Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 60-70 minutes
Total Time: 90 minutes
Serves: 4-6 people
Cuisine: French Traditional
Skill Level: Easy
INGREDIENTS
- 5kg free-range chicken
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Knob of butter
- 200g smoked lardons
- 250g chestnut mushrooms, halved
- 12 shallots, peeled
- 2-3 tbsp cognac
- 750ml bottle good red wine
- 1 bouquet garni (tie together 2 bay leaves, a sprig of thyme, rosemary and parsley stalks)
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tbsp cornflour (or plain flour if you prefer)
- Chopped fresh parsley to garnish
- Buttery baked potatoes or mash, crème fraîche and dressed baby salad leaves to serve
METHOD
- Cut the chicken into 4-6 large pieces (or purchase pre-cut from the). Heat oil and butter in the casserole/pan and brown the chicken all over. Cook the chicken in batches if using a small pan. Remove the chicken and set aside.
- In the same pan, fry the lardons until crisp, then add the mushrooms and shallots and cook until lightly coloured. Return the chicken pieces to the pan, then remove it from the heat. Pour in the cognac while still off heat, then light it to flambé and burn off the alcohol. Be very careful when you flambé the stew – only return the pan to the heat after it is lit.
- Return the pan to the heat, pour in the red wine, add the bouquet garni and garlic, then season well with salt and pepper. Add a little water to the cornflour to make a loose paste, then stir it into the sauce in the pan, making sure there are no lumps.
- Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan forced. Bring the stew to the boil, then put on the lid and transfer to the oven for 60-75 minutes until the chicken is tender and the sauce has thickened.
- When ready to serve, remove the bouquet garni, season the stew to taste and scatter over fresh parsley. Serve with baked potatoes or mash, crème fraîche and dressed baby salad leaves.
Pro tip: The flavour only gets more delicious when kept in the fridge overnight. So this is the perfect meal to prepare the night before a party then pull out to impress.
SHOPPING LIST
Camberwell Market Poultry or Golden Rooster
- Free-range chicken
Nick & Sue’s Gourmet Deli or Camberwell Deli
- Butter
- Crème fraîche
- Olive oil
Commercial Butchers
- Smoked lardon
Local bottle shop
- Cognac
- Bottle of red
Camberwell Market Fruit & Veg
- Chestnut mushrooms
- Shallots
- Garlic
- Parsley
- Baked potatoes
- Salad leaves
- Bouquet garni (make one yourself by getting)
- Bay leaves
- Thyme
- Rosemary
- Parsley stalks
Supermarket
- Cornflour (or plain flour)
