French Coq au Vin: The Burgundy Peasant Stew That Julia Child Brought to America

In 1961, Julia Child, with her co-authors Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, published _Mastering the Art of French Cooking_, and in it, they included a recipe for coq au vin, a rustic French dish of chicken braised in red Burgundy wine with lardons, mushrooms, and pearl onions. Child prepared the dish twice on her PBS television show _The French Chef_, and the exposure turned coq au vin into one of the most recognized French dishes in America and one of Child's own signature recipes. The dish itself is far older than Child's cookbook. Several legends trace it to ancient Gaul and Julius Caesar, but the recipe was not documented until the early twentieth century, and a similar recipe, _poulet au vin blanc_, appeared in an 1864 cookbook. It existed as a rustic peasant dish long before that, a way to tenderize a tough old rooster in the only liquid a Burgundian farmer had in abundance: wine (Wikipedia — Coq au Vin; The Endless Meal — Julia Child's Coq au Vin).

The principle is simple. A tough bird, cut into pieces, is marinated in red wine, then seared in fat rendered from bacon lardons and braised slowly in the wine with mushrooms, pearl onions, garlic, and a bouquet of thyme, bay, and parsley. The long, slow braise in acidic wine breaks down the connective tissue and turns the meat silken. The sauce, reduced and thickened, is dark, glossy, and deeply flavored with the wine and the bacon fat. A Burgundy, or Pinot Noir, is the traditional wine, but every region of France has a version: coq au riesling in Alsace, coq au vin jaune in the Jura with morels, even coq au Champagne. The dish is a braise, which means it is built for a crowd, because it scales effortlessly and, like all braises, is better the next day.

Ingredients (serves 6): - 1 whole chicken (about 4 lb), cut into 8 pieces - 1 bottle (3 ⅛ cups) Pinot Noir or other dry red Burgundy - 6 oz thick-cut bacon, cut into lardons - 1 lb cremini mushrooms, quartered - 12 pearl onions, peeled - 3 carrots, cut into chunks - 3 cloves garlic, minced - 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour - 2 tablespoons tomato paste - 2 tablespoons cognac (optional) - 2 sprigs fresh thyme - 2 bay leaves - 4 parsley stems - 2 tablespoons butter - 1 tablespoon olive oil - Salt and black pepper, to taste - Fresh parsley, chopped for garnish

Instructions: Place the chicken pieces in a large bowl with the wine, thyme, bay leaves, and parsley stems. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove the chicken and pat dry; strain and reserve the marinade. In a large Dutch oven, cook the bacon lardons over medium heat until crisp and the fat has rendered. Remove the bacon and set aside. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken in the bacon fat in batches, about 5 minutes per side. Remove and set aside. Add the pearl onions and carrots to the pot and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute. Sprinkle in the flour and cook 2 minutes, stirring. Stir in the tomato paste. Return the chicken and bacon to the pot. Pour in the reserved marinade and the cognac, if using. Bring to a simmer, cover, and braise over low heat for 1 hour, until the chicken is tender. In a separate skillet, melt the butter with the olive oil and sauté the mushrooms until golden, about 8 minutes. Add the mushrooms to the pot for the last 15 minutes. Remove the chicken to a platter. Simmer the sauce uncovered for 5 minutes to reduce, then season with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the chicken and garnish with parsley.

For a Crowd (serves 12): - Use two chickens and a large pot or two Dutch ovens. Coq au vin improves overnight, so make it a day ahead and reheat gently. The flavors deepen as the wine and the bacon fat marry.

Variations: - Coq au Vin Jaune (Jura): Use vin jaune and morel mushrooms for the Jura region version. - Coq au Riesling (Alsace): Substitute a dry Riesling for the red wine for a lighter, Alsatian version. - Coq au Champagne: Use Champagne instead of red wine for a festive, pale-sauce version.

Pairing: Coq au vin pairs with the same Burgundy used to cook it, a Pinot Noir that echoes the sauce. For a brunch gathering, a sparkling mimosa or a glass of dry Champagne is a nod to the French table. Serve with crusty bread, boiled potatoes, or egg noodles. For another classic French braise, try our boeuf bourguignon or our French onion soup.

Reference Links: - Coq au Vin (Burgundy, Julia Child, 1961 Mastering the Art of French Cooking, rustic peasant dish): Wikipedia - Julia Child's Coq au Vin (Mastering the Art of French Cooking, The French Chef PBS): The Endless Meal

Pro Tips: Marinate the chicken overnight if possible, because the wine penetrates and tenderizes the meat in a way that a quick marinade cannot. Brown the chicken in batches, never crowding the pan, because a crowded pan steams rather than sears and the crust will not form. The bacon fat is the cooking medium, so render it slowly to get it all out. Sauté the mushrooms separately and add them at the end, so they stay firm and brown rather than turning soft and gray in the braise. The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon; if it is thin, reduce it uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes. Coq au vin is always better the next day, so if time allows, make it ahead, refrigerate, and reheat gently.