How about trying Lefty Ruggiero's , (seen here on the right as portrayed by Al Pacino) homemade Coq au Vin, delicious and if it is good enough for a made man like Lefty it is good enough for me. Based upon a real life FBI undercover operation lead by the title lead Donnie Brasco real name Joe Pistone played by Jonny Depp this is one of my all time favourite films, but then I do like gangstar movies. Something else I enjoy is good food and Coq au Vin is certainly that. So why not try the recipe below from Dave Watts who is head chef at the Cotswold House Hotel.
Ingredients
10 x free range chicken legs
750ml red wine (you do not need a wine that is really expensive but just one that you like and would drink, my choice is a good Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon)
50ml rapeseed oil or olive oil
1 x onion
1 x medium sized carrot
2 x sticks celery
2 x sprigs of thyme
2 x bay leaves
2 x cloves of garlic
1 x Tbsp of Tomato puree
750ml brown chicken stock
100g seasoned plain flour
200g button or chestnut mushrooms (cut into quarters)
200g smoked bacon lardons
2 x pinch of salt
1 x bunch of curly parsley
Grind of fresh black pepper
How to cook it
1. Place your frying pan on a medium heat and add the oil.
2. Peel and dice the onion, carrot and celery to a similar size, place them into the pan and sweat until they're soft and have no colour. This will take around 10 minutes.
3. Once soft, add the garlic, thyme and bay leaves, stir and then add the wine. Leave this mix to cool to room temperature and then add your raw chicken legs. Cover and place into a fridge for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight if possible.
4. Pre heat an oven to 140°C. After the chicken has marinated, remove from the wine and pat dry with a paper towel. Dip them into your seasoned flour and pat off any excess flour.
5. Place a large frying pan on a high heat, put a little oil into the pan and add the floured chicken legs.
6. Colour well on both sides then remove onto a draining tray, empty out any excess fat from the pan and repeat with more legs until all have been coloured. Once all of the chicken has been coloured, add the tomato paste to the empty pan, and stir for a minute (be careful not to burn the puree). While Al Pacino uses a can of tomatoes, it’s really not necessary and tomato paste gives a much more authentic flavour...
7. After a minute add the wine, veg and herbs from the marinade to the pan and bring to the boil.
8. Put the chicken legs into an oven proof dish adding the boiled wine and chicken stock, stir well. Cover with a tight fitting lid, place into the oven for 2 hours.
9. After 2 hours fry your bacon lardons until they are golden brown, remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon and reserve on a plate. Add your quartered mushrooms to the same pan and fry on a high heat until they are slightly coloured on the edges, remove from the pan again with a slotted spoon and keep aside with your lardons.
10. Remove the dish from the oven and place the mushrooms and lardons onto the surface, return to the oven and cook for a further 20-30 minutes.
11. Roughly chop the parsley, remove the dish from the oven and season to taste with a little salt and fresh black pepper, sprinkle with the parsley and serve with boiled potatoes, (but I personally prefer roast potatoes) and chunks of crusty bread.
Now watch Lefty show Donie how to cook the perfect Coq au Vin.
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