5 Coq Au Vin

I made Coq Au Vin.

Don't you just want to steal one of those mushrooms off the plate and pop in into your mouth?  I do.

This is big people.  A personal milestone.

I'm not sure why this recipe in particular grabs me as epic, but it does.

I now firmly believe everything should be cooked in 2 cups of red wine.  It smells utterly divine.  People will walk by your house and smell this and wish they lived there.

To make this epic Coq Au Vin (I just like saying it) I went between two recipes, picking and choosing what I thought would work.  One from Avec Eric by Eric Ripert and Top Chef The Cookbook.  It turned out so delicious, the sauce was just velvety, rich and tangy and it infused everything it touched with deliciousness.  The veggies kept their texture and slight crunch.  And the Chicken was still moist even though I used boneless, skinless breast.  So without further ado...

Recipe:

3-4 Organic Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast
1 tsp Salt
1tsp Pepper
2 T Vegetable Oil
2 slices of bacon
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1 Garlic clove chopped
1 tsp. Thyme
1 Bay Leaf
1 T Tomato Paste
1 T All Purpose Flour
2 cups Red Wine
1 - 2 cups Chicken Stock

1 package Egg Noodles

1.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

2.  In a large pot, add 2 T. Oil over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and brown each side, total about 10 minutes.

3.  Take the chicken out and set aside.  Add your bacon to the same pot and cook until crispy.

4.  Then add the onion, celery, and carrot.  (Add mushrooms now if raw, later if canned) Cook until lightly caramelized, 5-7 minutes.  Stir occasionally.

5.  Now add the garlic, (and mushrooms if canned), tomato paste and thyme.  Stir together.

6.  Add the wine to the pan (I have a gas burner so I turn it off when adding alcohol to avoid flames) and mix while scraping the bottom to get the good flavor bits off the bottom.  Add the flour now as well, stirring well.

7.  Return the chicken to the pan and add the bayleaf.  Heat until it returns to a boil.

8.  Cover the pot and put it in the oven for 1 hour.

9.  Remove the lid and bake for 15 minutes uncovered.  Now's a good time to get the noodles started, cook according to package.

10.  Everything is ready to go!  Savor and enjoy.



**If your sauce still seems thin after the last 15 minutes in the oven uncovered, remove the chicken and reduce it down on the stove for 5-10 minutes.  When ready, turn the fire out and add the chicken back into the pan to warm them back up.**