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Ingredients

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• A 3- to 4-ounce chunk of bacon
• A heavy, 10-inch, fireproof casserole
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 1/2 to 3 pounds cut-up frying chicken
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup cognac
• 3 cups young, full-bodied red wine such as Burgundy, Beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone or Chianti
• 1 to 2 cups brown chicken stock, brown stock or canned beef bouillon
• 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 cloves mashed garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 12 to 24 brown-braised onions (recipe follows)
• 1/2 pound sautéed mushrooms (recipe follows)
• Salt and pepper
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons softened butter
• Sprigs of fresh parsley
• 1. Remove the rind of and cut the bacon into lardons (rectangles 1/4-inch across and 1 inch long). Simmer for 10 minutes in 2 quarts of water. Rinse in cold water. Dry. [Deb note: As noted, I’d totally skip this step next time.]
• 2. Sauté the bacon slowly in hot butter until it is very lightly browned. Remove to a side dish.
• 3. Dry the chicken thoroughly. Brown it in the hot fat in the casserole.
• 4. Season the chicken. Return the bacon to the casserole with the chicken. Cover and cook slowly for 10 minutes, turning the chicken once.
• 5. Uncover, and pour in the cognac. Averting your face, ignite the cognac with a lighted match. Shake the casserole back and forth for several seconds until the flames subside.
• 6. Pour the wine into the casserole. Add just enough stock or bouillon to cover the chicken. Stir in the tomato paste, garlic and herbs. Bring to the simmer. Cover and simmer slowly for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and its juices run a clear yellow when the meat is pricked with a fork. Remove the chicken to a side dish.
• 7. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms (recipe follows).
• 8. Simmer the chicken cooking liquid in the casserole for a minute or two, skimming off the fat. Then raise the heat and boil rapidly, reducing the liquid to about 2 1/4 cups. Correct seasoning. Remove from heat and discard bay leaf.
• 9. Blend the butter and flour together into a smooth paste (buerre manie). Beat the paste into the hot liquid with a wire whip. Bring to the simmer, stirring, and simmer for a minute or two. The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon lightly.
• 10. Arrange the chicken in the casserole, place the mushrooms and onions around it and baste with the sauce. If this dish is not to be served immediately, film the top of the sauce with stock or dot with small pieces of butter. Set aside uncovered. It can now wait indefinitely.
• 11. Shortly before serving, bring to the simmer, basting the chicken with the sauce. Cover and simmer slowly for 4 to 5 minutes, until the chicken is hot enough.
• 12. Sever from the casserole, or arrange on a hot platter. Decorate with spring for parsley.
• A 10-inch enameled skillet
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, washed, well dried, left whole if small, sliced or quartered if large
• 1 to 2 tablespoons minced shallots or green onions (optional)