Sardines & Chocolat

For National Wine Day, what better recipe than a whole chicken cooked with red wine vinegar? Easy to make and full of flavor, this recipe is a French staple called “Coq au Vin.”

(Serves 6 people)

Ingredients for the chicken:

• 1 whole chicken 
• Half a yellow onion, sliced
• 4 TBSP of butter 
• salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients for the Merlot Red Wine Vinegar sauce:

• 2 cups of Merlot Red Wine Vinegar by Edmond Fallot 
• 1/2 cup of chicken or vegetable broth 
• 1 TBSP of L’Abeille Occitane Rosemary Honey
• 1 TBSP of Frantoi Cutrera Cherry Tomato Jam
• 1 cup of crème fraiche or heavy cream 

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Add the slices of onions inside the chicken and rub the whole chicken with butter, inside and out. Cover with salt and pepper to taste 
2. Bake uncovered for 1 hour, up to 1 hour and 20 minutes depending on your oven. Make sur the temperature of the chicken reaches 180 degrees F.
3. While the chicken is in the oven, prepare the red wine vinegar sauce. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the 2 cups of Merlot Red Wine Vinegar by Edmond Fallot with the chicken broth, the honey and the tomato jam. When the mixture is boiling, reduce the heat to medium.
4. Boil down the vinegar until it has reduced to a syrup like texture about 5 to 10 minutes. 
5. When the vinegar has reduced enough, add the crème fraiche and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and pour over the chicken when ready to serve.