Chicken In Vinegar Cream Sauce (French Poulet au Vinaigre à la Lyonnaise)

A French bistro classic, poulet au vinaigre (chicken in vinegar sauce). This is a classic recipe from the city of Lyon which is known as the gastronomical capital of France. The dish consists of sautéed chicken cuts cooked in a sauce made with red wine vinegar, white burgundy wine and home made chicken stock. When the sauce is done the acidity level is adjusted by adding a generous serve of cream. The result? A one of a kind tangy, creamy chicken recipe.

3½ lbs chicken, cut into 8 pieces (breast, legs and thighs)
1 chicken liver (optional)
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 shallot, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp. tarragon, freshly chopped
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
heavy cream (400 mL)
chicken stock (500 mL)
white burgundy wine (400 mL)
red wine or tarragon vinegar (200 mL)
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
1 Tbsp. butter

Mise en Place (Food Preparation):
Start by making the white chicken stock (or else use good quality stock cubes in water mixed with a few chicken wings half a carrot an half an onion and some thyme).

Wash peel and cut the onions, shallot and garlic. Weigh your liquids (wine and cream) and have all the other small ingredients ready. Have your pieces of chicken seasoned with salt and pepper and ready to be cooked on a plate.

Pre-cook the Chicken:
On a medium heat, add a Tbsp. of plain unsalted butter in a large skillet or Dutch oven. As soon as the butter foams, add the chicken pieces skin side first and sauté them (on each side) until they have light golden colour. When done reserve in a dish and cover.

Prepare the Sauce:
Add all of the onion, garlic and shallots the pan you used to cook the chicken and leave to cook on low heat for 2 or 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and leave to cook for 30 seconds. Raise the heat to high, add the vinegar and reduce to a syrupy consistency. Add the wine and leave to boil for 1 or 2 minutes. When done add stock and reduce for 10 minutes.

Cook the Chicken:
Reduce the heat to low. Add the thyme, the tarragon leaves and the chicken pieces to the sauce you just made and leave the chicken to cook in the sauce (the pan has to be covered) for 15-20 minutes depending on the size of your chicken pieces.

When the chicken pieces are cooked, take them out and reserve in a dish. Ideally you want to cover the dish to keep the chicken warm.

Finish the Sauce:
Add all of the cream to the sauce and leave to reduce for a good 15 minutes or more. You can also a minced chicken liver now too but it is optional.

When the cream has got the right consistency, reduce the heat to low, add the chicken pieces back in the pan, cover and wait until the chicken is warmed up enough to be served.