Coq Au Vin 紅酒燴雞

This was dinner on Mother's Day, the result of spending hours in the kitchen on "my" day trying to cook a special dish for the family. I'm not complaining for having to cook on Mother's Day... but it's stressful when you still can't have dinner served by 7pm and have a child roaming in the kitchen trying to open every drawer and cabinet, pressing the buttons on the dish washer and washing machine, and give you a cheeky grin when you tell him off.

On a side note, I received a small gift from my one-year old when I picked him up from the childcare centre on Friday - a painted photo frame (painted by Bryan with the carer's help). Sweet! :D

Recipe to follow soon... time to hit the sack! Night.

Recipe - Updated

Ingredients
1.2kg whole chicken, chopped into pieces
200g button mushrooms
4 rashers middle bacon, cut into strips
1 carrot, cut lengthwise
2 stalks celery, cut lengthwise
5 shallots, peeled and left whole
5 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
White and black pepper
1/2 cup Plan flour
1 cup red wine
1 cup chicken stock
Cooking oil

Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cook bacon slices in a cooled pan to render some fats. Add shallots and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or until browned. Add the carrots, celery sticks and mushrooms and cook, stirring for about 8 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Pour flour on a plate, season with salt and pepper. Coat the chicken pieces thoroughly in the seasoned flour. Brown the chicken pieces on both sides in a large frying pan heated with oil. Brown the chicken in batches to prevent overcrowding the pan. Transfer the bacon and vegetables back. Stir in red wine and chicken stock. Bring to boil and lower heat to simmer for 10 minutes.

Transfer everything to an ovenproof casserole (with lid) and cook in oven, covered, for about 45 minutes to an hour. Serve with rice or potatoes if desired.