Slow-cooker coq au vin

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds / 600 grams skinless deboned chicken thighs
• 3 1/2 ounces / 100 grams bacon rashers or bacon lardons
• 4 medium banana shallots
• 3 1/2 ounces / 100 grams button mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• 3/4 cup full-bodied red wine
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 3 - 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 - 2 tablespoons cornflour
• 2 ounces / 60 grams butter
• salt to taste

Instructions

1. 1

   --- Preparation ---

2. 2

   Pat the chicken with paper towels to remove any excess moisture, then trim away any excess skin (if you don't have skinless chicken) and any visible fat.

3. 3

   Peel the shallots and if they are quite large, cut them in half.

4. 4

   Peel and mince the garlic.

5. 5

   If you are using bacon rashers rather than lardons, cut the bacon into small pieces.

6. 6

   Wipe the mushrooms with a damp cloth to remove any specks of dirt, and cut any larger mushrooms into halves or quarters.

7. 7

   --- Assemble in the slow cooker ---

8. 8

   Melt the butter in a frying pan. Sprinkle the chicken lightly with salt (optional) and fry the chicken pieces on a medium heat until they start to brown. Transfer the chicken to a slow-cooker, leaving the butter in the frying pan.

9. 9

   Add the bacon, garlic, and shallots to the frying pan and continue to fry gently until the bacon released some of its fat and starts to brown. Stir to coat the onions on all sides with the butter/bacon fat.Spoon the bacon and onions over the chicken in the slow-cooker.

10. 10

    Add the mushrooms to the frying pan and fry the gently until they start to brown. Transfer the mshrooms to the slow-cooker

11. 11

    Pour the stock and red wine into the slow-cooker and lay the sprigs of thyme on top.

12. 12

    Cover the slow-cooker with a lid and cook on low for 4 hours or cook on high for 3 hours until the chicken is tender.Half an hour before the end of the cooking time, mix the cornflour with 3 tablespoons of water to form a slurry and stir it into the slow-cooker. Leave to cook for the final half an hour so that the gravy can thicken.

13. 13

    Remove the sprigs of thyme before serving.