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Coq au Vin Blanc makes a wonderful recipe to serve when entertaining. A great make-ahead meal that gets rave reviews.
Last week, we had the Stone side of our family over for supper to celebrate my mother-in-law’s birthday as well as for Little Buddy. (I know, his birthday has extended through the entire month of November. It is pretty ridiculous, but hey, you only have one a year.) In planning the menu for supper, I immediately thought of this Coq au Vin Blanc recipe.
Really, nothing beats a warm, comforting homemade meal when you have guests and this recipe just couldn’t be any simpler.
I knew we’d have somewhere between 21 and 28 people for supper and I wanted to be able to enjoy time with family rather than rushing around in the kitchen trying to get everything on the table at the same time. With this Coq au Vin Blanc recipe, I knew I could prepare the entree two days ahead of time and that it would be even better than if I’d made it the day of the party. The flavors just get richer and deeper making it a recipe I turn to time and again.
Another great thing about this Coq au Vin Blanc recipe is that you don’t have to use the wine in the recipe if you prefer not to do so. As a matter of fact, I didn’t when I made it for our family birthday supper. I substituted additional chicken stock instead.
We didn’t miss the wine and I didn’t have to worry about anyone not liking the flavor of wine in their meal. You know, some people love it and then there are folks that just can’t stand it. I always like to veer on the safe side when serving a crowd.
I love to serve this dish over my roasted garlic mashed potatoes to amp up the total comfort meal impact with a fresh apple-pear pomegranate salad on the side to round out the flavors in the meal. It all just works perfectly together.
Since the Coq au Vin Blanc is full of other vegetables, you really don’t have to have any other side dishes. Of course, you can always add another green vegetable like roasted asparagus or English peas. But if you are planning a menu for a large party, think of side dishes you can prepare ahead of time and have ready bake off in the oven right before guests arrive. It lowers the stress level of entertaining ten-fold, in my opinion.
The background of my Coq au Vin Blanc recipe really goes back to Julia Child’s original Coq au Vin with a touch of Pam Anderson’s influence, and then rounded out with my own family’s preferences.
The recipe is for between six to eight people. I quadrupled the recipe for our party without any issues – well, just one more pot to wash. It was well worth it!
Here’s my recipe for Coq au Vin Blanc. I hope you enjoy it.
Coq au Vin Blanc Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 slices thick cut bacon diced
- 6 skinless boneless chicken thighs
- 2 medium onions cut into wedges
- 3 large garlic cloves smashed
- 1/2 pound mushrooms
- 2 cups dry white wine
- 2 cups chicken stock or broth
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons butter room temperature
- 1 (14-ounce) can quartered artichokes, drained
- fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Heat a large, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add diced bacon and cook until just crisp and browned. Remove bacon from Dutch oven onto a separate plate and set aside for later use.
- Pat chicken thighs dry with a paper towel and add to the Dutch oven. Brown each side of the chicken, about 10 minutes turning the chicken only once. Chicken will not be completely cooked at this point. Remove chicken from the Dutch oven onto a separate plate or baking sheet and set aside for later use.
- Add onions, garlic, and mushrooms to the Dutch oven and cook until the mushrooms are lightly browned. Add wine to the Dutch oven to deglaze the pan or remove all the baked on bits from the bottom. Return the bacon, chicken, and vegetables back to the Dutch oven. Then, add in chicken stock until the chicken is covered. Add thyme.
- In a small bowl, blend together the flour and butter into a smooth paste. Add to pot with other ingredients, whisking until well-combined.
- Add artichokes.
- Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for about 30 minutes. Ladle off any excess grease from the top of the Coq au Vin Blanc. Remove from heat and if not serving immediately, allow to cool completely.
- With cover on Dutch oven, place in the refrigerator overnight up to two days. About 30 minutes prior to serving, reheat over medium heat. Serve with a garnish of fresh parsley.
Notes
Nutritional Information
Our Menu:
Coq au Vin Blanc
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Apple Pear Salad with Pomegranante Vinaigrette
Wouldn’t this make a delicious meal for Christmas?
Robyn xo
Oh, Robyn! You just amaze me. 21-28 people would have had me ordering pizzas…but you, YOU make this incredible, gorgeous MEAL! I’m swooning over here! It’ll be on our menu (for 3) soon! 😉
Pizzas work, too and would probably be my son’s preferred menu! I can’t wait to hear how you like it!
Looks fantastic! 🙂
Thanks so much!
Looks amazing–thanks for sharing! I’m always in need of recipe to make to help with entertaining!
Thanks, Elizabeth. We love to entertain, too and I want to be able to enjoy guests instead of looking stressed out when they arrive. 🙂 I hope you enjoy this recipe. It is one of my husband’s favorites.
I seriously need no cookbooks, just a permanent link to your site for all my dinner menu ideas! Another winner here Robyn, going on the rotation (by the way, your Balsamic Beef was amazing!!!!)
Aww, Aimee! You just made my day! I’m so glad y’all loved the Balsamic Beef. I can’t get enough of it! If you like pork, do try that pork roast recipe. It will become a favorite, too. 🙂
I’ve actually never heard of Coq au Vin Blanc, I know the classic Coq au Vin, but not this one. I love how it uses white wine instead of the red! I’m not really partial to red wine, but I always cook with white (and then drink the rest haha). Lovely idea for a family dinner :).
This looks fantastic, Robyn. Yummy – perfect for guests!
Have a beautiful day!
Looks amazing, Robyn!!
Robyn – this is a first for me too! I’ve never seen a recipe for this, it looks so good – perfect for guests! (or not 😉 )
What a beautiful meal.
This is my kind of comfort food, perfect for chilly days!
What a beautiful meal you prepared for your guests! This looks so beautiful. My sister has been bugging me to try a Coq au Vin recipe she likes, as I’ve never made it before. I want to try yours, too!
Love this recipe! I cannot wait to make it. Oh, and I have an Uncle Stone. I believe it’s best to assume we are related. 😉
I adore traditional coq a vin but I love the idea of using white wine. It looks incredible!
Robyn, I am eager to try this. However, my daughter has a serious mushroom aversion. How would the recipe be without it? Is there a substitute ingredient you would recommend? Thanks so much!
Hi Jocelyn,
You can just omit the mushrooms. I promise it will be just fine without them.
Looks amazing!
What a gorgeous meal! I would love to try this soon!
Question about step two and three. You’ve instructed to remove the chicken from the Dutch oven but then add broth until it covers the chicken. Did you mean until it covers the veggies or add the chicken back to the pan then add broth to cover?
Thanks so much for catching that for me, Dru. I have updated the recipe to read correctly. The chicken broth is added after the chicken is added back to the Dutch oven. Thanks again!
I love the sound of this dish. We’ve had coq au vin for Christmas dinner a few times-maybe a coq au vin with a twist this year!
This sounds so good. Can’t wait to try. Can I use chicken breast instead, though? Husband prefers chicken white meat over dark meat.
Chicken breast will be fine in this recipe if he doesn’t like thighs. I hope you like it!
Hi Robyn,
I have this working on the stove now, but just realized I forgot the artichokes! Is it ruined, I am not serving it for a few more hours, can I add them 30 prior to service while it is reheating?
Hi Beth,
You should be fine to add them as it slowly reheats. Of course, it would be better to have added them earlier, but I think it will be great! Hope you enjoy it.
This sounds divine! So many yummy flavors going on in this.
Thanks so much for this recipe. It was delicious and a huge hit with my husband and his foodie cousin. I just wanted to let you know that I had leftovers and turned them into soup with a cup of leftover mashed potatoes. I just threw everything into the blender with milk to loosen it up and put it in a pot and simmered it for a few minutes. I’m definitely passing this recipe on to friends and family!
I made this for dinner tonight, and it was scrumptious! Thank you.
This recipe is even better days later. Great reheat dish.
I’ve made this many times and it’s excellent.
Fantastic make ahead dish.
I serve with garlic mash potatoes and a salad…….your done!!!!
Great recipe
do you think this could be done in a pressure cooker, change is texture as ersult of course, but speeding up cooking time?
Great recipe.I found you over at G+ and I am working my way around to Fb.I am sharing and pinning.
I am guessing that when you make this for 20+ to 30 guests, you made it in smaller batches – so that you would have enough to deglaze & create your sauce????? Any help would be appreciated, so that I get it right… just know when I make Chix Marsala in advance, I must do it this way~ or my sauce is not the correct consistency. Thanks
Just made this tonight. A PERFECT Sunday family meal on a chilly November night. It was really simple, and I had all the ingredients. My family loves when I cook with wine, so definitely didn’t skip that step. So delish! Can’t wait to try some of your other dishes! This will be on the rotation list of regulars for us!
I’m so glad you and your family enjoyed it, Shey!
Do you think this could be prepared in a slow cooker?
same question: have you tried this in a slow cooker and if so, any adjustments necessary?
As you promised, this meal is great the date of preparation, but even better the next day. I made it last night and my husband and I loved it then, but love it more today. 🙂
I will definitely be saving this recipe to use for entertaining. Friends will love it, and I will love having more time to visit with them instead of the kitchen.
Your site is awesome! Thank you so much for sharing such great recipes.
Can you give more details as to how you made this for a crowd? I’d love to make it for Christmas!
Do you know the nutritional value per serving for this?
The nutritional value per serving has been added to the recipe. Hope you enjoy!