The classic slow braised stew is reduced to a coating gravy, not the thick sauce we often see in modern takes. Use pinot noir wine to recreate the Burgundian braise. 

Serves 6 

Ingredients

For the chicken preparation 

1.5kg whole chicken
2 cups good quality red wine (pinot noir or merlot works well)
2 carrots, sliced into 2cm pieces
2 leeks, sliced into 2cm pieces
2 onions, cut into quarters
1 bulb garlic, halved through the middle
10 whole black peppercorns
2 bay leaves

15 pearl onions
100-150g smoked, thick-cut boneless pork rashers (or use pancetta)
250g button mushrooms
Flour
Salt and milled pepper
2-3 Tbsp olive oil blend
Bunch of (or half a punnet) thyme
2-3 cups chicken stock
Salt and milled pepper
Chopped flatleaf parsley, for serving
Mash, for serving

Method  

1. Combine chicken preparation ingredients, cover and marinade overnight in the fridge. Remove chicken marinade mixture an hour before cooking, to bring it to room temperature. 
2. Preheat oven to 160°C. Cut a baking paper cartouche (see good to know) to the size of your oven-safe pot or buffet casserole.
3. Peel and halve onions, keeping onions attached on one end. (See cook’s note.) Cut pork rashers or pancetta into 2cm cubes. 
4. Heat oil in a 28cm oven-safe pot or buffet casserole. Sauté halved pearl onions over medium heat to soften for 5 minutes. Add pork rashers or pancetta and continue cooking for another 5-8 minutes until starting to brown. Add mushrooms and cook until everything is well browned and cooked through. Remove, reserving oil in the pan. Turn off heat for a moment, so the pan doesn’t overheat. 
5. Drain chicken in a colander,reserving wine in a bowl underneath the colander. Pat very dry, using kitchen paper. Season chicken and dust in seasoned flour, lightly shaking off the excess. 
6. Turn the pan heat back on to medium-high. Add chicken and brown on both sides, making sure it doesn’t boil or poach because pan is too crowded. (Once the chicken is hot, you may need to lower heat to medium, so the skin doesn’t burn.) Remove and set aside, adding another dash of oil to the pan if needed. 
7. Add marinated veg to pan and sauté until just starting to brown andhas softened.
8. Add wine, turn up heat and reduce to a thick sauce or glaze (it should look gravy-like, coating the veg). 
9. Return chicken and add just enough chicken stock (the mixture should half-cover chicken, so some of the skin is still sticking out above.
10. Cover with a cartouche (baking paper covering). Bake for 1 hour.
11. Remove chicken and strain out vegetables using a slotted spoon. Set aside. 
12. Place pot over high heat to reduce the sauce, spooning off any froth that may appear on top.
13. Once thickened, return chicken, pearl onions, pork cubes and mushrooms to the sauce and gently coat all ingredients in thickened sauce. 
14. Serve sprinkled with parsley and with mash on the side. 

Cook’s note  

To easily peel the pickling onions, cover in boiling water and leave to sit for 20 minutes. Drain, cut off the tops and bottom edges and slide off the papery skins. 

Good to know  

A cartouche is a piece of baking paper cut to fit snugly inside a pot or pan, to cover the contents while cooking. Like partially covering a pot with a lid, covering with a cartouche means the liquid evaporates and reduces slowly. In this case, it also prevents the chicken from drying out while cooking. 

Recipes & styling: Liezl Vermeulen
Photography: Zhann Solomons