Coq au vin

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search
Coq au vin
Coq au vin rouge.jpg
Origin
Place of origin France
Details
Type Braised
Main ingredient(s) chicken, wine, lardons, mushrooms, optionally garlic
Ingredients, before braising

Coq au vin (/ˌkk ˈvæn/; French pronunciation: ​[kɔk o vɛ̃], "rooster/cock with wine") is a French dish of chicken braised with wine, lardons, mushrooms, and optionally garlic. While the wine used is typically Burgundy,[1] many regions of France have variants of coq au vin using the local wine, such as coq au vin jaune (Jura), coq au Riesling (Alsace), coq au pourpre or coq au violet (Beaujolais nouveau), coq au Champagne, etc.

History

Various legends trace coq au vin to ancient Gaul and Julius Caesar, but the recipe was not documented until the early 20th century;[2] it is generally accepted that it existed as a rustic dish long before that.[1] A somewhat similar recipe, poulet au vin blanc, appeared in an 1864 cookbook.[3]

Julia Child featured coq au vin in her breakthrough 1961 cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and she frequently prepared it on the PBS cooking show The French Chef. This exposure helped to increase the visibility and popularity of the dish in the United States, and coq au vin was seen as one of Child's signature dishes.[4]

Preparation

Although the word "coq" in French means "rooster" or "cock", and tough birds with lots of connective tissue benefit from braising, most coq au vin recipes call for capon or chicken.

Standard recipes call for a chicken, red wine (often Burgundy), lardons (salt pork or bacon), button mushrooms, onions, often garlic, and sometimes brandy. Recipes with vin jaune may specify morels instead of white mushrooms. The preparation is similar in many respects to beef bourguignon. The chicken is first marinated in wine, then seared in fat and slowly simmered until tender. The usual seasonings are salt, pepper, thyme, parsley and bay leaf, usually in the form of a bouquet garni. The juices are thickened either by making a small roux at the beginning of cooking, or by adding blood at the end.

See also

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 Oxford Companion to Food, s.v. cock
  2. Edmond Richardin, ed., La cuisine française: l'art du bien manger (Ed. rev. et augm.) Paris, 1906, p.227
  3. Cookery for English Households, by a French Lady, for English Households&pg=PA93 p.93
  4. Shaylyn Esposito, http://www.smithsonian.com, August 15, 2012, "What 9 Famous Chefs and Food Writers Are Cooking to Honor Julia Child’s 100th Birthday."

External links