I LOVE MY PRESSURE COOKER! I got it for Christmas and I just adore it. For those of you who don't have pressure cookers... I'm sorry. You could do a similar recipe in a slow cooker or even in the oven! This one, though, is for the pressure cooker. Did I mention that I love mine?

Coq au Vin is a lovely little French dish. This recipe is pretty easy - some effort goes into the prep work but the cook time is only ten minutes! The chicken comes out succulent, and the flavor is just insanely rich, especially served over these impossibly buttery potatoes!


Ingredients:

for the chicken

6 strips of good quality bacon
6 chicken legs, skin removed and legs separated from thigh
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Salt and ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh rosemary
2 cups red wine (pinot noir), divided
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon butter
24 pearl onions, frozen and thawed
1 pound buttoned mushrooms, quartered
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Fresh thyme, chopped

for the potatoes

2 lbs yukon gold potatoes
3 sticks of unsalted butter
1/4 whole milk, warmed (more to taste)
Salt to taste


Directions:

Heat up a large skillet and fry the bacon until crispy. Set the bacon aside, reserving all the tasty bacon juices in the pan. Season your chicken parts with salt and pepper and place, in batches, into the hot bacon grease. Brown on all sides and set aside.

Set your pressure cooker to BROWN/SAUTEE and pour a bit of the reserved bacon/chicken grease in. Put in the garlic and onion and sautee until softened. Add the thyme, bay leaf, and the rosemary. Then pour in 1 1/2 cups of the red wine. Add the chicken stock and the tomatoes. Put the chicken into the pressure cooker and lock the lid. Set it to cook on HIGH for 10 minutes.

Heat another large skillet and add two tablespoons of butter. Sautee the mushrooms and onions until brown, then add the remaining 1/2 cup of red wine and simmer on low heat until the chicken is ready. Quick-reduce the pressure in the pressure cooker when the timer is up and remove the lid. Take the chicken out and make the sauce by turning the pressure cooker back to the BROWN function, bringing the liquid to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of butter mixed with 2 tablespoons of flour, whisking vigorously until completely combined and thickened. Add the chicken back in, as well as the mushrooms and onions, and then season to taste. Sprinkle over the top with parsley, fresh thyme, and reserved bacon.

Meanwhile, the potatoes (which can be cooked at the same time.) Put the potatoes (unpeeled) into a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and let simmer for 35 minutes. Remove from the water and peel. Place the potatoes in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Add the smooth potatoes back into the cooking pot (without any water in it). Heat on medium heat and slowly add the butter, cubed and cold, whisking as you add. Once the potatoes have become saturated with the butter, add the warmed milk and whisk vigorously until combined. Season liberally with salt until delicious.