Name: Simple and Quick Coq au Vin
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 75 min
Ingredients: 1 slice bacon (applewood smoked); 4 slices pancetta; 2 chicken drumsticks (with skin); 2 chicken thighs (with skin); salt and pepper; 1/2 cup onion (finely chopped); 1/2 cup celery (finely chopped); 1/2 cup carrots (finely chopped); 1 teaspoon thyme (fresh, chopped); 1 clove garlic (minced); 2 whole bay leaves; 1 tablespoon tomato paste; 3.75 ml red wine (1/2 bottle); 1 cup chicken stock; 1/2 tablespoon olive oil; 6 ounces mushrooms (quartered); 4 ounces onion (chopped in chunks); parsley (finely chopped)

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_{Updated 05.20.25}

Traditionally, Coq au Vin is prepared in an oven and it takes a long time to. Making this Simple and Quick Coq au Vin in a Dutch oven is much faster; it still takes some time, about 1 hours and 15 minutes to 1.5 hours, but a whole lot less than the French did traditionally. My recipe also yields an extremely rich sauce and juicy chicken. The mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery) in combination with the chicken is cooked in the red wine and chicken stock and the flavor at the end is rich, creamy with a hint of caramel.

I love this recipe as an alternative to the traditional Thanksgiving turkey, stuffed or otherwise prepared. Don’t get me wrong; I love turkey, but to prepare an entire turkey for Thanksgiving, when it is usually me and my husband, is way too much. Eating turkey weeks after the big turkey day, is not something I look forward to; I prefer to making something smaller. Furthermore, I am not born here, so Thanksgiving is less of an important day to me than for an American-born. With this recipe, at least, I have a festive bird for dinner.

Key Ingredient in This Recipe

You’ll find the complete list of ingredients and exact quantities in the recipe below.

Bacon
Pancetta
Chicken drumsticks, with skin
Chicken thighs, with skin
Onion
Celery
Carrots
Thyme
Garlic
Bay leaves
Tomato paste
Red wine
Chicken stock
Mushrooms
Parsley

It is not difficult to make; you need a little bit of time for getting the right flavor, but not too much to prepare.

How to Make Simple and Quick Coq au Vin

Step 1 – Cut the bacon in strips and cook it in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. I used a combination of applewood smoked bacon and pancetta. A combination of smoky flavor and garlicy/herbal pancetta. Once crispy, drain on a kitchen towel. This is the garnish at the very end. The flavorful grease is the basis for the rest of the recipe.
Step 2 – Season the chicken and transfer to the Dutch oven with the bacon grease. Cook the chicken brown on all sides and remove.
Step 3– Add onion, celery, carrots, and bay leaves and cook until soft and fragrant. Add tomato paste and mix and then add the red wine. Simmer until reduced to half. This takes about 10-15 minutes.
Step 4 – Return chicken to the pan, and add chicken stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for approx. 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked. Turn chicken about half way into the simmer time. Remove chicken from pan and keep warm.

Step 5 – Heat oil in a skillet and cook mushrooms and onions until golden and translucent. Reheat the red wine sauce, add mushrooms and onions to it and place the chicken back into the sauce as well. Simmer an additional 5 minutes until everything is hot.

Serve this Simple and Quick Coq au Vin and sprinkle with parsley and the bacon and pancetta strips.

This rich dish fills your kitchen with great aroma and it will fill your stomach too. I love to serve this with a creamy mashed potatoes. Creamy potatoes match the hearty chicken and red wine sauce very well.

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