Welcome to The Storied Recipe Podcast, a podcast about food, culture, and love. Below are links to recipes for 47 side dish ideas that are perfect accompaniments to the French classic Coq au Vin.
Coq au Vin is a flavorful, elegant dish of tender chicken simmered in a rich red wine sauce flavored with root vegetables and cooked bacon.
This is the perfect meal for a special occasion. The dish is elevated and elegant. At the same time, the timing of the dish is not precise, so you can focus on your dinner guests - rather than the cooking - when they arrive. In fact, you can even make this famous French chicken stew ahead and serve it the next day!
While it’s most often served with mashed potatoes, there are plenty of alternative accompaniments that will work best for your tastes.
In this post, you’ll find the best side dishes in every category: Potatoes/starches, Green vegetables, Salads, and Desserts.
Whether you’re looking for something light and refreshing or hearty, rich flavors, I’ve provided links to every single side dish recipe. Now you can easily plan and execute a mouthwatering menu for your next French feast!
How To Use This List
- To make the list more readable, I separated it into 5 sections: Starches, Vegetables, Salads, Breads, and Desserts
- Make sure you read through the whole list. You'll want to plan a balanced menu that doesn't reuse too many ingredients. Light dishes should balance out rich sides.
- Use this list as inspiration. Combine ideas, flavors, ingredients, and techniques from the recipes you like.
- Let me know how it all turns out! I'd love to hear!
12 Starches to Serve with Coq au Vin
Mashed Potatoes
Mashed Potatoes are the indisputable champion of Coq au Vin sides. And for good reason - creamy and hearty, they hold up to the meaty textures and absorb the delicious, rich wine and herb-infused sauce. Here are my 3 favorite mashed potato recipes:
Garlic Mashed Potatoes Recipe
Cooks in 30 minutesEveryone's going to ask to please pass the potatoes over and over again over these buttery, garlicky, creamy, smooth, deeeelicious garlic mashed potatoes!
Easy Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Cooks in 30 minutesThese easy mashed sweet potatoes are savory, but you can add a few extra ingredients for a sweeter version. See our notes in the tips section below.
Best Mashed Potatoes Recipe (So Creamy!)
Cooks in 40 minutesThese creamy mashed potatoes are shockingly good! It only takes 4 ingredients to make these velvety and holiday-worthy mashed potatoes in just 3 steps. They are perfect for a weekday meal, but also just fancy enough for a holiday table.
Beyond Mashed Potatoes
If you want something smooth and creamy that's NOT mashed potatoes, you still have lots of options. Explore these recipes for big visual impact and unique flavors.
Blue Cheese Au Gratin Potatoes Recipe
Cooks in 75 minutesBlue Cheese Au Gratin Potatoes are a delicious and easy to prepare side dish for any meal when you want to wow your family and friends.
Creamy Polenta: Three Ways to Serve it
Cooks in 1 hour 50 minutesThis polenta recipe has a creamy texture and serves as a blank canvas to build upon. From there, it can be customized to suit your own tastes. As is, this version is delicious as a hot and filling side dish or it can be chilled and then grilled or fried for a tasty treat later.
Make sure to also check out Mashed Rutabagas with Sour Cream and Dill by Simply Recipes!
More Texture
From crispy, roasted potatoes to chewy, thick egg noodles, each of these ideas adds its own unique texture for an elegant French dinner party.
Scalloped Potatoes
Cooks in 120 minutesScalloped potatoes are a creamy, cheesy baked dish made with thinly sliced potatoes layered in a rich sauce, perfect as a comforting side for any meal.
Wild Rice Pilaf Recipe
Cooks in 65 minutesLearn how to prepare this hearty, gluten-free, and vegan wild rice pilaf recipe packed with veggies and tons of flavor, making it the perfect side dish for any meal.
Perfect Boiled Potatoes
Cooks in 30 minutesThese boiled potatoes are buttery and delicious! Here's how to boil potatoes with the best creamy texture and salty, herby flavor.
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Cooks in 45 minutesThese roasted sweet potatoes are crispy outside, soft inside, with a seasoning blend that lets their natural sweetness shine. Irresistibly good!
Homestyle Egg Noodles
Cooks in 40 minutesThis homestyle egg noodle recipe is incredibly easy to make by hand in just 15 minutes with 4 basic ingredients.
Crispy Baked Potato Wedges Recipe
Cooks in 70 minutesThese oven-baked potato wedges are easy and delicious every time. They are crispy on the outside and tender in the center. Don't skip the parmesan topping - it takes these over the top.
8 Vegetables to Pair with Coq au Vin
Choosing the right vegetables to pair with Coq au Vin can be a little tricky, because the dish already contains pearl onions and mushrooms. So choose vegetables that bring a totally different flavor profile compared to the main ingredients in the dish. I tend to prefer green vegetables that are simple yet flavorful, tasty and nutritious.
The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life
Cooks in 25 minutesJazz up your Brussels Sprouts with a kick of garlic and freshly grated cheese - making this simple side dish one that the whole family will love!
Perfect Roasted Fennel
Cooks in 30 minutesWelcome to the surprise that is roasted fennel! Baking it in a hot oven makes it sweet and caramelized: nothing like its raw flavor.
Simple Roasted Onions (Whole, Halved, Quartered)
Cooks in 50 minutesThese simple oven-roasted onions are tender, mellow, caramelized, and require no peeling! Baked as halves, whole, or quartered to serve as a versatile side and on your holiday table!
Roasted Butternut Squash {with Garlic and Herbs}
Cooks in 55 minutesRoasted Butternut Squash is an essential, healthy fall side dish! It has a mildly sweet, slightly nutty, buttery flavor and a delicious creamy texture. Then when you add garlic and fresh herbs it adds two more delicious layers of flavor. It's perfect for the holidays or a weeknight dinner!
Haricots Verts (French Green Beans)
Cooks in 20 minutesPerfectly cooked French Green beans (Haricots Verts) with shallot and a hint of lemon. They make the best side dish to any meal!
Crispy Kale Chips
Cooks in 30 minutesQuick and easy Crispy Kale Chips are one of the tastiest ways to eat more greens. You need just two ingredients and 20 minutes to make these healthy vegetable chips.
Creamed Spinach with Water Chestnuts
Cooks in 25 minutesCreamed spinach was a favorite side dish of mine back when I worked at Boston Market. Now I make it homemade and add water chestnut for crunch. Perfect holiday side dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter dinner.
Braised Fennel
Cooks in 75 minutesFennel is an underrated vegetable that is delicious when braised. It takes on a sweet and rich flavor when cooked with aromatics, and makes a great side dish for almost any meal.
9 Salad Ideas
A salad presents you with an opportunity to bring cool, light, fresh, sweet and acidic flavors to balance the Coq au Vin. Go crazy!
Big Italian Salad
This Italian salad pairs nicely with Italian comfort food. You’ll love the homemade dressing!
Beet Salad
Cooks in 60 minutesBeet Salad- this beautiful beet salad is made with fresh arugula, roasted beets, orange slices, goat cheese, pistachios, red onion, and a simple citrus dressing. Serve along side any meal or enjoy for a light lunch.
How to Make THE BEST Panzanella
Cooks in 25 minutesThis simple, healthy Tuscan bread salad recipe is made with the sweetest ripe tomatoes, chunks of cucumber, slivered onion, and capers with a zesty vinaigrette and fresh basil, perfect for summertime eats.
Simple Kale Salad
Cooks in 15 minutesKale is one of the healthiest vegetables on the planet. Its often overlooked. Heres one way to prep kale quickly, easily, and in a delicious way with this Simple Kale Salad recipe. The ginger dressing is to die for!
Harvest Fall Salad
Cooks in 18 minutesThis Harvest Apple and Pear Fall Salad tossed in Apple Cider Vinaigrette is made with fresh greens, crisp Autumn fruit, smoky bacon, tangy feta and sweet-sticky cider dressing.
Greek Salad Recipe
Cooks in 10 minutesThis traditional Greek Salad Recipe is super easy to make and healthy! Learn how to make the best greek salad with only a few ingredients!
Classic French Bistro Salad
Cooks in 20 minutesThis simple Classic French Bistro Salad, served at cafs, brasseries and bistros all over France, is beyond easy and yet one of those recipes you'll be turning to again and again (especially when you want to feel a little "fancy" with minimal effort on your part.
Make sure to check out these other salad recipes Easy Fruit Salad by The Spruce Eats and Celery, Fennel, and Apple Salad by Food and Wine
6 Breads
It's hard to imagine this classic French dish without that most classic of all French culinary triumphs - BREAD!!!! Crusty, round, tender, skinny - it doesn't matter. Just don't forget the BUTTER!
Sourdough Bread: A Beginner's Guide
Cooks in 14 hoursThis easy, homemade sourdough bread recipe is best for both beginners and seasoned bakers alike. It's made with 5 simple ingredients: bread flour, active sourdough starter, water, salt and olive oil (which makes the interior crumb incredibly light and plush!). Follow my step-by-step recipe instructions and videos, and you'll get the best, fresh homemade sourdough bread rival to any commercial bakery. You can do it!
No Knead Bread-Baguette
Cooks in 65 minutesHomemade baguette is a true treat! Better yet, this recipe requires only four simple ingredients and absolutely no kneading.
Soft Fluffy French Bread
Cooks in 120 minutesThis recipe for Fluffy French Bread is my go-to bread recipe. It makes one loaf and is easily doubled to make for a crowd.
The Best Garlic Bread You'll Ever Eat
Cooks in 20 minutesThis is the BEST homemade garlic bread you'll ever make. It has fresh herbs, tons of flavorful roasted garlic, and is perfectly toasted. This easy garlic bread recipe is delicious served with your fav pasta dishes & comfort foods, and is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser!
Mini Bread Rolls (With Yeast and Potatoes)
Cooks in 190 minutesSoft mini bread rolls are enriched with potatoes for a hearty flavor, creamy texture, and subtle sweetness. The most adorable mini dinner rolls!!
Parker House Rolls
Parker House Rolls are soft, fluffy, buttery and incredibly delicious! Theyre the perfect roll to complement any dinner or holiday gathering. Plus, they make great options for sandwiches after cooking up those Thanksgiving turkeys or Christmas hams! Light and fluffy, these rolls are sure to be the best thing on your plate.
A DOZEN DESSERTS
For me, I'm not a dessert person. I put my effort into the meal. For dessert - buy a carton of ice cream, and call it a day.
However, not everyone is like me! And if you're creating an elegant French feast for guests - then dessert may be your pièce de résistance!
In choosing dessert ideas for Coq au Vin, I did lean heavily towards French favorites. Some are simple, some are gloriously complicated. You choose!
Chocolate
Chocolate Gateau (Chocolate Cake)
Cooks in 80 minutesMoist and rich Chocolate Gateau recipe is a classic dessert found in cafes and pastry shops across Japan. Topped with strawberries and fresh whipped cream, this decadent cake is a beautiful and elegant sweet treat to make at home for any festive occasion.
Silkiest Chocolate Tart Recipe by Tasty
Cooks in 1 hour 30 minutesThis silky chocolate tart is a luxurious dessert that's sure to impress. The velvety smooth chocolate filling and flaky, buttery crust make each bite a decadent treat for chocolate lovers.
Kalter Hund: German No-Bake Layered Chocolate Biscuit Cake
Cooks in 285 minutesThis layered, no-bake cake delivers chocolate as its meant to be: completely and utterly decadent, rich, creamy, and solid but soft.
Fruity
Apple Galette
Cooks in 115 minutesHomemade Apple Galette is so much easier to make than apple pie! This recipe has a buttery, flaky tart crust and a perfectly spiced apple filling. The best rustic dessert to serve a crowd for Thanksgiving.
Easy Baked Pears
Cooks in 30 minutesEasy baked pears made in one dish with simple ingredients. Serve with vanilla yogurt or ice cream for the ultimate elegant dessert perfect for the holidays and beyond. Just 30 minutes and 1 pan required.
Pear Pistachio Pie Recipe
Cooks in 240 minutesPear and Pistachio Pie features a flaky crust studded with pistachios, a layer of sweet pistachio puree, and two layers of soft, melt-in-your-mouth pears - all warmly spiced with fragrant cardamom and cinnamon.
Classic French Desserts
The Perfect French Meringue Recipe
Cooks in 130 minutesUse this perfect French meringue recipe to create crisp on the outside chewy in the middle mini pavlovas and meringue cookies.
Classic French Crme Caramel
Cooks in 65 minutesAn easy recipe for the classic French Crme Caramel. No cream but made with whole milk and egg yolks for a light, silky dessert found in many Parisian brasseries. Either served directly in their ramekins or upturned on a serving plate to show off the shiny caramel.
Easy Crme Brle
Cooks in 4 hours 50 minutesThis is the BEST and creamiest crme brle recipe! Flecked with espresso and vanilla, you only need 6 simple ingredients and they're ready to bake in only 15 minutes.
Simple and Easy Cream Puffs
Don't be afraid to make Cream Puffs! These little treats are so easy to make and taste as good, if not better than store bought ones.
BONUS!
Wine Pairing Ideas
- Experts recommend pairing it with a deep, full-bodied red wine, similar (or identical) to what you used in the sauce.
- Ideas include Merlot, Pinot Noir, or Beaujolais.
- Get more ideas and insight from this article from Drink and Pair.
How To Make Classic Coq au Vin
Coq au Vin is a traditional French dish made famous by Julia Child in her seminal book with co-authors Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". It translates to “rooster in wine” but is most often cooked with chicken.
- To make this dish, you will need chicken (traditionally rooster). Choose dark meat like chicken thighs and drumsticks with the skin on. You will also need bacon fat (or lardon), mushrooms, pearl onions, garlic, fresh thyme and/or bay leaf, red wine (Pinot Noir is a great choice), chicken broth, flour, and butter.
- Start by cooking the bacon in a large skillet or large dutch oven over medium heat until it’s crispy, then remove it from the pan and set it aside.
- Brown the chicken pieces in the same pan. Take care not to overcrowd - You may need to do these in batches. Remove and set aside.
- In the same pan, sauté the mushrooms and onions until they’re softened, then add the garlic and thyme. Remove both with a slotted spoon.
- Use wine or cognac to deglaze the pan. Scrape all the delicious caramelized bits from the bottom of the pan and whisk them into the sauce. This step is integral to creating a delicious sauce.
- Sprinkle some flour over the mixture and whisk until it’s combined.
- Add the wine and chicken broth, then return the chicken and bacon to the pan. Season with salt and black pepper.
- Simmer the mixture for about an hour, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
Try Julia Child's Coq au Vin original recipe from The Endless Meal.
Serve the Coq au Vin with any of the 47 sides in this article!
How To Make Vegan Coq au Vin
More What To Serve With Posts
More Lists For Inspiration
Listen to Lexi and Beth's Episode Now
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What to Serve with Coq Au Vin: 47 Inspired Sides (with Links to Every Recipe)
Discover 47 delicious sides that are the perfect pairing for Coq Au Vin. From potatoes/starches to vegetables, salads, and desserts, you'll find the best accompaniments to serve with Coq au Vin.
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Ingredients
PW's Creamy Mashed Potatoes from Pioneer Woman
Garlic Mashed Potatoes from Le Creme de la Crumb
Polenta (3 Ways!) from Cultured Table
Scalloped Potatoes from Spend with Pennies
Sweet Potato Mash from Inspired Taste
Mashed Rutabagas with Sour Cream and Dill from Simply Recipes
Blue Cheese Au Gratin from Grits and Pinecones
Wild Rice Pilaf from Foolproof Living
Perfect Boiled Potatoes from A Couple Cooks
Roasted Sweet Potatoes from Chelsea's Messy Apron
Homestyle Thick Egg Noodles (Store bought or homemade) from Gimme Some Oven
Crispy Baked Potato Wedges from Natasha's Kitchen
Basic Roasted Brussels Sprouts from Erren's Kitchen
Simple Braised or Roasted Fennel from Tasting Table
Perfect Roasted Fennel from A Couple Cooks
Simple Roasted Onions from Alpha Foodie
Butternut Squash With Garlic and Herbs from Cooking Classy
French Green Beans (Haricots Vertes) from Tastes Better from Scratch
Kale Chips from Culinary Hill
Creamed Spinach from Mighty Mrs
Big Italian Salad from Once Upon a Chef
Easy Fruit Salad from The Spruce Eats
Beet and Arugula Salad from Two Peas and Their Pod
Celery, Fennel, and Apple Salad from Food and Wine
Panzanella (Tuscan Style Fresh Bread and Tomato Salad) from Foodie Crush
Simple Kale Salad from Green Healthy Cooking
Harvest Fall Salad from Grandbaby Cakes
Simple Greek Salad from The Clean Eating Couple
Classic French Bistro Salad from The Cafe Sucre Farine
Sourdough Round from The Clever Carrot
No Knead Easy Baguette Recipe from Mom's Dish
Soft Fluffy French Bread from Eat Dessert Snack
Garlic Bread from Ambitious Kitchen
Easy Enriched Mini Bread Rolls from The Storied Recipe
Parker House Rolls (Store bought or homemade) from Mom on Time Out
Gateau au Chocolate from Just One Cookbook
Apple Galette from Handle the Heat
Silky French Chocolate Tart from Tasty
Kalter Hund - No Bake Chocolate and Biscuit Cake from The Storied Recipe
Easy Baked Pears from Minimalist Baker
Pear and Pistachio Pie from Eva Kosmas Flores on The Storied Recipe
Light French Meringue from Style Sweet
Classic French Crème Caramel from Mad About Macarons
Easy Crème Brûlée Recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction
Cream Puffs from A Pretty Life in the Suburbs
Pinot Noir from Drink and Pair
Beaujolais from Drink and Pair
Directions
- Make sure to listen to Lexi and Beth's episode, We Learned To Trust Each Other, while making your Coq Au Vin feast!
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