email this pageWe can remember when making coq au vin might have meant taking time off from work to shop for mushrooms. The recipe, a variation of the braised chicken and red wine that’s been called, “a classic French country fricassee,” may be one of the most popular chicken dishes in France. In addition to the chicken and wine, which would have been easy to find, the recipe calls for at least two different kinds of mushrooms. That’s where we would have run into problems.
Although white or button mushrooms have always been available, the supply of mushrooms grown underground in caves used to dwindle in the summer. “It was too hot,” says Dan Lucovich, president of the Mushroom Alliance, a marketing co-op in Pennsylvania. The shift in the industry came about 1980, when all mushrooms were grown above ground in the humid, temperate climate they like, and shoppers could count on a steady supply of mushrooms year round.
What happened next was practically a turning point in the mushroom business. Around 1985, chefs started introducing Americans to mushroom varieties they had never tasted. People loved them and wanted to cook with them. Mushroom growers began cultivating these so-called exotic or specialty varieties, and soon portobellos and criminis, also known as brown mushrooms, were on their way to market.
Like lots of recipes with mushrooms, coq au vin uses a combination of varieties. In addition to criminis, similar in shape but firmer than white buttons, the dish has umbrella-shape, meaty shiitakes. Although specialty varieties represent only a small portion of the mushroom business, you should have no trouble finding them. “We produce them every day,” says grower Lucovich.
Coq Au Vin Nouveau
Ingredients
4 ounces lean smoked ham, chopped
8 chicken thighs, skinned
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 ounces crimini or white mushrooms, sliced (about 3 cups)
8 ounces shiitake mushrooms
1 cup fruity white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
1 (14-ounce) can lower-sodium chicken broth
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/2-inch thick
2 celery stalks, sliced 1/2-inch thick
2 sprigs fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried
2. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and dredge in flour. Cook chicken in same pan until brown. Remove.
3. Add onion, garlic and mushrooms; sauté 3 minutes. Add wine, chicken broth, carrots, celery, thyme and reserved chicken and ham. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 25 minutes or until chicken is tender. Remove cover; cook about 10 minutes or until sauce thickens slightly. Serves 4.
Recipe courtesy of the Mushroom Council, www.mushroomcouncil.com
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