In a large shallow glass bowl place chicken with chopped shallots, minced garlic, salt and pepper. Place bay leaves and thyme over the top and gently pour the red wine over. Cover with a cling film. Marinate in the refrigerator at least for 8 hours or over night.
Remove chicken from the marinade and place it on a platter and let it come to room temperature.
Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the diced bacon and fry until golden brown and crisp. With a slotted spoon transfer to a plate.
To the same pot add the chicken thighs (do not crowd the meat in the pan, rather do it in 2 batches) and brown the meat on all sides about 7-10 minutes. Turn the heat to medium-low. Remove the chicken pieces with tongs from the pot and transfer to a large plate. Cover with foil.
Turn the heat back to medium-high and gently add marinade to the pot. With a wooden spoon scrape the bottom of the pot to remove all the good bits.
Pour in the vegetable broth, stir well and bring to a boil. Turn the heat lower and let it simmer until the liquid reduced by half, for approximate 15 to 20 minutes.
Add to the marinade the browned chicken pieces and sliced carrots, cover the pot and braise for another 25 - 30 minutes.
Season more with sea salt and crushed pepper if needed.
You can serve with butter roasted potatoes or just with a slice of baguette. Bon Appétit!
Notes
This French inspired comforting dish with wine calls for a quick celebration with friends and family or just to make a simple midweek dinner more fabulous. It is so easy to make and you can prepare it ahead of time since the taste will only get better once you reheat it. We love to drizzle two or three spoonful of tipsy goodness (just kidding, because the wine looses most of the alcohol after 30 minutes of) over the top of the meat and potatoes.