Poule Au Pot - Braise Chicken

Poule Au Pot is chicken cooked in a pot with herbs and vegetables. It is a French dish first served when Henry IV wanted his chicken in one pot for a lazy Sunday meal. I think for a king this dish is not fancy at all. Perhaps he had so many elegant meals during the week, and this dish helped him to unwind while the servants probably had a day off . I am definitely not a queen, but nothing can stop me from enjoying the dish used once served to a king. This dish actually is very simple. The chicken is simply cooked with its own broth, and the vegetables are added in the last few minutes of cooking time and served along with the bird. It is imperative to use a free-range chicken for the best flavor, but it is not required. As common folks, just use whatever is available. Flavor the broth well with fresh herbs and cut the cooking time for the bird to achieve the best result for the Poule Au Pot.
Equipment:
Large pot
Kitchen twine
Cheesecloth

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (3 to 4 1/2 lbs)
1 tsp salt

Broth:
2 cups white wine
10 cups  Water
1 white onion, halved
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
5 sprigs of parsley
10 juniper berries
10 black peppercorns
1 leek,  cut into 2 inch segments

Garnish with:
2 carrots, cut into bite size pieces
2 Yukon potatoes, cut into chunks
2 cups white cabbage

Directions:
Season the chicken with salt and wrap it up with cheesecloth.

 Cooking the chicken in cheesecloth with help it keep its shape. Put into a large pot. Put carrots, celery, leek, white onion, bay leaves, parsley, peppercorns, juniper berries, and garlic into another cheesecloth (this will help to skim off any scum from the broth easily and to remove the pouch of cooked vegetables more easily).

 Cover with white wine and water and bring to a simmering point. Cook on a very low heat for 20 minutes. Season again, if needed. Cover with lid. Turn heat off and let chicken slowly finish cooking in the hot broth. Lift out the chicken and drain on a tray. Discard the cooked vegetables. Add all the garnishes into the pot; Turn the heat on and cook until the carrots and potatoes are tender.
To serve:
Remove the skin from the chicken and carve. Then serve with the cooked vegetables. Strain the cooking liquid and serve as a broth to start the meal. The rest of the broth can be frozen and used later for soup or stock.