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Our easy Coq au vin recipe is a great dish to make for guests! Chicken thighs are browned and then braised in red wine sauce with herbs and shallots.
Coq au vin is a well-known French chicken stew that is made with a few simple ingredients and cooks up into a dish fit for a (French) king. This dish sums perfectly up everything I love about the French cuisine. It’s easy to make but feels very opulent and impressive when you serve it.
Serve this Coq Au Vin with buttered potatoes or buttery egg noodles sprinkled with parsley! It makes a beautiful dish that is so quick to make. Perfect for guests, but you can even make it on a weeknight. Making a classic French dish doesn’t need to be complicated!
Why our recipe
- Simple recipe with only a handful of ingredients
- Step-by-step instructions with lots of tips and tricks
- Perfect for guests
Ingredient Notes
- Chicken: You need bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe. They will give you the juiciest, most tender result.
- Onion: I prefer to use shallots, but you can also use the same amount of pearl onions. Regular yellow or white onions make a good substitute. Cut them into large wedges.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic works best! Just crush it with a large knife.
- Bacon: I like to add bacon to my recipe. It adds a lot of flavor.
- Herbs: Fresh herbs are very important for this dish! We use thyme, parsley and a bay leaf.
- Vegetables: Adding plenty of vegetables makes this dish extra flavorful. I like to use carrots, celery, mushrooms and a red bell pepper.
- Red wine: This is an important ingredient in this classic French dish and the base for the sauce. Any red wine works, for example Shiraz, Malbec, Merlot, and Cabernet sauvignon are all good choices.
How to make this recipe
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found at the bottom of the page on the printable recipe card.
1. Dice the bacon; crush the garlic and remove the skin – leave it in one piece, peel and quarter the shallots, cut the celery and carrots into chunky pieces.
2. Clean the chicken legs and separate the thighs and drumsticks. Cut around the bone close to the foot to allow it to cook faster. Season with salt and pepper. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
3. Fry in a large roasting dish until brown on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside. Add the vegetables, thyme and bacon to the pan and fry for 5 minutes.
4. Add tomato paste, mix and put the chicken back in. Add the wine and bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper again. Transfer to the oven for 40 Minutes.
5. Meanwhile, cut the mushrooms and bell pepper into chunky pieces. Fry them in a very hot pan, allow them to get good color and add parsley, salt, and pepper.
6. Once the chicken is ready, serve the chicken with the vegetables from the roasting dish and the frying pan.
What to serve with it
Serve with buttered potatoes, mashed potatoes, Easy German Spaetzle, or buttery noodles. A simple crusty baguette to soak up the delicious sauce works perfectly too. We always serve a simple green salad on the side, which balances out the richness of the Coq au vin.
For dessert, try my Easy Creme Brulee Recipe or my Easy Chocolate Mousse Recipe.
Storage Instructions
Leftovers keep in the fridge, stored in an airtight container for 2–3 days.
Reheat leftovers in the microwave or on the stove until heated through.
More Dinner Recipes
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Baked Chicken Legs with Potatoes
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Easy Coq au vin Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
- 5 shallots, quartered
- 3 cloves garlic, skin removed and crushed
- 2 slices bacon, diced
- 2 tsp fresh thyme
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 cups red wine
- 3 cups sliced white mushrooms
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- Olive oil
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions
- Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
- Fry the chicken in a large roasting dish until brown on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside. Add the carrots, celery, thyme and bacon to the pan and fry for 5 minutes.
- Stir in tomato paste, then put the chicken back in. Deglaze with the red wine and bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the oven for 40 Minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a separate hot skillet cook the bell pepper and the sliced mushrooms in some olive oil, allow them to get good color and season with parsley, salt, and pepper.
- Once the chicken is ready, serve the chicken with the vegetables from the roasting dish and the frying pan.
