Coq au Vin Blanc

One of my favorite cozy meals in the winter is coq au vin with mashed potatoes. I’ve always made it with red wine but wanted to give it a try with white wine. I made a few adjustments to the ingredients and really enjoyed it. I served it with some crusty bread to soak up the juices. An ideal meal for the start of cooler weather.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil

4 pieces bacon or turkey bacon, chopped

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (if they are large, cut in half)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

8 oz button mushrooms, sliced thinly

1 onion, halved and sliced

1 leek, rinsed, trimmed, halved, and chopped*

2 garlic cloves minced

2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons tomato paste

¼ cup brandy

½ bottle white wine

1 cup chicken broth

6-8 sprigs fresh thyme, plus more for garnish

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper 

crusty bread for dipping

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Heat large Dutch oven over medium heat and add oil. Once warmed add bacon and cook 5-7 minutes. Remove bacon and set on a plate. 

Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and add to the Dutch oven (if you use turkey bacon, add a drizzle of olive oil to the Dutch oven before adding chicken.) Brown the chicken 4-5 minutes on each side, then transfer to a plate.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in the Dutch oven and add mushrooms. Cook about 10 minutes stirring often. Add in onion, leek, and garlic. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir.  Mix in remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, flour, and tomato paste until combined.  Reduce heat to simmer, add brandy and stir, scraping any bits from the bottom of the pan. 

Add in the white wine and chicken broth. Then place chicken and bacon on top and spread out evenly. Place the bay leaf and sprigs of thyme in the liquid. Cook covered at 300 degrees for 1.5 hours.

Remove the bay leaf and thyme from the Dutch oven before serving. Garnish with fresh thyme sprigs. Serve with crusty bread.

Serves 4

*Tip on leeks, I trim the ends and slice horizontally down the middle. I run my fingers through the different layers to rinse out any dirt. I also place them in a bowl of water cut side down and let them sit for a few minutes. Any remaining dirt will fall to the bottom of the bowl.