Red Wine Reduction Chicken-Pollo Al Vin Cotto

Have you ever tried Chicken In Red Wine Reduction-Pollo al Vin Cotto? Tender chicken cooked in a wine reduction sauce with capers, raisins, pinenuts, and almonds is a delectable, exciting dish. Perfect for a dinner party or special occasion.

What is vin cotto?

Vin Cotto means cooked wine. In Italy, it is a dark, sweet, thick paste produced in rural areas. It is made by the slow cooking and reduction over many hours of non-fermented grape must until it has been reduced to about one-fifth of its original volume and the sugars present have caramelized.

In this recipe, we have pollo al vin cotto, aka chicken in red wine reduction. I first saw this recipe in a morning TV show. A famous Italian-American chef was cooking it on GMA with Dianne Sawyer, and I was so intrigued by it. Immediately, I gathered the ingredients and made it for dinner. My husband Daryl and I loved the chicken in the sweet, thick vin cotto sauce.

Why you should make red wine reduction chicken

• Easy to Make: Don’t let the red wine reduction intimidate you! This chicken recipe may seem complicated, but it is simple to make. Be organized, follow the directions, add the ingredients at the right time, and voila! An excellent red wine reduction chicken-pollo a la vin cotto is ready to wow everyone.
• Budget Friendly: Making a decadent meal like red wine reduction chicken at home is a real treat. You need a whole chicken, a bottle of inexpensive yet decent red wine, and a couple of everyday pantry ingredients for a restaurant-worthy dish.

Here are your ingredients

For the Vin Cotto

• Dry red wine
• Honey
• Cinnamon sticks
• Cloves

For the chicken

• Extra virgin olive oil
• Chicken cut in 8 pieces, or thighs and drumsticks
• Onion and carrots
• Green olives
• Raisins
• Capers
• Pine nuts
• Almonds
• Red wine vinegar
• Sugar
• Chili flakes
• Parsley finely chopped
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

This is what you do

Make the vin cotto

Combine the wine, honey, cinnamon sticks and cloves in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until reduced to one cup. Remove from heat and let the vin cotto cool;

Make the chicken

In a large skillet, heat two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over high heat. Season the chicken with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, add the pieces skin side down to the pan, and brown on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. 

Reduce the heat to medium, and add the onion and carrots. Cook, stirring, until the chicken gets more color and the onions and carrots start caramelizing. 

Add the olives, raisins, capers, pine nuts, and almonds to the pan. Stir and add half a cup of the vin cotto. Deglaze the pan, scraping and stirring the fond (browned bits on the bottom), and boil until liquids are reduced by half. Add the remaining vin cotto and bring to a boil.

In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and sugar. Add to the pan and cook, stirring. The sauce will reduced to a glaze. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Serve the chicken and sauce on a platter with a drizzle of olive oil, chili flakes, and chopped parsley.

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