One of my all-time favorite recipes is coq au vin, the classic French braise of chicken slowly simmered in red wine. It makes a satisfying main course on a cold weekend night, with its succulent meat colored deep reddish brown from the cooking liquid and its robust garnishes of smoked bacon, sauteed mushrooms, and little onions.

Not only is coq au vin delicious, but also it's economical. I like to make it with inexpensive chicken legs, which stay extra juicy during cooking. And you can buy them in quantity at even better prices to make a big batch, storing leftovers in the refrigerator or freezer for another meal. Reheated, the dish tastes, if anything, even better. Of course, if you're partial to chicken breasts, use them instead. Or have a whole chicken cut up so there's something for everyone.

I first learned to make the dish during my early days working in France in the kitchen of the famed Aux Trois Faisons restaurant in Dijon, where it was one of the specialties of the house. Guests there loved to order it for large banquets and we'd make batches that served 400 people at one sitting. The menu listed it as Coq au Vin de Bourgogne, chicken in Burgundy wine; but, to tell the truth, great Burgundies are too delicate (and costly) for the sauce, so we actually cooked it with more hearty and reasonably priced, but still good, reds from the south of France or even Algeria.

That's what led me to start making my own version with a New World wine from California like Petit Syrah or Zinfandel. Either will yield a sauce with rich flavor and deep color. For the most satisfying dining experience, be sure to pour the same type of wine alongside - though you can use a less expensive bottle for the cooking and a more expensive one for drinking!

You don't need too much of the wine for braising. This dish is best, developing the right balance and intensity of flavors, if the chicken simmers in relatively little wine, just half a bottle. By the way, the amount of liquid and the size of the food pieces cooked usually determines the difference between a braise (less liquid, bigger pieces) and a stew (more liquid, smaller pieces). To thicken the liquid into a sauce before serving, I use a little French beurre manie (literally "kneaded butter"), a butter-and-flour paste.

My only other tip for success in this surprisingly easy recipe is to resist using boneless, skinless chicken pieces. Cooking the chicken with its skin and bones keeps the meat moister and more flavorful; and if you don't want to eat the skin, just remove it before serving or push it politely to the side of your plate.

CHICKEN IN PETIT SYRAH

Serves 4

1 whole chicken, about 4 pounds, cut into eighths

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

10 slices smoked bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 medium onion, cut into 1-inch pieces, or 16 small boiling onions, cut in half

16 button mushrooms, cut in half

1 large carrot, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 stalk celery, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 bottle Petit Syrah or Zinfandel

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon minced fresh tarragon

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature

Dust the chicken pieces with the 2 tablespoons of the flour and season them with 1/2 teaspoon each of the salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat a vertical-sided saute pan large enough to hold all the chicken pieces in a single layer (or 2 smaller pans, if necessary) over high heat. Add the oil and, when it is hot enough to swirl freely, carefully add the chicken pieces, skin side down. Saute the chicken over high heat until dark golden brown all over, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside on paper towels. Carefully pour off the fat from the pan.

Return the pan to medium heat, add the bacon pieces, and saute until golden brown but not yet crisp, about 3 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels and set aside. Still over medium heat, in separate batches, saute the onions, mushrooms, carrots, and celery until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes per batch, transferring each batch to a bowl as it is done. Pour off the remaining fat from the pan.

Add the wine to the pan and, over medium-high heat, stir and scrape with a wooden spoon to deglaze the pan deposits. Return the chicken pieces to the pan with the vegetables, garlic, thyme, and tarragon. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and cook until the chicken and vegetables are tender, 25 to 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, mash or knead together the butter and remaining flour to form a smooth paste, a beurre manie. Transfer the chicken pieces to a heated platter. Over medium heat, boil the sauce until it has reduced by about a third, 7 to 10 minutes. A little at a time, stir in some of the beurre manie as needed to make a sauce thick enough to coat the chicken, but still fluid. Stir into the sauce the remaining salt and pepper, along with the bacon pieces, then taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings if necessary.

To serve, place 2 chicken pieces on each heated serving plate. Spoon the sauce, vegetables, and bacon over each serving.

Chef Wolfgang Puck's TV series, "Wolfgang Puck's Cooking Class," airs Sundays on the Food Network. Also, his latest cookbook, "Wolfgang Puck Makes It Easy," is now available in bookstores. Write Wolfgang Puck in care of Tribune Media Services Inc., 2225 Kenmore Ave., Suite 114, Buffalo, N.Y. 14207.