Carefully pour the liquid and vegetables from the slow cooker through the colander and into the bowl. Finish Sauce: Place a colander over a clean very large bowl in the sink.Transfer chicken pieces to a platter and keep warm in a low oven. Cover and cook on Low for about 6 to 7 hours or until chicken is falling-off-the-bone tender and large pieces have reached 165☏ on an instant read thermometer. Add thyme sprigs and tuck a bay leaf in among the vegetables. Pour this liquid over the chicken and vegetables in the slow cooker. Whisk in tomato paste until dissolved add remaining wine and whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in brandy if using. Add 1 cup of the wine and the chicken stock to the skillet and deglaze the pan, scraping up the browned bits.Place on top of the chicken pieces in the slow cooker. Add the onion, celery, carrots, garlic, to the skillet and cook until slightly softened and just browning lightly.When done, transfer chicken to the crock of a slow cooker. When oil is hot, brown chicken pieces on both sides, turning with tongs (do not use a fork!), cooking in batches if necessary to avoid crowding. Cook Chicken: Still using the same pan, add oil and heat over medium heat.

Then add mushrooms to the pan and cook until they wilt, about 5 minutes. Using the slotted spoon again, transfer onions to the bowl with the reserved pork. Be careful, shallots tend to burn easily. Add shallots to same pan and cook until lightly softened, stirring often. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pork to a bowl and reserve. Build Stew Foundation: Place pancetta or bacon in a 12-inch skillet and cook over medium heat until fat has been rendered and pork is lightly crispy.Liberally season with salt, pepper and onion powder. Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Prep Chicken: Set a wire rack over a baking sheet with sides.Cooking the ingredients in a slow cooker mimics the long marination and braise without taking two days to cook. I seldom think that far ahead so I adapted the classic to utilize the strengths of slow cookers. In classic recipes you partially cook and assemble the ingredients in the evening, put them in a deep cooking pot, cover with wine and marinate overnight before cooking the next day. These days a good pinot noir or other lighter red is a great alternative. It can be made with any wine, but tradition dictates that it be burgundy or other similar red wine. It is the perfect recipe for older chickens or roosters that would be too tough if cooked by other methods. L egend has it that coq au vin (coke-oh-van) traces back to Julius Caesar, but it is cooked in one form or another in every region of France. Overnight marinating and slow cooking on the stove or in the oven all day makes an incredible chicken dinner, but few of us have the luxury of that much time these days. There is a small restaurant in our hometown that makes a delightful version – not necessarily traditional, but very, very good. One of my favorite meals of all times is coq au vin, chicken cooked slowly with red wine and vegetables.

Slow cooker coq au vin