"I will cook for Passover Seder” I told mom a couple of weeks before the holiday. “You don’t have to make anything.” “How would you cook? You know the problem.” “Don’t worry, I’ll cook at your house.” “And what about shopping, where would you buy the ingredients?” mom kept asking, “I’ll come next week and I’ll go shopping with dad, he knows where to buy, right?” “Yes, of course dad knows where to buy” she answered. “The Problem” was kosher. It’s not that I planed to prepare non kosher food, I always followed the rules when I cooked for my parents, since they kept kosher. But, since two of my brothers became ultra orthodox it wasn’t always enough. “OK, I’ll talk to them,” mom said, “to avoid any misunderstandings.” “Sounds like a great idea, you can also ask them if they have any store they prefer to buy the meat at.” A couple of days before the holiday, dad and I went shopping and brought everything to my parents’ home. When we arrived, one of my ortodox brothers was there. I entered the kitchen and started to cook. “Do you need any help?” mom asked “no, just sit down and keep me company”. My brother followed us to the kitchen and said, “I read someplace that you need flour for the dish that you are making” “don’t worry,” I answered “I’m not going to use flour for the holiday meal.” I took the wine bottle and looked for the opener. My brother took the bottle opener out of the drawer and said “here, let me open the wine for you.” “So you came to help?” I asked with a smile “no...actually, yes...a little bit” my brother answered “when mom told me that you are making Coq au Vin, by the kosher law, only a religious man can open the wine to keep it kosher.”
Ingredients
8 chicken
8 oz (225) grams smoked duck breast cut into cubes
12 oz (350 grams) mushrooms cut into quarters
1 onion diced
2 celery stalks diced
1 carrot cut into rounds
8 garlic cloves sliced
12 pearl onions
1 tsp thyme
3 bay leaves
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
¼ cup cognac
1 TBS tomato paste
3 cups dry red wine
2 cups chicken soup broth
2 TBS olive oil
Kosher salt
Flour
Heat olive oil in a large deep pan. Pat chicken dry with paper towel, and generously sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place flour in a large shallow bowl. place chicken in bowl and cover with flour. Shake the excess flour and fry on both sides until golden. Remove from pan and set a side. Add to the same pan duck breast and fry to golden, 2-3 minutes. If needed add a little olive oil. Add onion and fry until golden. Add celery stalks and carrot, mix and fry 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and fry one more minute. Add pearl onions, thyme, bay leaves salt and black pepper, mix and fry 2-3 minutes. Add cognac and carefully light it (optional, but highly recommended as it adds flavor). Let fire subside, add tomato paste and mix. Add red wine and bring to boil. Add mushrooms, chicken and chicken broth and bring to boil again. Lower heat, cover pan and cook for one and a half hours.
The dish is ready, but I like my sauce thicker. For that, take chicken out, increase fire and cook uncovered over high heat and reduce sauce by half. Add one tablespoon flour, mix well so that no lumps are formed. Return chicken to pan, cover and cook for 10 minutes in low heat.
