Coq Au Vin (Braised Chicken in White Wine)

I haven't revisited this coq au vin (braised chicken in white wine) recipe in almost 10 months because everyone loved it so much the first time that I made it another 8 more times within a 2-month period. Due to popular demand, I brought back my recipe for coq au vin using white wine, rather than the traditional red.  My best rendition was carried out with a young rooster in the Azores for my Norwegian-American host at his self-designed house overlooking the Atlantic Ocean that brings to mind Mies van der Rohe meet John Lautner.

It's a perfect summer evening supper. Pair it with a bottle of Sancerre or even a rosé and voilà! My nouveau recipe for cooking coq au vin is inspired by one of my favorite dish, Blanquette de Poulet, at the super chill French Market Café, in Venice, CA. As mentioned, while most coq au vin recipes call for dry red wine and slow cooking, I use white wine and much less time, shh. Call it braised chicken with white wine or white wine coq au vin, I just hope you enjoy it as much as my friends do. Bon appétit!

Serves: 4-6
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

8 chicken thighs or 4 whole legs with skin and bone
2 tablespoons olive oil
8 garlic cloves, crushed & chopped
6 celery ribs, diced in 1/2-inch cube
1 1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup warm vegetable stock or water
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (optional)
Salt & pepper to season

Preparation

Btx: This is one recipe that splurging for organic chicken is well worth it. I found the quality of the chicken has a significant impact on the result. As a pretty clean dish, few good ingredients go a long way to bring out flavor and balance.

1. Pat dry chicken and season well with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. (Tip: How do you know when the oil is hot? Carefully add a drop of water and stand-back, the oil should immediately sizzle).
2. Add chicken and sear only the skin side to a crisp golden brown in 2 or if necessary, 3 batches. (Do not crowd the skillet with too many pieces of chicken or it will not brown or take too long which can cause toughness.) It takes approx. 4-5 minutes per batch. Transfer chicken pieces to a large plate skin side up and avoid stacking.
3. Drain oil and fat rendering, leaving about 2 tablespoons max. Lower heat to medium. Add celery and sauté for approx. 3 minutes while scraping the skillet for tasty carmelization. Add garlic and sauté together for another 2 minutes. Stir frequently to avoid burning.
4. When celery and garlic become fragrant, deglaze pan with wine and let it come to a boil to burn off the alcohol. After the liquid reduced by half, approx. 3-4 minutes, add warm stock or water (The idea is to maintain the temperature inside the skillet.)
5. Return chicken to the skillet and skin side up. Reduce the heat to simmer and leave it partially covered for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked. (Tip: How do you know if your chicken is cooked through? If you stab the thickest part or near the bone with a fork, the liquid should run out clear, not pink.)
6. Add lemon juice and parsley and stir. Salt and pepper to taste. 

Serve with rice or buttered orzo. Mmm... Ooh la la.