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So all you classically trained chefs out there, don’t hate me for this.
I made French Coq au Vin, but I did it the super quick way…not the traditional way which can take up to four hours. I know this is probably all wrong in so many ways and the French are most likely screaming at me right about now. But hear me out, I am not a trained chef and most of the time I am totally winging it. And since I am totally winging it, this allows me to be a little more creative….or ok, lazy.
So really, I just take a lot of short cuts.
Well whatever, all I know is it’s a really good meal and it’s made pretty quickly and easily – and I love it.
Now in full disclosure here, the Coq au Vin (which I most definitely am not pronouncing right by the way) is the dish that gets made in one pot. I was not smart enough to think of a way to also make the mashers in the same pot. I am kind of thinking that can’t be done, but then again you never know, I’ll leave that to the master chefs.
Here is the deal with this fancy, but not so fancy dinner. It happened all because it snowed. You see, the snow does magical, and apparently delicious things this time of year.
I have to say that I was pretty excited for all the snow we got, and are supposed to continue to get throughout the rest of the week. It’s just what I crave this time of year. Trust me, come late January I will be so over it, but right now I am loving it and loving the foods it inspires me to make.
I was having a pretty hard time deciding between recipes the other day. I was doing the whole back and forth, back and forth, “oh, but I sort of already made something similar to this last month” thing. It’s kind of the worst when this happens because I just get straight up annoyed with myself that I cannot think up anything creative. And that I feel like I am wasting time practically arguing with myself in my head about what I should make. I know it is completely insane, but as you all know, I have issues with making decisions.
Meaning I can’t make them.
When I can’t decide on recipes, I do the stupidest thing. I go in search of new recipe inspiration. I know, like why would I do that if I already have recipes ideas to choose from? It’s most likely because I am not crazy exited about the ideas I have written down in my notebook and I feel like I need a new fresh idea. It’s complete craziness, but it is how I work. Plus, I really like to be excited about each and every recipe I do.
So then I stumbled upon a whole bunch of Coq au Vin recipes and thought to myself “oh my gosh, that is perfect for the snowy weather”. The only thing was, I didn’t have four hours, so I just took a few shot cuts, used a lot wine, made some quick mashers and it all just came together. In perfect time too. With the sun setting so freaking early now, it means I actually have to get my stuff together by like four, and if you know me, this is nearly impossible and NO FUN. But somehow I have been managing. I think it may just be luck…just hoping it does not run out anytime soon. The lucky pot of gold is endless, right?
This dish has classic French flavors, wine, mushrooms, garlic and the best painless mashed potatoes to soak up all the sauce – which by the way is so good. Don’t be freaked out by the fancy name, this meal is totally laid back with simple mellow flavors that even picky eaters will love. Although, I do think that the only reason I got my brothers to try this was because of the mashers. They love mashed potatoes, especially mashed potatoes along with a saucy-gravy like dish.
The only reason they were hesitant to try the chicken was because of the veggies in the sauce, but they just slid those off to the side and totally loved the dish. The rest of us normal eaters ate our veggies. Typical.
The Coq au Vin (which if you are wondering is just chicken in a red wine mushroom sauce) honestly takes a little over thirty minutes, maybe more or less depending on how slow or quick you are working. Adding the mashed potatoes added on the time, but I mean, how could brown butter mashed potatoes not be worth it?
They are. Even if they require another dish to clean (sorry!). And really, every saucy dish like this SHOULD require creamy, buttery mashers. There really is no other way in my mind.
I know that everyone is in “Thanksgiving foods only” mode, but hey, don’t we still have to eat between now and the 27th? Pretty sure we do, and this meal is so cozy and delicious!
Surely this One-Pot 45 Minute Coq au Vin will keep you satisfied until the big feast.
One-Pot 45 Minute Coq au Vin with Brown Butter Sage Mashed Potatoes.
Servings: 6 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 811 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Coq au Vin
- 4 slices thick cut bacon chopped
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 sweet onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1 small sweet potato, cubed
- 2 medium size carrots, chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken tenders or small chicken breasts may sub thighs if desired
- 2 cups button mushrooms sliced
- 2 cups red wine plus more if needed
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 leaves bay
- 4 whole sprigs fresh thyme
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley chopped
Mashed Potatoes
- 4 large Idaho potatoes peeled and quartered (I used Idaho, but you may sub Russet)
- 2-4 cloves garlic peeled (I used 4)
- salt
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter browned
- 8 leaves fresh sage chopped
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- In a large pot of cold water, bring the potatoes and garlic to a boil. Salt the water and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat a large skillet or brazier with high sides over medium-high heat and cook bacon until crispy. Add another drizzle of oil if needed and then add the onion, garlic, carrots and sweet potatoes. Cook the veggies, stirring often until soft and lightly caramelized, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and then scooch the veggies to the outside of the pan to make room for the chicken.
- Add a drizzle of oil to the pan if needed. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place the chicken in the hot pan and sear on both sides until browned. About 4-8 minutes per side, depending on how thick your chicken is (mine was thin). Toss in the sliced mushrooms and cook another minute or two.
- Slowly pour in the red wine and chicken broth. Add the a bay leaf and thyme and season with salt + pepper. Gently stir everything to combine and then bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the sauce has reduced by about 1/3.
- By this time, the potatoes should be just about ready to be drained. Drain the potatoes, return the potatoes to the pot and mash over low heat, or mash in the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, adding the cream and 2 teaspoons salt.
- In a skillet or small sauce pot melt the butter and chopped sage over medium heat until just browned. The butter will melt, foam and froth, then begin to brown along the bottom. Whisk browned bits off of the bottom of the pan. Pour the browned sage butter into the warm mashed potatoes. Taste and season with salt and pepper if desired.
- To serve, remove the bay leaf and thyme from the Coq au Vin. Plate the mashed potatoes. Serve the chicken on the side of the mashed potatoes and then ladle the sauce + veggies over the chicken. Sprinkle with fresh parsley.
Notes
*The Coq au Vin can be made in advance, covered and simmered over low heat on the stove or in a 280 degree F. oven until ready to serve. You will need to add more chicken broth or wine to keep the sauce from getting too thick. I also would recommend using chicken thighs to avoid dry chicken if you will be cooking this all day. **I like to mash my potatoes the super easy way by just letting my stand mixer do all the work. If you have never done this, just add the hot potatoes to your stand mixer and use the paddle attachment to mash the potatoes. It works so well!
Now let’s eat!
Any thoughts of how I might conceal the sweet potatoes? I want to use them for flavor and maybe thickener? My husband does not like sweets. What do you think? Mash after caramelizing
Hey Susan,
To be honest, they are really here for texture, this dish is so flavorful I would be surprised if he noticed them. Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
I made this dish last night for a dinner group. I followed portions for 9 though I had 12 thighs, 8 people. It was quite soupy though tasty. I did use sweet potatoes as you suggested. My husband thought the meat was dry. Overcooked? Probably. I might boil down broth and serve as leftover for us tonight. The mashed potatoes were fabulous. A very nice meal but not exactly 45 minutes with all the chopping and peeling. I wanted it to look like yours, more like a glaze. Also, we had your tuna stacks made by someone else and the winter citrus tequila smash. Yummy. The hit of the evening was the tuna stack. Fabulous fish store in Wilmington, NC, Motts. Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes.
Hey Susan,
I appreciate you making this recipe and I’m thrilled to hear that it turned out well for you! So sorry, I’m not sure which measurements were followed so I’m not exactly sure what may have happened. Have a great weekend! xx