Coq Au Vin

Total Time: 2 hrs 5 mins Preparation Time: 5 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• 3 lbs chicken, ready to cook
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup celery, chopped to 1/4-inch lengths
• 1 onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup chopped bacon, uncooked (check with a local butcher to see if they have bacon ends... cheaper than regular bacon, and pre-cho)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (or 1 garlic clove, pressed or smashed or finely minced)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 12 whole mushroom caps
• 12 whole cloves
• 1/3 cup brandy
• 1 3/4 cups red wine
• 1 1/2 tablespoons flour

Recipe

• 1 in a large bowl, mix the 1/2 cup flour, the nutmeg, and the 1 tsp salt.
• 2 cut chicken into parts. remove the skin.
• 3 place butter and oil in a dutch oven or other flame-proof casserole dish. heat slowly to melt butter. alternatively, use a heavy skillet.
• 4 dredge each chicken part in the flour mixture.
• 5 turn the heat up and brown the dredged chicken in batches. remove to a plate, but leave the drippings.
• 6 preheat your oven to 325°f.
• 7 add the bacon and onions. cook, stirring as needed, until onions begin to soften.
• 8 add celery and continue cooking until onions are golden.
• 9 reduce heat and add bay leaf, thyme, garlic, and 2 tsp salt. stir to mix and cook 1 minute, then remove from heat.
• 10 remove veggies to a plate. place chicken back in the dutch oven and pour veggies on top. alternatively, place chicken in an oven-proof casserole dish with a tight-fitting lid and pour veggies on top.
• 11 stick a clove into each mushroom cap and place into dutch oven or casserole dish so that they do not break.
• 12 pour brandy atop the veggies, spreading evenly throughout.
• 13 ignite brandy with a creme brulee torch or a long-stemmed lighter.
• 14 when brandy has burnt out, add 1 1/2 cup of the red wine, place the lid on, and bake 1 1/2 hours. chicken should be very tender.
• 15 whisk together the last 1/4 cup of the wine and the final 1 1/2 tbsp of flour. i did this by simmering on the stove top so that i could check it frequently. you could do it in the oven too, if you don't have a flame-proof dutch oven, but i'm not sure how frequently you'd need to check it.
• 16 serve with french bread to soak up the sauce with.