. We just found it too rich the 1st time. Also, I doubled the sauce ingredients the 2nd time and used all chicken thighs. It's FABULOUS!
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
01/02/2008
I loved this dish. I served it with mashed potatoes, and it was great cold weather comfort food. It would be a great thing to make on the weekend and heat up on a week night as I thought the sauce was even better the second day.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
12/27/2007
This is not just Chicken. It is wonderful! A real suprise.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/13/2007
I made this recipe recently when I came upon it in an issue of Martha Stewart Living. It was absolutely delicious and was a big hit at our house! The biggest thing to plan for is soaking the chicken overnight - otherwise, it's easy to prepare, and it spends most of the time cooking in the oven. It's scrumptuous!
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