Chicken in Vinegar

Name: Chicken in Vinegar
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 head garlic; 1 lb tomatoes (500 g); 1 tablespoon tomato paste; 1 cup red wine vinegar (250 ml); 1 cup chicken stock (250 ml); 1 bay leaf; few sprigs of thyme; 1 whole chicken (3.5 lb/1.6 kg); kosher salt (to taste); freshly ground black pepper (to taste); 2 tbsp unsalted butter; 1 tbsp unsalted butter; kosher salt (to taste); freshly ground black pepper (to taste); 10 to 15 parsley stems

4.5 out of 5 · 1 rating

Active time: 50 min

Total time: 80 min

Serves: 4

Laura Calder's tangier version of the classic dish - sautéed chicken in wine - from Burgundy.

Chef's notes

This recipe is from "French Food at Home", which is Laura Calder's most recent cookbook.

Steps

Preparing Your Mise en Place

Ingredients

1 head garlic
1 lb tomatoes (500 g)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup red wine vinegar (250 ml)
1 cup chicken stock (250 ml)
1 bay leaf
few sprigs of thyme

To prepare your mise en place, first break up the garlic into unpeeled cloves and roughly chop the tomatoes. Measure the tomato paste, red wine vinegar and chicken stock. Gather the bouquet garni (bay leaf and thyme) and set aside.

Preparing and Browning the Chicken

Ingredients

1 whole chicken (3.5 lb/1.6 kg)
kosher salt (to taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
2 tbsp unsalted butter

Prepare the chicken by cutting it into 8 or 10 pieces. To cook the chicken, first season it with salt and pepper. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat and add the butter. Once the butter foams, add a few pieces of chicken at a time to brown it well on all sides. You're not cooking the chicken here; just making the skin crisp and giving it color, so 5 minutes per side is about right. Transfer to a plate, once done.

Starting the Sauce

To start the sauce, add the garlic to the pan and cook for about 10 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the vinegar and bring to a boil. Reduce it by half. This may take about 10 to 15 minutes.

Cooking the Chicken

Return the chicken to the pan. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and bouquet garni. Simmer, uncovered, until the meat falls from the bone, about 30 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a dish, cover, and keep warm.

Reducing & Straining the Sauce

Pour the stock into the pan juices and boil until thickened, about 10 minutes. Strain into a saucepan, and if it's still not concentrated enough for your liking, boil it down a little more.

Finishing the Dish

Ingredients

1 tbsp unsalted butter
kosher salt (to taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
10 to 15 parsley stems

Whisk in the remaining tablespoon of butter. Season to taste. Pour over the chicken and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley. This dish pairs well with a bowl of roasted or mashed potatoes on the side.

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9 Comments

Tara M • June 23, 2008 at 01:48AM

I made this dish today, loved the result and the sauce was wonderful. I served the chicken over dressed baby greens and as a side, potatoes mashed with butter, s&p, sour cream and lots of chives. I found that the chicken wasn't done after 30 min so continued to simmer it for another 15 min or so. This was probably because all of the pieces were not uniform size. This dish is time consuming but worth it. tara

Reply
Joe G • Rouxbe Staff • June 23, 2008 at 02:03AM

If you like this one as it has a definite vinegar flavor, you'd probably like this one: http://www.rouxbe.com/recipes/130/preview

Reply
Tara M • June 23, 2008 at 08:32PM

Thanks for your suggestion. This looks yummy. I like to makes dishes that are popular in other countries. Once I get the sambol oelek, I'll try this dish.

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Andrew L • August 29, 2012 at 06:10PM

Wow, first post here in 4 years. This was too good to have such little traffic. Thanks for the recipe!

Reply
Miriam R • December 31, 2012 at 12:15AM

This dish was easy and tasted great. Some thoughts: for a new cook there should be a link to "the easy way to peel tomatoes", I think next time I will add minced garlic to the sauce for added flavor.

Reply
Brenda L • April 21, 2013 at 03:51AM

This recipe is a keeper. I really enjoyed making and eating this dish!

Reply
Ken R • Rouxbe Staff • April 21, 2013 at 08:01PM

Oh great! We are thrilled that you enjoyed this preparation. It's a great technique - reducing vinegar and building a balanced sauce. Cheers!

Reply
Omar E • October 17, 2016 at 02:15PM

Should I be looking for a good quality red wine Vinegar for this dish or a medium quality would work? Would sherry Vinegar be too strong?

Reply
Ken R • Rouxbe Staff • October 17, 2016 at 04:10PM

Hi Omar - A midrange vinegar is great in this sort of application. Red wine or sherry would both be good - try the sherry! I bet the nutty richness adds a nice complexity to the dish. ~Ken

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Chef's notes

The First 3 Are On Us

9 Comments

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