SERVES 4
The
‘vin’
in
this
dish
is
wine,
and
while
most
Anglicised
recipes
use
red,
I
prefer
white.
According
to The Art of Eating, an insightful quarterly publication from the US, the French actually use their local wine for this dish — so in Alsace, for example, it would be coq au riesling. Australian chardonnay and semillon can be a bit too woody, so use lighter examples or riesling.
INGREDIENTS
• 80g butter
• 1.8kg free-range chicken, cut into 10 pieces (see note)
• 80g piece prosciutto or jamon or unsmoked bacon, cut into short strips
• 2 large onions, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, bruised
• 2 tablespoons brandy
• 1½ tablespoons plain (all-purpose) flour
• 500mL (2 cups) dry white wine (or red, or a mix if you prefer)
• 10 thyme sprigs
• 300mL homemade chicken stock (see note) or water
• 2 carrots, cut in half lengthways
• 2 celery sticks, cut in half lengthways
• 250g small button mushrooms
• 150g small onions (optional), peeled leaving the root intact
METHOD
1. Heat half of the butter in a large, deep frying pan over medium heat and fry the chicken pieces until well browned on all sides — you may need to do it in two batches. Add the prosciutto and cook for 1–2 minutes, then remove all the meat to a plate until needed.
2. In the same pan, fry the onion and garlic gently for about 10 minutes. Add the brandy and cook until the liquid has reduced. Stir in the flour and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Stir in the wine and thyme and continue to simmer for as long as it takes to reduce to about one-third of the original volume, then add the stock.
3. Return the chicken to the pan, placing the carrot and celery on one side under the liquid. The liquid should cover the chicken (add more water if necessary). Season with salt and freshly milled black pepper, to taste.
4. Return to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the breast meat from the pan and reserve.
5. Fry the mushrooms and onions in the remaining butter to moisten and let them colour. Drain on paper towel and leave to one side. After cooking the chicken a further 30 minutes, add the mushrooms, and onions if using. Keep covered and cook for about 30 minutes more, or until the meat is tender. Return the breast meat and prosciutto to the pan. Remove the thyme stalks, carrot and celery before serving.
Note: Jointing a chicken into 10 pieces is an easily learnt art — get your butcher to show you how it is done.
Note: If you don’t have homemade chicken stock, in most recipes that call for it I’d rather use water than anything else. If you’ve got good, pure, fresh ingredients in a dish, a bought stock — with all its strange additives and not very natural flavour — will compromise these flavours. I often make a very quick stock from onion peelings, a bay leaf and thyme simmered for 20 minutes, rather than use bought stock.