Coq Au Vin......Cock Marinated And Cooked In Red Wine


The rooster, the cock, cockerel, or the Gallus gallus, has a tough meat.  It takes a long time to  braise over the stove with the cover on at low heat.  So you have to prepare it with special care.
I would like to share this recipe with you today because it is the weekend. This is a traditional French dish usually prepared in the countryside for special occasions.  Now however, Coq au Vin is served in the best of restaurants in the city.
For a Coq Au Vin that respects itself you will need:
Serves 6 - 8
-  1 rooster weighing around 2.5 to 3 kg., cleaned and skinned cut in 8 pieces.
Very Important Note:  Only good quality wines are used during cooking.  The better the wine the better the final taste of the prepared dish.
-  1 bottle of red wine preferably a Burgandy or a Beaujolais Noveau (new of that year) or whatever good red wine you can get.
-  1 Tbsp. dry Thyme
-  3 Bay leaves.
-  16 shallots peeled.

Shallots from France.
Cou
-   8 slices of smoked bacon, roughly chopped.
-  1 onion chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic crushed and finely cut.
-  1 big can of button mushrooms, sliced.
-  1 shot of cognac
-  2 Tbsp. of duck's liver grease, (yellow) if not available fresh butter mixed with oil will do.
-  Salt and freshly ground pepper.
Method:
-  Marinate the rooster pieces overnight in the fridge by adding all the bottle of red wine, the bay leaves, and the dry Thyme.
-  Next day, take the rooster pieces out of the wine, roll in flour. Save the wine.
-  In a deep pot as shown above, melt the duck liver fat or the butter/oil, heat well, add the rooster pieces, brown on all sides.
-  Add the onion, the bacon, stir fry the whole lot.
-  Add the button mushrooms without the juice. Keep the juice.
-  Add the shallots stir fry for one minute.
-  Add the cognac and flambée.
-  Add the wine from the marinade and the juice of the mushrooms.
-  Bring to a boil, cover, lowever heat, simmer till the rooster is done and beginning to fall off the bone.
-  Stir often during cooking so that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot.
-  Simmer for about 1 hour more or less depending on the toughness of the rooster.
-  Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
-  Thicken sauce with a knob of butter, or some flour.
Ready!!
Serve in pot with lots of French fried potatoes or mashed potatoes on the side. Pour sauce on the French fries.
Enjoy this beautiful meal!!
Stelio

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