LIVE24SEVEN // Wining & Dining LA MADE L E INE CAF E B I S T RO - R EC I P E Coq Au Vin Blanc
Ed, the Head Chef at La Madeleine Cafe Bistro in Hereford, came up with this recipe as a nice summery twist on everyone’s favourite French chicken dish;
The addition of the pan-fried breast on top of the creamy chicken sauce makes it that bit more special. Whenever they put this on the menu at La Madeleine it always flies out! Serve it with herby sautéed potatoes, green beans and roasted heritage carrots.
INGREDIENTS: SERVES 4 • 2 Free-range chicken breasts, skin on • 2 Free-range chicken legs
• 250g streaky bacon, in a piece (sliced will do if you can’t find this but it’s better to have chunkier pieces of bacon)
• 2 leeks, trimmed and finely sliced • 1 large white onion, peeled & halved • 2 sticks of celery • 2 carrots, halved lengthways • 3 cloves of garlic, peeled • 2 bay leaves • 4 whole black peppercorns • ½ bunch of parsley • 3 sprigs of thyme
• 1 bottle good French wine, Sauvignon Blanc works very well
• 2 sprigs of tarragon, leaves removed and finely chopped
• 3tbsp brandy
• 500ml chicken stock (you could buy a whole chicken for this recipe, take the legs and breasts off and then use the rest to make your own, the result is amazing. But if you haven’t got the time, use a good quality stock cube/pot)
• 50ml double cream • 2tbsp plain flour • 50g butter • 2tbsp olive oil
METHOD
Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Put the onion, celery, carrots, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, parsley, thyme and wine in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 30 mins or so or until reduced by about 1/3. Using a colander, strain into a bowl or jug and set aside.
Put the chicken legs in a bowl with the flour and season with salt and pepper, cut the bacon into lardons (or thick strips if using sliced).
In a large pan or casserole that has a lid, melt half the butter over a medium heat, add the bacon and fry until golden brown and crispy; remove with a slotted spoon (leaving as much fat in the pan as possible) and set aside to drain on kitchen paper.
Put the floured chicken legs into the same pan and fry until browned and crispy on both sides, remove from the pan and set aside.
If the pan looks a little dry after this stage add a little more butter, then add the leeks and fry until softened, then remove and set aside.
Return the chicken legs to the pan, add the brandy and turn up the heat to high (WARNING! This may cause the brandy to set alight, this is fine as it burns off the alcohol quicker, but be careful!) and cook until the brandy has reduced by half. Add the reduced white wine, bring to the boil, then cover with the lid, reduce the heat to minimum and simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
When the time is up, add the bacon, leeks, chopped tarragon leaves and chicken stock to the pan and cook uncovered for a further 20 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and carefully remove the chicken legs from the sauce with a set of tongs, leave them to cool until you can handle them; then remove the meat and add this back to the sauce, discarding the bones and skin. (The whole first part of the recipe up to this stage can be done up to a day in advance and then re-heated when you cook the chicken breast.)
Before serving, check the seasoning, adding a little more salt & pepper if needed, put the sauce on a low heat and stir in the cream; in a separate oven-proof pan, heat the olive oil until hot and add the chicken breast; fry on a medium to high heat until browned, adding the rest of the butter to the pan and basting the breast with it as you go. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and leave to rest in a warm place for at least 5 minutes.
When you are ready to serve, divide your accompaniments between 4 shallow bowls, then place a couple of ladles of the chicken sauce in each, cut the chicken breasts in half and place half a chicken breast cut side down on top of the sauce. Bon appétit!
La Madeleine Cafe Bistro, 17 Church Street, Hereford HR1 2LR T: 01432 265233
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