Haitian Traditional Sunday Dinners

Coq au vin is  one of the most famous French  chicken dishes,  and it's popular in Haiti as well. Over the years it has lost its popularity for many reasons. But it's still a very delicious dish to be on the Sunday dinner table


Sunday dinner menu


Coq au vin
Potato Duchess
Green salad
Rice with sweet peas
Acerola juice  ( Caribbean cherries )
Cafe
Mango mouse



Haitian Coq au vin

Traditionally a rooster was used for this dish, but today it's made with any type of chicken

1 5-7 lbs cleaned chicken
1/2 lbs salted pork fat
Juice of 1 sour orange or 2 limes ( reserve pulps)
2 scallions
3 garlic cloves
2 springs of parsley
1 sprig of thyme
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of freshly ground black pepper
1/4 of a scotch bonnet pepper or to taste
Dash of ground cloves
2 cubes of bouillon cubes
2 tabs of water
2 tabs of tomato paste
1 bouquet garni* ( made of 3 sprigs of parsley, 2 thyme ,1 bay leaf)
1 tab beurre manie*( 1   tab of butter ,1 tab of flour)
2 tabs of butter
6 shallots diced
2 sticks of celery diced
1 leek diced
1 red bell pepper diced
 2 medium carrots diced
12 whole  baby onions  cleaned and trimmed bulbs only
1/4 cup of rum or cognac
2 cups of dry red wine

Cut the salt pork into 1 inch piece squares rinse well and soak in  water for 1 hour, drain
 and put aside. Cut the chicken into 12 pieces, rub with the citrus pulps  and rinse, pat dry.
Make a marinade by reducing to paste the 9 top ingredients and one bouillon cube . Place the chicken in a bowl with the lardons (the squares of salted pork fat) and cover with the marinade . Let marinade at least 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
Remove lardons from the marinade.  In a heavy bottom pan over medium heat add the lardons with the 2 tabs of water and let cook until  the evaporation of all the water then the lardons will start  rendering their fat. When they are brown and crispy, remove and save.
Remove the pieces of chicken from the marinade and pat dry, brown them well on all sides  in the remaining fat. When  all the pieces are browned , drain all  the fat  off.
Pour the rum or cognac over the chicken and ignite to flambee, when flames  have died  cover and reserve .
In another smaller pan melt the butter add the diced vegetables, the small onions the other bouillon cubes and cook until vegetables are soft about 15 minutes.
Add cooked vegetables to chicken, tomato paste, lardons, wine and bouquet  garni*,
bring to full boil, cover, reduce heat and cook for about 30 minutes, add beurre manie, cook another fifteen minutes. Serve in about 30 minutes later.
Coq au vin can be prepared ahead of time, it improves with time.


Enjoy


* Beurre manie is an equal part of butter and flour mixed together to thicken  sauces

* Bouquet garni is a small bundle of herbs tied together used to flavor soups stews, sauces and removed after  cooking

* Lardons are small pieces of salted pork fat or Bacon used to flavor  or decorate foods