Coq au Vin (Chicken Casserole in Red Wine)

Perhaps the most popular classic French chicken recipe is Coq au Vin. Originally made with the Coq (cock or rooster), these days it's made with chicken - it's easier to find.

Like the Blanquette de Veau, this is my best go-to recipe as it's authentic and approved by my French family. The secret is in the long marinade time in red wine to intensify the flavours - an extra bonus, as it cuts down the final cooking time.

What Does Coq au Vin Mean in French?

Coq in French is simply the Cock (also known as Rooster in America), which is a male chicken. So, quite literally, it's Cock or Rooster in Wine.

As the cock or rooster is a much tougher version than the smaller, more tender female chicken, the recipe calls for marinating in wine to tenderise the meat. However, these days it's not that easy to find a cock/rooster. Even in France it requires ordering in advance as it's a much bigger bird (at least 3kg compared with the biggest chicken of 2.5kg). William Frechon uses Coq in his starred restaurant in Dijon and even after marinating 24 hours, it needs to be cooked for 3 hours.

As a result, it's more popular to make this recipe at home with chicken. Here, we are lucky to have top quality chickens, especially the famous Henri IV chickens and Poulet de Bresse. Since 1957, this top quality French chicken has had AOC status (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) and it's normal to see them at the market complete with head and feet on (I cut that part out of this photo, as not everyone likes to see this!). They have a thin skin and are particularly tender.

Whatever chicken you use for the recipe, just ensure it's a good quality organic or free-range chicken.

How do you pronounce it?

Coq au Vin in French is quite simply pronounced as Cock-oh-vahgn.

Why is Coq au Vin Popular?

It's really strange, as Coq au Vin isn't something that used to be on many French restaurant menus. Instead it was considered as peasant food; typical family food enjoyed without any fancy frills.

Jings - not even Alexandre Dumas mentions it in his culinary dictionary (perhaps because it doesn't include truffles? Although side-note, you could replace mushrooms with morels for something spectacular). Neither does Auguste Escoffier in his monumental Gourmet French Guide Culinaire.

Escoffier does, however, cite Boeuf Bourguignon, which is made in much the same way but with beef. As we're not beef eaters in our family, we prefer this marinaded chicken in red wine version instead.

The rustic dish instead became popular more recently, it seems, thanks to Julia Child in America. As a result, it's now seen on more French restaurant menus and for entertaining family and friends at home.

Why Was it Created in France?

Many people refer to King Henri IV (1367-1413) having told the French that ".. a chicken should be in every French pot" but generally, this refers to the classic, Poule au Pot dish which is much simpler and doesn't require wine. To be honest, I can't find much associated with the history of this dish, as it could go to Julius Cesar.

As so many regions in France also claim this dish, it's difficult to pick! If you have any historical documents on this that you can share, please let us know in the comments below.

Can I Make Coq au Vin Ahead?

This is one of my favourite make-ahead recipes since it needs up to 24 hours to marinade the chicken. I have 2 suggestions.
Either

• prepare the dish 2 days in advance: marinade day 1, day 2 cook then cool and chill until day 3 reheat and serve; or
• prepare the marinade then, once cool and chilled, transfer it in a sealed container in the freezer (up to 2 months) and defrost the day before or the day you are ready to cook and serve.

Which Wine is Best?

Can you use any red wine to make Coq au Vin? Essentially yes, although I stress the age-old French home cook's mantra that if you can't drink it, don't cook with it. So ensure your wine is good quality and not something that we could sprinkle on thick British chips! (UK chips are not like crispy, thin French fries and traditionally served sprinkled with vinegar - but that's worthy of another post).

Many recipes use white wine, but red wine makes this dish far more lush..

According to French food critic, Gilles Pudlowski (France, The Beautiful Cookbook), this dish was originally made with Chanturgues red wine from the Auvergne. Gradually over time it was generally replaced by Bourgogne (Burgundy) red wine. Now that every region in France just about claims this dish as their own (including Alsace, Champagne), almost anything goes!  I'd personally go for a Burgundy if you can or a good quality Pinot Noir (as that's the varietal red of the region).

However, less expensive are the neighbouring regions of Côte du Rhône with grape varietals such as Shiraz (Syrah), Grenache and Beaujolais with Gamay.

Does it Taste like Wine?

It does in that it's fruity, rustic and lush. The important first step is to boil the wine before marinading. So, by the time it is cooked, the alcohol has disappeared from the sauce. What's left is an intense and rich sauced that coats the chicken and vegetables. I particularly love the carrots in the marinade, as it adds a subtle sweet touch.

The mushrooms and bacon added at the end just at the final fabulous flavours, since they have been cooked separately to again bring out all the flavours.

Although it's marinaded and cooked in the red wine, when cutting through the tender chicken, it still remains a fluffy white (see photo).

Step-by-Step Recipe

Printable recipe below.

• First get your butcher to cut the whole chicken into pieces or, if you have a good knife, do this at home. As a result, you have a mixture of on and off-bone chicken. I like to keep the skin on just for the thighs and remove the rest to cut down on the fat but this is personal. If you prefer it all with the skin, then go ahead but it will make the sauce even richer.
• Boil the red wine in a saucepan until reduced by a third then cool. This not only removes the alcohol but also intensifies the colour and flavours.
• In a large bowl with the chicken bits, add carrots, bay leaf, thyme (I like to add parsley stalks too), peppercorns, chopped garlic and small pearl onions (I also use spring onions, chopped in 4) and pour over the cooled wine.
  Note: please don't use dried herbs - fresh thyme is not an option. For more, see the market page on bouquet garni and aromatic herbs.

• Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.

• Next day, drain the marinade into a colander over a bowl to separate the juices.

• Dry the chicken pieces with kitchen paper.
• Then, over a high heat in a heavy-based casserole dish, fry the chicken in olive oil on all sides for about 10 minutes or until cooked through.
• Flambé with a couple of tablespoons of Cognac.

How do you Thicken Coq au Vin?

• Sprinkle over the chicken with the flour and toss around the pan to coat it all evenly. Gradually add the marinade liquid while tossing the chicken around (this will stop any lumps from forming).
• Boil up the sauce until it's bubbling and thickened.

• Add the marinade vegetables minus the bouquet garni. Lower the heat and leave to simmer with the lid on for about and hour (more or less, depending on the size of your chicken pieces).

• Dry fry the bacon bits and sliced mushrooms (there's enough fat in the bacon already) and add a few pearl onions. Then add to the dish.
• Leave to reduce further for another 20 minutes.

• Serve with chopped, fresh parsley and a good baguette or two.

Can You Reheat Coq au Vin?

You can certainly reheat it, no problem.  Just ensure that if you have leftovers to cool it down first then cover and chill in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to serve just gently reheat with the lid on to recapture these beautiful flavours.

I often find that, if we do have any leftovers to reheat, there's not much left. So the best way to serve is toss what's left into cooked pasta.

What is Traditionally Served with Coq au Vin?

• Bread - Like a traditional Boeuf Bourguignon, the French serve this with crusty bread. So grab a good baguette to mop up that luscious sauce.
• Potatoes - Julia Child apparently served her recipe version with mashed potatoes, which is a great possibility. For a creamy side-dish, serve with Gratin Dauphinois. Alternatively, if you prefer without the cream and just with succulent layered potatoes cooked in onions and stock, then serve with a Gratin Savoyard.
• Rice - Not traditional but still good with Basmati rice or any other long-grain rice.