Coq au Riesling

I love when people come over to cook. Monday night, my friend Theresa helped me make a recipe that's been on my list for a while...Nigel Slater's Coq au Riesling. I wanted to try coq au vin (chicken cooked in red wine), but the color the chicken takes on from the wine isn't appealing to me. Using a white wine, however, sounded much better!

Here, chicken is browned then braised in wine with bacon, mushrooms, and onions. The sauce is finished with heavy cream. We served it over creamy truffled polenta to soak up all that deliciousness.

Next month, Theresa and I are going to make lobster rolls...including homemade buns!

Coq au Riesling

recipe from Nigel Slater via Simply Delicious

2 ounces butter
splash of olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
4 ounces pancetta or bacon, sliced into thin strips
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
8 chicken pieces (with skin on the bone)
8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, sliced
2 cups Riesling (or dry white wine of your choice)
1 cup heavy cream
salt & pepper to taste
handful chopped parsley

• Melt the butter and oil together in a large pan. Brown the chicken pieces all over and remove from the pan.
• Add the onions and bacon and allow to fry until the onions are soft and translucent and the bacon has rendered its fat. Add the garlic and allow to saute for another 30 seconds before removing the mixture from the pan (leaving the fat behind).
• Add the mushrooms to the bacon fat and fry for 5 minutes.
• Add the onion and bacon mixture along with the browned chicken back to the pan. Pour in the wine and allow to come up to a boil. Turn down the heat and cover. Simmer for 15-25 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
• After 15 minutes, uncover, turn up the heat and add the cream. Allow to cook for another 10 minutes.
• Add the chopped parsley and season to taste. Serve with polenta, rice, pasta or crusty bread...something starchy to soak up all that delicious sauce.

More chicken recipes:
Chicken liver crostini
Curried chicken salad
Green curry stew
Gumbo
Pho Ga
Rosemary fried chicken