Easy to make, Coq au Vin is a French dish with chicken and veggies braised in a flavorful wine sauce.
Don’t be fooled by the name, this dish is actually easy and while it takes some time, a lot of it is hands-off while the dish bakes in the oven! It is perfect for those stay-at-home dinners or even special occasions!
What is Coq au Vin?
Coq au Vin is a French dish with bone-in chicken slow-baked (braised) in wine, bacon, mushrooms, and garlic.
Braising means a dish is browned (like the chicken skin in this recipe) and then slowly cook in liquid (the wine sauce).
When I think of this dish of course I go directly to Julia Child’s Coq au Vin and I can almost hear her walking me through the recipe. While this recipe somewhat follows the recipe found in Julia’s book (which is also very similar to the recipe in Joy of Cooking) I have slightly simplified the method (and ingredients).
Most often, Coq au Vin uses red wine but truly ANY wine will do! Don’t forget to pour some for the chef!
Ingredients/Variations
CHICKEN
Browned thighs and drumsticks with the skin on have so much flavor! Chicken breasts can be used but cook time may need to be adjusted to avoid overcooking.
VEGGIES
Mushrooms, onions, and carrots are sauteed until soft.
How to Cook Coq au Vin
Follow these easy steps to tender chicken perfection in a rich wine sauce!
- Crisp Bacon & Brown Chicken – set aside
- Cook Veggies – until slightly soft and then add garlic, wine and remaining ingredients.
- Bake – add chicken back to the pan and cover. Bake until tender, about 1 hour.
Wine for Coq au Vin
The best wines for Coq au Vin are historically reds, but literally, ANY wine will do.
- Deep, dark burgundies are the preferred wines
- Pinot Noirs or Beaujolais are suitable as well.
- Whites are okay too but expect a sweeter, lighter flavor.
Don’t be concerned about the cost, inexpensive wine is just as flavorful in a Coq au Vin as a pricier one!
More Elegant Meals
- Braised Chicken Thighs with Mushrooms – a family favorite
- Easy Layered Ratatouille – a one-pot dish
- Easy Shrimp Scampi Recipe – quick to make
- Broiled Lobster Tail – special occasion worthy
- Chicken Cordon Bleu – cheesy & juicy
- Balsamic Pork Loin – marinated until tender
Did you love this Coq au Vin dish? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Coq au Vin
Ingredients
- 8 slices bacon chopped
- 4 chicken thighs bone-in, skin-on
- 4 chicken drumsticks bone-in, skin-on
- salt & pepper to taste
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms cleaned and sliced
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 1 ½ cups sliced carrots
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 ½ cups dry red wine
- ½ cup beef stock or broth
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 dried bay leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Add bacon to a deep 12-inch skillet or braiser and cook until crisp. Remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Leave the bacon grease in the pan.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add the chicken, skin side down for the thighs, and cook 5-6 minutes per side or until golden brown. Remove chicken from the pan and set on a plate.
- In the same pan add sliced mushrooms, carrot, and onion and cook just until the mushrooms and onions start to soften, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in garlic and tomato paste and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Sprinkle in flour, stir and cook 1 minute more.
- Add red wine a bit at a time stirring after each addition until smooth. Add beef stock, fresh thyme, bay leaves, and half of the bacon. Stir to combine.
- Place chicken on top of the wine mixture.
- Cover and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additonal 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and skin is golden.
- Remove and discard bay leaves. Top with remaining bacon and serve over mashed potatoes or pasta.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American, French© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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amazingly delicious, this dish seemed intimidating by the name, but it was very easy! I will be making this again!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Shelly!
What is the best non alcoholic substitute for the wine?
Hi Leatha, I have only made this recipe as written so I can’t say for sure. Wine is a major flavor in this recipe so you could try a non-alcoholic red wine for similar flavors. Otherwise you could substitute more beef broth, and while it will change the flavor it will still be delicious. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
Delicious recipe! I didn’t add mushrooms as my husband doesn’t like them…just increased the amount of carrots. Served with fresh bread & butter. Will definitely make again.
I have made this several times and it is excellent. Even better the next day if reheated for 30 minutes in a 350 oven, so perfect for company. Freezes well too.
This was fun to make . I’m glad you simplified it- I have found that French recipes are unnecessarily time consumming with extra steps. I am of French descent and my family’s coq au vin recipe takes three days ! Ridiculous.
Made it tonight and it was delicious, and the neighbors loved it, I have them try almost everything I haven’t made before
Those are some very lucky neighbors, Julie! ❤️ Glad they enjoyed it.
Excellent!
Made this tonight. It was great.
Glad you enjoyed it, Robert!
Excellent meal that tastes like Julia Child’s recipe for coq au vin. I’ve tried other recipes on here for oven baked but they don’t have the flavor depth your does. It’s absolutely crucial to bake the in the oven for the time posted or else you won’t get that deep, rustic taste of a coq au vin. Another crucial, in my opinion, is using a good, hearty red wine—red wine only if you want close to an original recipe. This is a simple recipe that I really enjoyed my first time, I have since made it using a 4-5 pound stewing hen which ups the flavor immensely. Thank you for posting your recipe.
What happened to carrots in the video?
Good eye Diane ;). We didn’t include them when we made the video, but they would be added along with the mushrooms. Enjoy the coq au vin!
Do I have to bake it?
Yes, this is baked for 1 hour in step 8 of the recipe.
Coq au Van. My husband’s new favorite. This recipe turns out to be beautiful abd delicious. Serving it over mashed potatoes was brilliant.
So happy you enjoyed it!
My son and wife loved this so much they ask me to make it every other week.
Excellent recipe. I have used red, pink and white wine with this recipe, as well as bone in and boneless chicken and it always turns out great. I prepared the recipe as written.
This was fabulous! Yes it is simpler than other versions that call for pearl onions and whatnot, but soooo much better!
Thank you so much.
You’re very welcome!
Can you freeze this? If so, for how long?
This can be frozen for three or four months, Enjoy!
hi holly. would like to know if there is a zucchini salad. have lots of zucchini to use up. thanks for your help greatly appreciated. sinerely ted youmg
You can find zucchini salad here and find more zucchini recipes here.
Why do you use beef stock or broth when you are cooking chicken?
The beef broth compliments the red wine flavors but any broth will taste great!
I made a similar recipe: no bacon and cooked in a slow cooker. It was delicious.
My daughter hated mushrooms any other tips
You can leave them out. Enjoy the recipe!