Forget Basic Chicken: Try Coq au Vin, the Fancy French Dinner Made from Simple Ingredients

After a hard day at work, the last thing you probably want to do is to spend hours on making dinner, instead opting for something fast and simple.

However, there’s nothing bad in wishing to turn your ordinary mealtime into something really fancy — and the good news is that you don’t have to spend hours to do so. Just try preparing coq au vin, the French delicate chicken that is actually quite easy to make.

Here’s what you need: 1–1.2 kg of chicken (thighs or drumsticks), 120 g of bacon, 250 g of button mushrooms, 1 carrot, 1 onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 300 ml of dry red wine, 150 ml of chicken broth or water, 1 tsp of tomato paste, 1 tbsp of flour, 30 g of butter, 1 tbsp of vegetable oil, thyme, bay leaf, salt and black pepper to taste.

Dry the chicken and sear it until golden brown, taking your time to let it seal in the juices and develop a rich flavor. Separately, fry the bacon until crispy, then set it aside.

In the same pan, fry the onions, carrots, and mushrooms until golden, then add the garlic. Return the chicken and bacon to the pan, sprinkle with flour, and stir quickly; this will make the sauce thick and velvety.

Pour in the red wine and broth, then add the tomato paste, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and simmer over low heat for 45–60 minutes, until the chicken is very tender and the sauce is rich and thick. At the end, stir in a knob of butter for shine and flavor.

Serve hot with mashed potatoes or fresh bread.