So I know I haven’t blogged in a while folks.. and I’ll try to be better about this in 2019, but I’ve been busy…..
Busy with what, you ask? Well a ton of things. One, the jobby job has been taking up a ton of my time- but its’ been a good learning experience, and I’ve gotten access to a ton of free wine! In a nutshell, we are in rapid expansion mode right now- the company’s been in the US for just 7 months now, and our goal is to make it to 50K US customers in the next month or so. Phew.
I also passed my intermediate level certification with the WSET! I got to new levels of wine geekery in that course, and am now at the point that I feel fairly comfortable speaking about various grape varietals, prime wine producing regions, and most importantly- finding the perfect pairing between wine and food. I’ve brought a number of those pairings to me and M’s Des Pardes venture and have continued to make new culinary concoctions on a daily basis.
Ooh, and then there was that Thanksgiving jaunt to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala with the fabulous Ms. H but that’s something I’ll write about at a later date.
The past week or so, I’ve been experiencing the crisp cold that a San Francisco winter brings and have been trying to eat a lot of rich, nourishing foods to warm me up. I also have been reading Julia Child’s autobiography: My Life in France, and have been feeling very moved by her transformative journey into the art of French cooking. As a result, I was inspired to make one of the dishes Julia described so perfectly in her book: Classic Coq au Vin.
Coq au Vin- aka Rooster in Wine, is one of those quintessential French dishes. On the surface, it seems so simple- a whole chicken cooked in wine sauce with mushrooms. And the ingredients are indeed simple- I had plenty of wine on hand ,as well as some fresh mushrooms, carrots and celery. I quickly popped over to Avedano’s in Bernal Heights (awesome butcher!) and picked up a whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces. And that’s where the simplicity ended-after doing some more research, I realized that making coq au vin was actually a multistep process, so I started marinating the chicken that Saturday night in preparation for my Sunday dinner. This is why I love french cooking. The ingredients are usually very simple- but as Julia Child stated in her book- its the quality and treatment of those ingredients that result in a great meal.
Coq Au Vin (Adapted from a 2002 Bon Appetit Recipe)
Chicken Marinade
1 bottle of Pinot Noir (California or Oregon)
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces- I reserved the backbone for making my own stock, detailed below
Cooking Chicken
1/2 lb applewood smoked bacon
1 tbls olive oil
3 Tbls flour
1 chopped shallot
1/2 large onion, diced
2 sprigs of thyme
2 sprigs of rosemary
4 bay leaves
2 cups chicken broth (recipe below if needed)
Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions
1 lb assorted mushrooms (I used cremini, shitake, and oyster)
15 pearl onions, peeled
3 Tbls butter
Garnish
Chopped Fresh Parsley
For Chicken Marinade
Ideally, start the night before for optimal flavors and tenderness. Combine pinot, carrots, onions, garlic, celery, and peppercorns into large pot. Bring to boil and let simmer for approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cook. Once cooled, move mixture into large bowl- submerge chicken pieces in bowl and marinate overnight.
Making Broth?
I found this made the Coq au Vin particularly delicious- cooking the chicken in its own broth the next day. To make the broth, I took the reserved backbone and stuck it in the crock pot with one chopped carrot, one chopped celery stalk, half a chopped onion- skins on and everything, and a tablespoon of peppercorns. I filled it to the top with water and put the setting on warm, and let it cook overnight for 12 hours. When I woke up the next morning, my kitchen smelled of lovely chicken broth. I strained the liquids through a colander and bottled it in a couple mason jars.
Cooking Chicken
Remove chicken from bowl and pat dry- set aside. Separate liquid and vegetables and reserve in separate bowls.
Heat oil in large cast iron pot- my Le Creuset pot was fantastic for this! Add bacon and saute until crispy. Take bacon out of pot and move to small bowl. Add chicken pieces to pot in one layer and saute on each side, about 6-8 minutes a side. Move chicken to bowl. Add reserved vegetables to pot- saute until soft and brown- 6-8 minutes. Mix in flour and whisk in liquid. Bring to boil, and then add shallots, onions, thyme, rosemary and bay leaves. Simmer for 5-10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low and add chicken to pot. Cover and cook for 40 minutes.
Begin preparing the sauteed mushrooms and onions- chop the mushrooms finely, and peel the pearl onions. Reserve in separate bowls. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan and add the mushrooms. Saute until brown- about 5 minutes. Reserve sauteed mushrooms in small bowl. Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter to skillet and saute pearl onions until golden brown. Set aside onions in small bowl.
Remove chicken pieces from pot and set aside. Strain liquid through mesh and discard vegetables, herbs, bay leaves and any other solids. Return sauce to pot and simmer with onions until onions are tender. Add mushrooms and bacon to pot and simmer until liquid is reduced about a third. Add salt and pepper to taste and add chicken to pot. Keep warm on low heat. Serve chicken in small bowls with a garnish of parsley.
Bon Appetit and Joyeux Noel everybody!!
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