I could eat poultry every day of the year without repeating a single dish, and without getting the least bit bored. Chicken alone I could happily eat four or five times a week, partly because it’s so much fun to cook, and there are so many ways to cook it apart from the standard methods of roasting, poaching, and frying. If you get a really fine bird, you may find, as I do, that the true, full, old-fashioned chicken flavor needs no additives. Nothing can beat the plump, fine-grained chicken breasts served by a good new restaurant in my neighborhood, La Gauloise, just simply grilled, with those appetizing crossbars lightly charred on the crackling golden skin. But you can also liven chicken up with puckery tastes or the nutty flavors of ham or bacon, sweeten it with onions, or deepen it with garlic. Marinated in yogurt, or in oil and spices, Moroccan style, or with a soycentered teriyaki, the flesh readily absorbs flavor. Basic dishes like Southern-fried chicken can be varied with herbs and spices. And as for sautés! I’m suggesting seven here (there are three in Theory & Practice), but my old friend Jeanne Owen, a splendid cook with a famous palate for wine, had thirty in her repertoire.
Two good birds I’m using much more lately are turkey and Rock Cornish game hen: the former because nowadays you can buy the parts you prefer, the latter because the fresh birds, now generally available, are far superior to the frozen. In the days when turkey was a seasonal, traditional, holiday bird, always roasted whole, I thought it was a terrible bore. For one thing, it lasted forever, and for another, you either got overcooked white meat or undercooked dark. But, if you roast the breast alone, you can get it just right, and then you have a smooth heart-shaped chunk of delicate meat that is infinitely adaptable. Do it with anchovies and a tuna sauce, to serve at room temperature on a hot day, and you have a surprising variation on the classic vitello tonnato at a quarter the price. The meaty, rich-tasting thighs make a sturdy chili; deviled drumsticks are a crusty, piquant treat to finish off in your fingers (how else would you get at those plump nuggets that cling to the knuckle bone?); and the inexpensive, flavorful wings, one per serving, make a rewarding braise.
Goose and duck are so rich and tasty that you can give them strong accompaniments, often tart or sweet-sour, like my friend Philip Brown’s crisp duck kebabs scented with orange.
Squab too has plenty of flavor and is distinctly finger food, a joy particularly on a picnic. I’ve always favored squab because it tastes very much like game, which I adore. When I was a boy in Oregon we always had a generous supply; we had pheasant and plump little snipe from the shore and luscious teal and beautiful mallards down from Canada. Nobody in our family agreed on how wild duck should be cooked so my mother would stuff and roast one well-done, and do another blood-rare, and maybe broil a third.
Fortunately, today quantities of game are available from commercial breeders, and more game is to be found on restaurant menus across the country. So it seemed to me only right to include several recipes for those prized birds like pheasant, quail, and partridge that you can obtain now or perhaps may even bag yourself.
Rabbit is included here, in the old-fashioned cookbook style, because rabbit and chicken taste somewhat alike, are interchangeable in many recipes, and used to be raised together and sold in the same shops. Nowadays, rabbit is becoming easily available in supermarkets, usually frozen in parts. Inexpensive, delicate, lean, and fine-flavored, it’s as useful as chicken and as much of a stimulus to people who really like to cook and eat.
POULTRY
Roast chicken flamed with cognac
with Armagnac
with Calvados
with whisky
Roast chicken sarthoise
Roast chicken Picasso
Roast chicken with green peppercorn butter
Braised chicken with ham stuffing
with mustard and cream sauce
Poached chicken
with vegetables
with garlic
with onion-rice sauce
with hollandaise
My favorite southern-fried chicken
with cinnamon or paprika
with rosemary
Pan-fried chicken
with cream
Chicken in the Moroccan
style, with pickled
lemons and olives
Chicken with forty cloves of garlic
Chicken sauté with herbs
with onion, garlic, and tomato
with lemon
with onion and chilies
with vinegar
basquaise
quick coq au vin
Chicken legs sautéed with walnuts
with yogurt and red peppers
with paprika, sour cream, and lemon rind
Sautéed gizzards and hearts
with chicken livers
with Madeira
with mushrooms and sour cream
Piquant broiled chicken halves
Mustard chicken
Boned chicken breasts poached in tomato sauce
chicken strips and rice
with basil and hot peppers
Roast turkey breast
hot: 4 variations
cold: 3 variations
Turkey breast pappagallo
Turkey saltimbocca
Turkey divan
with endive
with asparagus
with spinach
Hot turkey salad
Turkey tonnato
Turkey casserole
Turkey chili
Deviled turkey drumsticks
Braised turkey wings
provençal
piquant
Roast cornish hens with tarragon
with rice stuffing
with herb stuffing
with garlic stuffing
Broiled rock cornish hens with tarragon butter
with rosemary butter
with garlic-parsley butter
Poached rock cornish hens
Sautéed squab with bacon
squab à la crème
spatchcocked squab
Roast duck with cherries
with green olives
Duck in white wine
Duck kebabs
flamed duck kebabs
Roast goose with apple and apricot stuffing
with sauerkraut
Rare roast wild duck
with juniper berries
with olives
A favorite Oregon wild duck
Spitted wild duck flamed
Roast stuffed wild duck
southern-french-style wild ducks
Broiled wild duck
with soy sauce
flambé
teriyaki
Salmi of wild duck
Roast wild goose
Wild goose gumbo
Roast partridge
with orange sauce
Braised partridge with
cabbage and sausage
Roast quail
stuffed with oysters
with tarragon
with duxelles
in vine leaves
on scrapple
with mustard
Sautéed quail
with juniper berries
with shallots and mushrooms
Braised quail with white wine
Roast pheasant pompadour
Fricassee of pheasant
Braised pheasant with sauerkraut
Sautéed pheasant
with white wine and tarragon
Sautéed pheasant with
calvados and apples
Broiled pheasant
with tarragon butter
Rabbit provençal
Mustard rabbit with turnips
Roast Chicken Flamed with Cognac
Simply roasting a chicken is described in Theory & Practice as a most satisfactory way of preparing a bird. These pleasant variations show how one may vary the basic flavor by changes and additives.
4- to 5-pound roasting chicken
½ lemon
¼ pound softened butter
1½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
⅓ cup cognac
½ cup chicken broth or dry white wine
1½ cups heavy cream
4 egg yolks
GARNISH: Chopped parsley
Preheat the oven to 425°. Rub the inside of the chicken with the cut lemon and then with some of the butter. Truss the chicken securely and arrange on its side on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Rub the uppermost side with butter. Roast the chicken for 20 minutes, then turn it to the other side and brush that side with butter. Roast another 20 minutes, then turn the chicken on its back and baste well with the pan juices. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper and continue roasting another 20 minutes or until done. This may take an extra 15 minutes. Test after 1 hour of cooking by puncturing the skin at the thigh joint; there should still be a tinge of pink in the juices. After 1 hour insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh (not touching the bone). If done, the temperature should register 160°.
When the chicken is done, remove to a hot platter. Pour the juices from the roasting pan into a saucepan, return the chicken to the roasting pan, and flame it with the cognac, warmed so it will ignite. The flavor of the cognac will be noticeable in the chicken and prominent in the sauce. Return the chicken to the platter, sprinkle with chopped parsley, and keep warm in the turned-off oven while you make the sauce.
Skim excess fat from the pan juices in the saucepan. Rinse the roasting pan with the chicken broth or white wine and add to the saucepan. Blend the cream and egg yolks. Heat the pan juices (do not boil) and stir a couple of tablespoons into the egg mixture, then stir this into the saucepan and stir over medium heat until the sauce thickens—do not let it boil or it will curdle. Adjust the seasoning and pour into a sauce boat to serve with the chicken.
Chicken Flamed with Armagnac. Add a sprig of rosemary to the cavity of the chicken and rub the skin with a mixture of rosemary and butter. After roasting, flame with ⅓ cup Armagnac. Prepare the sauce as before and serve the chicken with sautéed potatoes and a salad. The Armagnac and rosemary make a most interesting flavor combination.
Chicken Flamed with Calvados. Baste the chicken as it roasts with a mixture of ⅓ cup melted butter and ⅔ cup white wine. After roasting, flame with ⅓ cup Calvados. Prepare the sauce as before, flavoring it with 2 tablespoons Calvados. Serve the chicken with thinly sliced apple rings sautéed in butter, sprinkled with sugar, and glazed under the broiler. If Calvados is not available, you may use applejack or apple brandy.
Chicken Flamed with Whisky. Rub the chicken inside and out with softened butter and dried tarragon. Put 1 or 2 sprigs fresh tarragon or 1 teaspoon dried tarragon inside the bird. Baste chicken as it roasts with ⅓ cup melted butter and ½ cup chicken broth. After roasting, flame with ⅓ cup Scotch whisky. Make a sauce by combining pan juices, skimmed of excess fat, with 1 cup brown sauce (you may use the Quick Brown Sauce on page 533) and additional tarragon to taste. Reduce slightly over high heat and serve with the chicken and boiled new potatoes.
Roast Chicken Sarthoise
Roast chicken as directed opposite. Do not flame. Meanwhile, prepare Belgian endive. Trim 6 heads and cut in half lengthwise. Put in a buttered casserole, add the juice of 2 lemons and heat to the boiling point. Cover with buttered wax paper and bake in a 350° oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Cut roast chicken in quarters with poultry shears. Remove breast bone. Arrange pieces on a flat ovenproof dish and top each piece with a thin slice of boiled or baked ham. Arrange endive on top. Pour juices from roasting pan over chicken, sprinkle with ¼ cup grated Gruyère cheese and heat in a 475° oven or under the broiler until the cheese melts.
Roast Chicken Picasso
Roast chicken as directed opposite. Do not flame. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a pan. Add 1 seeded and diced green bell pepper; 1 seeded and diced red bell pepper; ⅓ cup pitted green olives, coarsely chopped; ⅓ cup pitted black olives, coarsely chopped; ¼ cup diced baked ham; 4 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and quartered; salt and pepper to taste; and a pinch of saffron. Cover and simmer gently until tomatoes are soft. Remove cover, increase heat, and simmer until most of liquid has been reduced. Cut chicken in quarters and serve topped with sauce.
Roast Chicken with Green Peppercorn Butter
Crush 1 tablespoon drained canned green peppercorns with 3 slivers garlic and ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon in a mortar with a pestle. Work in ½ cup soft unsalted butter until well blended, and season with ½ teaspoon salt. Lift the skin of the uncooked chicken and with your hand rub the spiced butter over the flesh, making a few gashes in the drumsticks with the point of a small, sharp knife so the spices will penetrate. Put remaining spiced butter inside the bird. Leave 1 hour before roasting to allow flavors to permeate chicken. Roast chicken as directed on page 316, basting with pan juices. Serve with saffron rice. This is particularly delicious served cold.
Braised Chicken with Ham Stuffing
A pleasant change from roast chicken; the braising process makes the bird extremely succulent and flavorful. Serve with rice or crisp French bread and a green salad.
Makes 6 servings
2 cups baked ham, cut into thin julienne strips, with fat
3 or 4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 medium-size onions, thinly sliced
4- to 5-pound roasting chicken
3 stalks celery, cut into julienne strips
2 leeks, well washed and cut into julienne strips
Several sprigs parsley
2 tablespoons butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup dry sherry
Combine the ham, garlic, and onion and stuff the bird with this mixture. Close the vent with a piece of foil and truss the bird. In the bottom of a braising pot make a bed of the celery, leeks, and parsley. Place the bird on top and rub it well with butter, salt, and pepper. Pour sherry over and cover pot with aluminum foil, then the lid. Cook the chicken in a 375° oven for 1¾ hours, removing the foil and lid for the last ½ hour.
Remove the chicken to a hot platter and surround it with the vegetables. Reduce the pan juices one half by rapid boiling and serve separately.
Ham-Stuffed Chicken with Mustard and Cream Sauce. After removing chicken and vegetables, skim fat from the pan juices and cook down to half. Stir in 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard. Add some of the hot juices to ½ cup heavy cream blended with 2 egg yolks, then stir into remainder of sauce and cook gently, stirring, until thickened. Do not boil. Adjust seasoning and serve with chicken.
Poached Chicken
To poach a chicken sounds deceptively simple—and that may be the reason so many birds are cooked too long or at too high heat until the flesh is dry, grainy, stringy, and flavorless. For moist, succulent poached chicken the liquid should be kept at the gentlest simmer and the bird removed when the breast is firm to the touch and the legs barely wiggle when moved. On no account should it be cooked until the skin shrinks and breaks and the flesh starts to fall from the bone. Good accompaniments are boiled or mashed potatoes, steamed rice, or buttered noodles. If you want a creamy sauce, whisk 3 egg yolks with 1 cup heavy cream and add to 1 cup béchamel (see page 531). Season to taste with chopped tarragon. Reheat, but do not allow to boil. For a green vegetable, you might have tiny buttered green peas or green peas and little pearl onions. If you want to use the chicken for cold dishes, such as chicken salad, it will yield about 4 to 4½ cups meat.
Makes 4 servings
4- to 5-pound roasting chicken
1 onion, stuck with 1 clove
1 bay leaf
1 to 2 sprigs parsley
2 to 3 garlic cloves
1 thin sliver lemon rind (without the white pith)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Water or chicken stock
1 tablespoon salt
Put the chicken in a deep pot with the onion, bay leaf, parsley, garlic, lemon rind, and pepper. Add water or chicken stock barely to cover. Bring to a boil, skim off the scum, reduce the heat, add the salt, cover, and cook at the gentlest simmer (the water should not bubble, but merely move) for 50 minutes to 1¼ hours, or until breast is firm but still moist and the legs can be wiggled. Transfer chicken to a hot platter and strain the broth. Carve chicken into serving pieces.
Poached Chicken with Vegetables. Add thinly sliced carrots and tiny white onions to the pot for the last 30 minutes’ cooking time. Serve with the chicken, some of the broth, and boiled potatoes.
Poached Chicken with Garlic. Simmer 15 to 20 unpeeled large garlic cloves with the chicken. Serve these with the chicken, to be squeezed from the husks and spread on thin slices of French bread.
Poached Chicken with Onion-Rice Sauce. Cook 2 large onions, each stuck with 1 clove, with the chicken. Remove cloves from cooked onions. Cook ½ cup rice in 1 cup strained chicken stock until very soft. Purée onions, rub rice through a fine sieve, and combine the two with enough hot heavy cream to make a smooth sauce for the chicken. If desired, you may add 1 cup grated Parmesan or ½ cup shredded Gruyère cheese to the sauce before serving. Garnish with parsley.
Poached Chicken with Hollandaise. Before poaching chicken, put 2 slices lemon and a few rosemary leaves in the cavity. Serve with hollandaise sauce (see page 532) and rice cooked in some of the strained, defatted chicken broth.
Chicken Parts
Nowadays, most of the chicken sold in supermarkets is cut into parts and packaged—whole or halved breasts, legs, thighs, drumsticks, and wings, backs and necks (perfect for the stock pot), gizzards, hearts, and livers. This is a great boon to people like me who love dark meat and find little occasion for using white meat.
Often you’ll find low-cost specials on family-size packages of combinations of the different parts—perhaps three breasts, three legs and thighs, and some wings. Take advantage of these, for there are many ways to prepare parts and you can often get two or three meals from one package. The meaty little thighs are excellent sautéed, the breasts may be sautéed, baked, broiled, or poached, the drumsticks broiled, and the wings sautéed or deep-fried.
However, I prefer to buy a whole chicken for a sauté or fried chicken and cut it into pieces myself. Supermarkets hack poultry, instead of disjointing it carefully, and you are apt to find nasty little splinters of bone. This way, too, you can save and freeze the giblets and backs for the stock pot, or the gizzards and hearts for a quick sauté.
My Favorite Southern-Fried Chicken
This is perhaps the most famous version of fried chicken, and it can be extraordinarily good, especially when fried in lard as it should be. Good, well-rendered lard is as delicate as butter, and it does wonderful things not only for fried chicken but also for pastry (see page 509).
In this recipe you are frying, not pan-frying or sautéing, so you need enough fat in the pan to cover rather more than half of each chicken piece, and they need constant attention if they are to be uniformly brown, crisp, and tender. As the dark meat takes longer to cook than the white, if I’m cooking more than one chicken, I fry the white meat in one pan, the dark in another. If you do cook them together, after browning the pieces put the white meat on top of the dark for the final cooking so it stays warm without overcooking in the fat. I’m a dark meat man, myself, so often I fry only legs and thighs. I also adore picking the neck and back of a chicken and getting the oyster and all those tasty bits, so I often fry those, too.
Everyone has a different idea of how long fried chicken should be cooked. I like it moist and juicy all through with perhaps a bit of pink remaining in the dark meat, so I cook it for the minimum time, 20 minutes for dark meat, 15 minutes for white.
Makes 8 servings
1 to 1½ cups flour
1½ teaspoons salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Two 2½- to 3-pound frying chickens, cut into 4 drumsticks, 4 thighs, 4 halves of breast (sever wings from breasts if you wish), 2 backs and 2 necks
Lard for frying (or substitute peanut or corn oil if you prefer)
GARNISH: Watercress
Mix the flour and seasonings in a plastic bag, add the chicken pieces, and shake well, then remove and rub in the flour so the chicken is well coated. Let the pieces stand on a board for 30 minutes before frying.
In 2 large heavy skillets melt enough lard to come 1½ inches up in the pan (or use the same amount of oil). When hot, fit in the chicken pieces without crowding, otherwise you won’t get an even color. Start the pan of white meat 5 minutes after the dark. Add necks and backs to pan of white meat after 5 minutes. Cook at a rather high heat, being careful the flour doesn’t burn, until brown on one side. Lift frequently with tongs to check browning. Turn and brown other side, then reduce the heat to cook the chicken more slowly, and keep turning. You don’t want the chicken to stew in the fat but cook to a delicious crispness. Total cooking time, according to how you like your meat done, is 20 to 25 minutes for dark meat, 15 to 20 minutes for white meat, and 10 to 15 minutes for necks and backs. Gauge your timing carefully.
Remove cooked chicken to paper towels to drain briefly, then arrange on a hot platter with watercress. If you want to eat the chicken cold, cover with paper towels to absorb surplus fat, and don’t refrigerate, if possible, as fried chicken tastes better tepid or close to room temperature.
Southern-Fried Chicken with Cinnamon or Paprika. Add ¼ teaspoon cinnamon or paprika to the seasoned flour.
Southern-Fried Chicken with Rosemary. Add ¼ teaspoon crushed rosemary to the seasoned flour.
Pan-Fried Chicken
Dredge chicken pieces with flour. For this method, melt lard to a depth of ½ or ¾ inch in skillets and brown the chicken quickly on all sides. Reduce heat, cover pans, and cook 20 to 25 minutes for dark meat, 15 to 20 minutes for white.
Pan-Fried Chicken with Cream. After cooking chicken, pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from each skillet and flame each pan of chicken with 4 tablespoons brandy. Remove chicken to a hot platter. Combine pan juices in one skillet. Blend 2 cups heavy cream with 4 egg yolks, stir into pan juices, and cook over low heat, stirring, until just thickened. Do not let it come near the boiling point or the eggs will curdle. Taste for seasoning. Serve over the chicken.
Chicken in the Moroccan Style, with Pickled Lemons and Olives
Makes 8 servines
2 three-pound chickens, cut in serving pieces
2 tablespoons coarse salt
7 garlic cloves
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon black pepper
3 large onions, grated
4 tablespoons butter
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup soft ripe olives, preferably the Greek Kalamata
8 slices pickled lemon (see below)
Rub the chicken pieces well with a mixture of the salt and 4 of the garlic cloves, finely chopped. Let stand 1 hour for flavors to penetrate, then wipe off the garlic salt. Mix the oil, ginger, turmeric, pepper, and saffron, and rub the chicken pieces with this mixture. Put them in a large bowl with any remaining oil mixture and marinate, covered and refrigerated, for 8 hours or overnight.
To cook, put the chicken pieces in a large pot with the onion, remaining garlic, coarsely chopped, butter, chicken broth, and 2 cups water. Simmer until tender, about 40 to 45 minutes. Remove chicken and rapidly boil the liquid down to a thick, rich sauce, stirring frequently. Add the olives and pickled lemon slices, replace chicken, and reheat in the sauce. Serve with couscous (see page 298) or rice pilaf (see page 290), and a bowl of extra pickled lemons.
PICKLED LEMONS: These keep for months in the refrigerator and are worth making in quantity.
6 lemons
Coarse salt
Vegetable oil
Slice the lemons about ¼ inch thick, peel and all, put in a colander, sprinkle heavily with salt. Cover with plastic wrap and drain over a bowl for 24 hours, until limp, with most of the juice drawn out. Wash off salt. Pack the lemon slices into a 1-quart jar, sprinkling them with about 2 tablespoons more salt. Fill the jar with vegetable oil. Cover jar with lid and let the lemons stand from 1 to 3 weeks, by which time they will be soft, mellow, and not at all bitter.
Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic
A Provençal recipe I taught for years in my classes—and which never failed to astonish the students. They couldn’t believe we would use forty garlic cloves, but the slow braising softens the garlic to a lovely buttery consistency and delicate flavor, like the garlic purée on page 534.
⅔ cup oil
8 chicken drumsticks and thighs (or use 16 drumsticks or 16 thighs)
4 ribs celery, cut in long strips
2 medium-size onions, chopped
6 sprigs parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon (or 1 teaspoon dried)
½ cup dry vermouth
2½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Grated nutmeg
40 cloves garlic, unpeeled
Put the oil in a shallow dish, add the chicken pieces, and turn them to coat all sides evenly with the oil. Cover the bottom of a heavy 6-quart casserole with a mixture of the celery and onion, add the parsley and tarragon, and lay the chicken pieces on top. Pour the vermouth over them, sprinkle with the salt, pepper, and a dash or two of nutmeg, and tuck the garlic cloves around and between the chicken pieces. Cover the top of the casserole tightly with aluminum foil and then the lid (this creates an airtight seal so the steam does not escape). Bake in a 375° oven for 1½ hours, without removing the cover.
Serve the chicken, pan juices, and whole garlic cloves with thin slices of heated French bread or hot toast. The garlic should be squeezed from the root end of its papery husk onto the bread or toast, spread like butter, and eaten with the chicken.
Chicken Sauté with Herbs
Makes 4 servings
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 frying chickens, 2 to 2½ pounds each, quartered
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
½ cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, chives, and dill, mixed
A few drops of lemon juice
Melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet or sauté pan with a tight-fitting cover. Add chicken pieces and brown on all sides. Lower heat, season to taste with salt and pepper, cover, and cook very gently for 5 to 8 minutes. Add ¼ cup wine and cook 10 minutes more. Then move pieces of white meat to the top, leaving the dark meat, which takes longer to cook, on the bottom. Sprinkle chicken with the chopped herbs, cover, and cook until just tender but still juicy, about 5 to 10 minutes. Check after 5 minutes.
Remove chicken to a hot platter. Add remaining wine and the lemon juice to pan and turn up the heat. Boil, scraping up the brown glaze from the bottom of the pan. When juices have reduced by half, pour them over the chicken and serve.
You can use other mixtures of herbs, such as tarragon and parsley; tarragon, parsley, and chives; parsley and rosemary; parsley and chervil.
Chicken Sauté with Onion, Garlic, and Tomato. After browning and seasoning the chicken, add 3 tablespoons finely chopped onion and 1 finely chopped garlic clove. Cook as before. When moving white meat to the top, add to the pan 3 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped. Cover and cook until done. Remove chicken, add 1 tablespoon chopped parsley and let the sauce cook down for 2 minutes before pouring it over the chicken.
Chicken Sauté with Lemon. Omit the wine. Just before removing the cooked chicken, pour over it the juice of 2 lemons and the grated rind of 1 lemon. Remove chicken. Add 1 tablespoon chopped parsley to the pan juices and lemon and cook down for 1 minute. Pour over the chicken.
Chicken Sauté with Onion and Chilies. After browning and seasoning the chicken, add to the pan 2 tablespoons chopped onion, 1 finely chopped garlic clove, and 3 canned green chilies, cut in strips. Add ⅔ cup dry white wine and cook until tender. Serve with polenta.
Chicken Sauté with Vinegar. After browning and seasoning chicken, add ⅓ cup water and simmer 15 minutes. Add 2 finely chopped green onions, or scallions, and 1 tablespoon chopped parsley when moving chicken pieces, cover, and cook until tender. Remove chicken and add ¼ cup wine vinegar to the pan. Boil, scraping up brown glaze, until vinegar has cooked down to a bubbly consistency, then add ¼ cup water and mix until smooth. Add ¼ cup chopped parsley and pour pan juices over the chicken.
Chicken Sauté Basquaise. Sauté the chicken, omitting the herbs. While it is cooking, make the sauce. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a pan. Add 1 finely chopped onion; 2 green bell peppers, peeled, seeded, and cut in large squares; 1 small hot pepper, seeded and finely chopped (or 2 chopped canned green chilies). Cook until soft. Add 1½ cups drained Italian plum tomatoes, ¼ cup cognac, ½ cup dry white wine, and a pinch of saffron. Simmer, uncovered, until sauce is reduced and thick. Add 4 ounces diced Virginia ham. Season to taste. Pour sauce over chicken and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve with saffron-flavored rice.
Quick Coq au Vin. Prepare the chicken sauté, omitting herbs and using ¼ cup red wine to simmer the chicken. While it is cooking, prepare the sauce bourguignon, onions, mushrooms, and salt pork as for Instant Beef Bourguignon (see page 370). Add these to the cooked chicken and heat through, then sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve with boiled new potatoes.
Chicken Legs Sautéed with Walnuts
Makes 6 servings
6 chicken legs (drumsticks and thighs), in one piece
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 cup strong chicken broth
4 tablespoons chopped parsley
¼ cup toasted walnut halves
Sauté the chicken legs in the oil and butter until browned on all sides. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add the onion, chopped walnuts, and broth. Simmer 20 to 25 minutes, or until tender, turning once or twice. Sprinkle with parsley and serve garnished with toasted walnuts.
Chicken Legs with Yogurt and Red Peppers. Omit onion and walnuts. After browning chicken, add broth and simmer until tender. Remove chicken to serving platter. Boil pan juices down until reduced by half. Remove from heat and mix in ½ cup yogurt. When smooth, reheat but do not let it boil. Add 2 roasted, peeled, and seeded red bell peppers, cut in ½-inch strips; correct seasoning and pour over chicken.
Chicken Legs with Paprika, Sour Cream, and Lemon Rind. Omit walnuts. After browning chicken, remove from pan, add 1½ cups chopped onion and sauté until golden. Mix in 1 tablespoon paprika, and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Replace chicken, add broth, and simmer until tender. Remove chicken to serving platter. Off the heat, stir 1 cup sour cream into the pan. Reheat but do not let the sauce boil. Pour sauce over chicken and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon grated lemon rind.
Sautéed Gizzards and Hearts
Makes 4 servings
1½ pounds chicken gizzards and hearts
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons oil
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 tablespoon cut chives
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
¼ cup dry white wine or dry sherry
Clean and trim the gizzards and hearts. Slice the gizzards thin. Melt 3 tablespoons butter and the oil in a heavy skillet, add the giblets, and sauté quickly over high heat, shaking the pan well, until browned. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the onion, chives, and parsley, and sauté, stirring, until onion is golden. Add wine, reduce the heat, and simmer 4 to 5 minutes. Swirl in the remaining tablespoon butter and serve with rice or buttered noodles.
Sautéed Gizzards, Hearts, and Livers. Add 4 chicken livers to the sauté.
Sautéed Gizzards and Hearts with Madeira. Use Madeira instead of dry white wine or sherry.
Sautéed Gizzards and Hearts with Mushrooms and Sour Cream. After cooking the gizzards and hearts, add ½ pound sautéed sliced mushrooms. Omit last tablespoon of butter. Off heat, stir 1 cup sour cream into the pan juices, reheat, but do not allow to boil.
Piquant Broiled Chicken Halves
Makes 6 servings
1 cup ground walnuts
6 shallots, finely chopped
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Tabasco
Three 2½-pound broiling chickens, split, with backbone and neck removed
⅔ cup melted butter
1 teaspoon paprika
Combine the nuts, shallots, 4 tablespoons butter, salt, parsley, dry mustard, and ½ teaspoon Tabasco to a smooth paste. Loosen the skin on the chicken breasts by sliding your hand between skin and flesh and stuff the paste under the skin. Combine the melted butter, paprika, and 3 dashes Tabasco.
Arrange chicken bone side up on the broiler rack and brush with the melted butter mixture. Broil 4 inches from the heat for 12 to 14 minutes, basting once or twice with the butter, then turn, brush skin side with butter, and broil for 12 to 14 minutes, basting again.
Mustard Chicken
A mustard coating on chicken or on rabbit (see page 357) gives the bland meat unusual and intriguing flavor, and helps to thicken the cream as it bakes.
Makes 4 servings
4 half chicken breasts
Flour
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons oil
¾ to 1 cup Dijon or herbed mustard
1 medium-size onion, finely chopped
½ cup finely chopped mushrooms
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Dust the chicken breasts lightly with flour and sauté in the butter and oil until nicely browned on all sides. Remove, cool a little, then spread each piece liberally with mustard and put in a shallow baking dish.
Cook the onion in the fat remaining in the pan until golden, add the mushrooms, and cook with the onion until soft. Add the parsley and salt and pepper to taste—you won’t need much seasoning because of the mustard. Blend in the cream and let it just heat through. Pour the mixture over the chicken and bake in a 350° oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is tender when tested with a fork. Taste to see if the sauce needs more seasoning and add the lemon juice. Serve with plain rice.
Boned Chicken Breasts Poached in Tomato Sauce
Makes 4 servings
2 whole chicken breasts
4 to 5 cups homemade light tomato sauce, heated (page 282)
Grated Parmesan cheese
Skin and bone the breasts and cut in half. Put halves between sheets of wax paper and pound until no more than ⅜ inch thick. (For technique see Theory & Practice, pages 185–187.)
Lay chicken breasts flat in 2 large skillets (or cook in 2 batches, as 1 skillet will only hold 2 pounded breasts) and pour over them just enough tomato sauce to cover. Simmer very gently until just cooked through, about 3 minutes, turning once if necessary to cook the top side.
Serve with cooked rice or pasta. Pour the poaching sauce over the chicken and rice or pasta and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese to taste.
Chicken Strips and Rice. After cooking the breasts, cut them into thin strips and stir into hot cooked rice or risotto with some of the tomato sauce.
Chicken in Tomato Sauce with Basil and Hot Peppers. Add to the sauce 1 tablespoon dried basil and 2 dried hot red peppers, crumbled. Poach chicken, taste sauce for seasoning, and add a dash of Tabasco, if desired.
Chicken in Yogurt
Makes 6 servings
1½ to 2 cups yogurt (the larger amount if you use only chicken legs)
1 garlic clove, crushed
½ teaspoon ground ginger
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1 frying chicken, cut up (or 8 chicken legs, cut into drumstick and thigh pieces)
Flour or cornmeal or crushed cornflakes
Combine the yogurt with the crushed garlic clove, ground ginger, and salt and pepper to taste in a large flat dish. Lay the chicken pieces in the yogurt and marinate for at least 2 hours, turning the pieces once during that time.
Remove the chicken; roll the pieces in either flour or cornmeal or crushed cornflakes, and arrange in a lightly oiled baking pan or the bottom of the broiler pan. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 1 hour, until the chicken is tender and the coating crisp and delicately browned. The pan juices are delicious, but don’t pour them over the chicken because you want to keep that crispness; pour them around it. Serve with a good salad and a bottle of wine. You may also serve the chicken on a bed of rice or buttered noodles if you like.
Turkey Parts
Turkey parts have certainly altered our cooking lives. Now that we can buy the drumsticks, thighs, wings, and breasts separately, there need be no more squabbles over light and dark meat—everyone can have his choice. Because there is a large proportion of meat to bone, turkey parts are a really economical buy, especially the meaty breasts. These you can roast and use both hot and cold, for turkey salad, turkey hash, turkey in lettuce leaves (see page 29), turkey sauce for pasta, or what you will. While it is also possible now to buy turkey cutlets, thin slices cut from the breast, you are really better off buying the whole breast. If it is still partially frozen, it will be easy to slice thin. Cooked quickly and sauced like veal scaloppine, turkey cutlets are hard to distinguish from the best-quality expensive veal.
To thaw frozen turkey thighs, wings, or drumsticks, allow about 1 day in the refrigerator, or 2 or more hours in cold water, wrapped. A whole turkey breast will take 36 hours or more in the refrigerator, or about 6 hours in cold water.
Roast Turkey Breast
Makes 8 to 12 or more servings
1 whole turkey breast, about 8 to 9 pounds
⅓ cup melted butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup dry white wine
Brush the turkey breast with 2 tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange on a rack in a roasting pan and roast in a 350° oven, allowing about 20 minutes a pound, or until the internal temperature, tested by inserting a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast, reaches 160° to 165°. Baste during the roasting with the remains of the melted butter mixed with the white wine. Slice and serve in any of the following ways:
HOT
1. With Béarnaise sauce (see page 532), sautéed potatoes, and broccoli with brown butter.
2. Place a slice of turkey on a slice of baked country ham. Serve with sauce Madeira (page 533) and polenta.
3. With velouté sauce heavily flavored with chopped fresh tarragon. Serve with rice, and broiled eggplant slices.
4. For Deviled Turkey, let breast cool, then slice, dip in beaten egg and then in bread crumbs. Sauté in hot butter until lightly browned. Serve with sauce diable (see page 533).
COLD
1. With potato salad and homemade mayonnaise.
2. With sliced tomatoes, baby zucchini à la Grecque or vinaigrette, and vinaigrette sauce.
3. With a rice salad and a mixture of half mayonnaise and half sour cream flavored with chopped tarragon, parsley, and chives.
Turkey Breast Pappagallo
This is one way to use turkey cutlets. (For other ideas, see recipes for veal scallops on pages 406 to 408.) Either use the ready-cut packaged cutlets or cut slices about ⅜ inch thick from a partially thawed turkey breast (it should not be hard, but still firm enough to slice easily). These cutlets are good with sautéed potatoes and chopped spinach dressed with oil and a little garlic and nutmeg.
Makes 6 servings
12 turkey cutlets, about ⅜ inch thick
½ cup flour
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) butter
6 tablespoons oil
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
12 thin slices ham
1 cup sautéed sliced mushrooms
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup chicken or turkey broth
Chopped parsley
Pound the cutlets lightly between sheets of wax paper until thin, as for veal scaloppine. Flour the slices lightly.
Use 2 skillets for sautéing so the pan will not be overcrowded. Melt half the butter with half the oil in each skillet. When hot, add the turkey slices and sauté quickly, turning them once and seasoning with salt and pepper as they cook. You will probably have to do this in 2 or 3 batches. Do not overcook. Put a slice of ham on each cutlet and spoon some of the mushrooms on top. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese, add the broth, cover, and simmer about 5 minutes, or until the cheese has melted.
Arrange turkey on a hot platter and spoon the pan juices over the top. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Turkey Saltimbocca
Makes 6 to 8 servings
12 to 16 small thin slices turkey breast
4 shallots, finely chopped
6 tablespoons butter
½ cup duxelles (see page 535)
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon or 2 teaspoons dried tarragon
6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
All-purpose flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Fresh bread crumbs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Dry white wine or chicken broth (see page 529)
½ cup sour cream or yogurt
1 tablespoon chopped parsley or fresh tarragon
Pound the turkey breast slices until they are round in shape and about 2½ inches in diameter. Sauté the shallots in 2 tablespoons butter until limp, mix in the duxelles, and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from heat. Stir in the tarragon and Parmesan cheese. Spread 1½ to 2 tablespoons of the mixture on one piece of turkey, cover with a second piece, and press edges well together. Dust with flour, dip in beaten egg and then in bread crumbs, and put on a baking sheet covered with wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to set coating. Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter and the vegetable oil in a heavy skillet and sauté the saltimbocca on each side until golden brown, about 2 minutes a side. Remove and keep warm. Rinse the pan with white wine or chicken stock and let it reduce and cook down. Stir in the sour cream or yogurt, off the heat, add the chopped parsley or fresh tarragon, and pour over the saltimbocca.
Cover the bottom of a large baking dish with cooked broccoli, arrange slices of roast turkey breast on top, and cover with sauce mornay (see page 531). Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and put under the broiler until cheese melts and glazes.
Turkey Divan with Endive. Arrange the turkey on lightly braised halves of endive. Cover with sauce mornay and proceed as above.
Turkey Divan with Asparagus. Arrange cooked asparagus spears in a gratin dish. Top with turkey slices and sauce mornay. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and proceed as above.
Turkey Divan with Spinach. Place slices of turkey breast on a bed of chopped drained cooked spinach lightly flavored with tarragon. Top with sauce mornay and proceed as above.
Hot Turkey Salad
For a change, hot rather than cold turkey for a salad is different and delicious. The mayonnaise helps to hold the heat. Cut hot roasted turkey breast into bite-size pieces, combine with chopped celery, sliced green onions, black olives, and mayonnaise to taste. The mayonnaise should be made with lemon juice and spiced with green peppercorns, Tabasco, Szechuan pepper, or hot paprika.
Turkey Tonnato
Before roasting, loosen the skin on the turkey breast and slip 5 or 6 anchovy fillets under the skin on each side. Make incisions in the meat with a small knife and stud with a few slivers of garlic. After roasting, cool and serve the breast carved into thin slices with the following sauce: blend with 2 cups homemade mayonnaise (page 76), 1 cup finely flaked dark tuna with its oil (canned is all right and the chunk style is usually darker), 1 finely chopped garlic clove, 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, and the cooked anchovy fillets, finely chopped. Arrange turkey slices on a platter, spoon the sauce over them, and garnish with quartered hard-boiled eggs, capers, and cherry tomatoes. Serve with a rice salad.
Turkey Casserole
Makes 4 servings
2 shallots or green onions (scallions), chopped
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup dry vermouth
½ cup pitted ripe olives
2 cups diced cooked turkey breast
⅛ teaspoon thyme
⅛ teaspoon crushed rosemary
1 cup brown sauce (see page 533) or gravy
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
Lemon juice
1 package frozen peas, thawed
Sauté the shallot or green onion in the butter until limp. Remove from heat. Combine with the vermouth, olives, turkey, thyme, rosemary, brown sauce, salt and pepper to taste, a squeeze or two of lemon juice, and the peas. Pour into a casserole and bake in a 350° oven for 35 to 40 minutes.
Turkey Chili
This is not a traditional chili, but an experiment that turned out rather well. It makes an excellent dish for a buffet party. Serve with homemade tortillas and rice or polenta. A radish and cucumber salad is good with this.
Makes 8 to 10 servings
5 to 6 pounds turkey thighs
1 onion, stuck with 2 cloves
2 ribs celery
2 sprigs parsley
2 small dried hot peppers
Salt
2 tablespoons chili powder
4-ounce can peeled green chilies, finely chopped
1 cup ground almonds
½ cup ground peanuts
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup small green olives
½ cup blanched almonds
Put the turkey thighs in a pot with the onion, celery, parsley, hot peppers, and water to cover. Bring to a boil, skim off the scum, reduce heat, and simmer until meat is tender, but not falling from the bones, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove turkey from broth, and when cool enough to handle, remove meat from bones in good-size pieces. Strain and degrease the broth and reduce over high heat to about 4 cups. Add salt to taste. Mix in the chili powder, green chilies, and ground nuts, and simmer until the sauce is thickened, smooth, and well blended in flavor—then taste. You may find you need more chili powder or some Tabasco.
Sauté the onion and garlic in the oil until limp. Add to the sauce and cook 5 minutes. Add the turkey meat and heat thoroughly, then add the olives and almonds and heat for 3 minutes.
Deviled Turkey Drumsticks
Makes 4 servings
4 turkey drumsticks
1 large onion, stuck with 2 cloves
1 carrot
1 bay leaf
1 rib of celery
2 or 3 sprigs parsley
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup melted butter
2 to 3 cups bread crumbs
Put the drumsticks in a pot with the onion, carrot, bay leaf, celery, parsley, salt, and water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until tender, about 45 minutes. Remove drumsticks, drain, and dry. Dip the drumsticks in the melted butter, then roll them in the crumbs, pressing the crumbs in well. Arrange on the broiling rack or in a foil broiling pan, and broil about 6 to 7 inches from the heat, turning them until the crumbs are brown and crisp on all sides, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with sauce diable (see page 533).
Braised Turkey Wings
Braising is excellent for turkey wings, which are not the tenderest or most toothsome parts of the bird. Be sure to remove the cover toward the end of the cooking time so they brown nicely.
Makes 4 servings
3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, sliced
2 carrots, cut in julienne strips
2 ribs celery, cut in julienne strips
2 or 3 sprigs parsley
6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 cup dry white wine
4 turkey wings
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
Heat the butter in a braising pan or flameproof casserole, add the onion, carrot, celery, and parsley, and let them wilt down in the fat. Toss in the garlic cloves, add the wine, arrange the turkey wings on top, and sprinkle them well with salt and pepper. Cover and braise in a 350° oven for 1 to 1½ hours, or until tender, removing the cover for the last 20 minutes. Serve with a potato purée and a cucumber and watercress salad.
Turkey Wings Provençal. Add 4 or 5 additional garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon rosemary, and a cup or more tomato sauce—homemade, naturally! (see page 534)—and proceed as above. Serve with polenta.
Turkey Wings Piquant. Proceed as in basic recipe, but add 4 ounces canned green chilies, seeded and chopped, and chili powder to taste.
Rock Cornish Hens
Roast Cornish Hens with Tarragon
If you can, use the fresh Rock Cornish hens that are now appearing in our markets. They are infinitely better than the frozen variety. Serve these little birds with tiny green peas and little new potatoes, tossed with butter and chopped parsley.
Makes 6 servings
6 Rock Cornish hens
½ lemon
Fresh tarragon
½ pound (2 sticks) butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
Rub the birds inside and out with the cut lemon. Put a couple of sprigs of fresh tarragon in each cavity and chop enough tarragon leaves to make ¼ cup. Cream ¼ pound butter and mix in the chopped tarragon. Rub the birds well with this mixture (if there is any left, put it in the cavities) and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Melt the remaining butter for basting. Preheat the oven to 400°.
Arrange the birds on their sides on a rack in a roasting pan and roast for 15 minutes, then turn on the other side, baste well with the pan juices and melted butter, and roast a further 15 minutes. Then turn on their backs and roast breast up for 10 to 15 minutes, until just tender but not overcooked. Test for doneness by wiggling the legs and puncturing the joint between body and thigh with a paring knife—juices should be faintly tinged with pink.
Rock Cornish Hens with Rice Stuffing. Stuff cavities of hens with 2 cups cooked rice mixed with 1 cup duxelles (see page 535) and a few pistachio nuts. Truss and roast.
Rock Cornish Hens with Herb Stuffing. Stuff cavities of hens with mixture of 3 cups freshly made bread crumbs, ½ cup finely chopped shallots, 10 tablespoons melted butter, ⅓ cup each fresh chopped tarragon, chives, and parsley, and salt and pepper to taste.
Rock Cornish Hens with Garlic Stuffing. Stuff cavities of hens with a mixture of 3 cups bread crumbs, ¼ cup finely chopped garlic, ½ cup olive oil, lots of basil (you want a strong basil flavor), and salt and pepper.
Broiled Rock Cornish Hens with Tarragon Butter
Makes 6 servings
Split 6 Rock Cornish hens in two for broiling. Slip your hand between the skin and flesh and rub tarragon butter (see preceding recipe) lavishly over the thighs and breast; rub, also, a thin layer of butter on the skin of the breast. Arrange on the rack of a broiler pan, bone side up, and rub the bone with tarragon butter. Broil 4 inches from the heat for 8 to 9 minutes, then turn with tongs, brush the skin side with melted tarragon butter, and broil for another 8 to 9 minutes, basting once or twice with the melted butter. Serve with sautéed potatoes and a salad.
Rock Cornish Hens Broiled with Rosemary Butter. Combine ½ cup butter with 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed in a mortar and pestle, and proceed as above.
Rock Cornish Hens Broiled with Garlic-Parsley Butter. Combine ½ cup butter with 6 or 7 finely chopped cloves garlic and ½ cup chopped parsley. Stuff this under the skin and broil as above.
Poached Rock Cornish Hens
Makes 6 servings
Poach 6 hens as for poached chicken (see page 319), but give these little birds barely 20 minutes’ poaching time. They should not be overcooked. Cool, cut into serving pieces, and cover with a mixture of half mayonnaise and half yogurt. Garnish with lemon slices and black olives. Serve cold with a rice salad (see page 96).
Sautéed Squab with Bacon
This recipe can be made with young pigeons (squab), with the tiny squab chickens weighing about 1 pound, or with fresh Rock Cornish game hens. Allow 1 of the tiny birds per serving; the Rock Cornish hens might do for two.
Makes 2 servings
6 to 8 slices bacon
2 squab or other small birds, split lengthwise
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Cook the bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels and keep warm while cooking the squab. Heat bacon fat in pan until hot, add the squab, and sauté over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, turning to color all sides. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, sprinkled with parsley, with the bacon.
Squab à la Crème. Sauté the squab. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from the pan. Beat 2 egg yolks lightly with 1 cup heavy cream, add the hot fat, then stir into the skillet and cook over low heat, stirring, until just thickened. Do not let it get near the boiling point. Mix in 1 teaspoon paprika, salt and pepper to taste. Serve the sauce separately; shoestring potatoes and sautéed zucchini go well with the squab.
Spatchcocked Squab. “Spatchcocked” is an old English term for splitting and grilling a bird, and it was considered in the countryside the favorite method of preparation. Split each squab down the back lengthwise. Put breast side up and, with a blow of your fist, flatten it, cracking the breast bone so it lies flat. Brush well with oil, chopped garlic, and rosemary, and grill 4 inches from the heat, allowing about 8 minutes per side, or until done to your taste. Baste well with oil during the grilling time. Serve with sautéed potatoes.
Roast Duck
Recently I have learned, after discussing it with one of my favorite chefs, Seppi Renggli of the Four Seasons Restaurant in New York City, a different way of roasting duck, which turns out to be most satisfactory way of roasting duck. The ducks are placed in a 350° oven and roasted for two hours without opening the oven door. This gives a moist duck and drains off most of the fat, and if you wish to remove the skin it comes off very easily. It is an excellent way to deal with this rather fatty bird.
If you want an extremely crisp duck skin, remove it from the duck, cut it into thin strips, and deep-fry in oil at 360° for 3 to 4 minutes, then drain on absorbent paper.
Roast Duck with Cherries
The Long Island ducklings that are sold frozen (or occasionally fresh) in our markets are rather undistinguished birds, and an interesting sauce or accompaniment can improve them greatly. These ducks, which are very fat with little meat on their bones, should be roasted at a low temperature to draw out the fat without overcooking the meat, and it is advisable to prick the skin well to let the fat drain. If you like a crisp skin on your duck, raise the temperature to 500° for the last 15 minutes, but be sure to remove most of the fat from the pan first or you’ll have a very messy oven.
Makes 4 servings
2 four-to-five pound ducklings, fresh or frozen, thawed and well dried
½ lemon
Coarse salt
¼ cup kirsch
1½ cups brown sauce (see page 533)
1 cup tart seeded cherries (preferably Montmorency)
Wipe the ducks well, remove giblets and neck, and save for stock. Remove the loose fat from the cavity and around the neck. Rub cavity and skin with the cut lemon, then with coarse salt. Truss ducks and arrange on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Preheat the oven to 350° and roast the ducks for 1 hour (for rare), 1½ hours for medium rare, 2 hours for medium, according to how you like your duck. After the first 30 minutes’ roasting time, prick the skin well with a fork and prick once or twice more during the time the duck is in the oven. Remove excess fat from pan and save for cooking—there should be only about a cup of fat in the pan at all times. For a crisper skin, 15 minutes before the duck is done raise heat to 500°. Remove cooked ducks to a hot platter and keep warm.
Skim fat from the roasting pan and rinse with the kirsch. Add this to the brown sauce in a small saucepan, bring to a boil, and cook down over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cherries and heat to the boiling point. Taste and correct seasoning, and serve sauce with the duck and a rice pilaf (see pages 290–291). To serve cut duck into halves or quarters with poultry shears.
Duck with Green Olives. Put 12 to 15 crushed juniper berries in the duck cavity. After roasting, remove ducks to a heatproof platter and flame with ⅓ cup gin. Add ⅔ cup small green olives to the brown sauce and skimmed pan juices and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes. Serve with saffron rice.
Duck in White Wine
This is an unusually light and delicious duck recipe, in which the bird is first roasted and then finished in white wine. Serve surrounded with sautéed potatoes.
Makes 4 servings
2 four- to five-pound ducks
Coarse salt
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
⅓ cup cognac
2 cups Muscadet or similar very dry white wine
2 or 3 small onions, each stuck with 1 clove
2 or 3 small carrots
⅔ cup white raisins
2 tablespoons beurre manié (see page 536)
Rub the ducks well inside and out with salt, ginger, and cloves. Truss and roast on a rack as for Roast Duck with Cherries (see page 338) for 1 hour at 350°, but do not increase heat to crisp skin. Remove ducks from oven and place in a deep braising pan. Warm the cognac and flame the ducks. This aids in burning off excess fat. Add the wine, onions, and carrots. Place the pan in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes, basting the ducks occasionally with the liquid. Strain the sauce, discarding vegetables, and return to the pan with the ducks and raisins. Cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes, basting once. Remove ducks to a hot platter. Thicken the sauce to taste, if you wish, with beurre manié. Pour some of the sauce around the ducks and serve the rest separately.
This unusual recipe was the invention of Philip Brown, a friend with whom I have cooked a great deal, professionally and personally. Serve these delicious kebabs with risotto (see pages 291–293), or spinach and mushrooms and buttered noodles.
Makes 6 servings
2 ducks
½ cup olive oil
½ cup orange juice
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
3 to 4 tablespoons grated onion
1 garlic clove, crushed
6 oranges
Pitted green olives (optional)
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
Remove breast and thigh meat from the ducks, leaving the skin and fat on the meat. Combine the oil, orange juice and zest, onion, and garlic in a bowl. Cut duck meat into strips about 2 inches by 1 inch and marinate in the mixture for 2 hours.
Blanch the oranges in boiling water for 3 minutes, drain, and cut in wedges of about 1 inch, leaving the peel on. Thread duck and orange wedges on skewers, adding a few green olives, if you wish. Salt and pepper the duck and broil, skin side up, about 4 inches from the broiling unit, for 10 minutes. Turn and broil 5 minutes on the meat side. The skin should be crisp and the meat pink.
Flamed Duck Kebabs. Warm ¼ cup cognac and 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier or other orange-flavored liqueur. Arrange broiled duck kebabs on a heatproof platter and flame with the cognac-liqueur mixture.
Goose
Roast Goose with Apple and Apricot Stuffing
Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to buy freshly killed geese, except in markets in certain ethnic neighborhoods around holiday time. But it is always possible to find the frozen ones. These should be thawed in their wrappings before roasting. I prefer a fruit stuffing with roast goose, and I find mashed potatoes and sauerkraut excellent accompaniments.
8- to 10-pound goose, thawed if frozen
FRUIT STUFFING
¼ cup butter
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped onion
6 cups day-old bread cubes
½ teaspoon thyme
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups peeled chopped apples
1 cup chopped dried apricots
To make the stuffing, melt the butter in a skillet and sauté the celery and onion until limp and golden. Combine with the bread cubes, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt and the pepper, apples and apricots and toss lightly until well mixed.
Remove giblets and neck from goose and excess fat from the cavity (this is excellent rendered to use for cooking). Stuff the goose about three-quarters full (any leftover stuffing can be baked separately), truss the bird, and sew or skewer the vent.
Rub the skin with the remaining salt and arrange goose, breast up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Roast for 1 hour in a 400° oven, then prick the skin well with a fork to release the fat, reduce the heat to 350° and continue roasting for another hour, removing excess fat from the pan as it accumulates. Then test to see how near to done it is by pressing the leg meat (it should feel soft) and pricking the thickest part of the thigh (the juices should run clear, with a faint tinge of pink). A goose of this size will take from 2 to 2½ hours. If more time is needed, reduce the heat to 325°. Remove to a hot platter and allow to rest 15 minutes before carving.
Roast Goose with Sauerkraut. Truss, but do not stuff the goose; roast it plain. Lightly sauté ½ cup sliced onion in 2 tablespoons of the goose fat. Wash 3 pounds fresh sauerkraut well under running water in a colander. Put the onion in a deep pot, add the sauerkraut, 2 whole peeled garlic cloves, 10 juniper berries tied in cheesecloth, and a 1-pound piece of bacon or blanched salt pork. Season lightly with salt and more heavily with freshly ground black pepper, and add 2 cups dry white wine and 1 cup chicken stock or water. Cover and cook slowly for 2 hours, adding 6 to 8 frankfurters during the last 20 minutes’ cooking time. Arrange cooked sauerkraut on a large platter (remove bag of juniper berries); slice bacon and carve roast goose and arrange on the sauerkraut. Surround with the frankfurters and plain boiled new potatoes.
There are many varieties of wild duck in this country, of which the most common are the mallard, the canvasback, and the smaller teal. One duck is often just enough for a serving, although a larger one will serve 2. With the smaller teal, you will probably need 2 per serving, and you should allow less cooking time. Game birds are a gamble. One is never quite sure of their age or previous athletic activities. Sometimes they will seem perfect and one anticipates a tender morsel, but I’m afraid 90 percent of the time they are a risk. Many people like to hang ducks for 5 to 7 days to mature and somewhat tenderize them before roasting.
Wild duck is seldom stuffed unless it is to be roasted for a long time, but I like to place some seasonings in the cavity for flavor, such as herbs, an onion, a piece of orange or orange rind, a rib of celery, a garlic clove, a few juniper berries. Opinions vary considerably as to how long wild ducks should be roasted. Some like them rare and bloody, which is my preference, others better done. This is something you must decide for yourself.
Rare Roast Wild Duck
Allow 1 duck per serving. Rub the cavities with a cut lemon. Place a piece of celery, a piece of onion, and a piece of orange in each cavity. Rub the breasts well with butter or oil and arrange the birds on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Roast ducks in a 450° oven for 17 to 18 minutes, basting them every 5 minutes with melted butter or a mixture of butter and red wine. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper, and serve cut into halves or quarters with poultry shears. A barley casserole with mushrooms (see page 295) and an orange and onion salad with a rosemary-flavored vinaigrette sauce go well with the ducks.
Roast Wild Duck with Juniper Berries. Put crushed juniper berries and a piece of orange rind in the cavities. Baste with melted butter only. Remove ducks from oven and flame with gin.
Roast Wild Duck with Olives. Roast ducks, basting with a mixture of melted butter and dry white wine. Five minutes before ducks are done, add 1 cup of the white wine and 1 cup small green olives to the roasting pan. Remove ducks from oven and flame with ½ cup cognac. Cook pan juices down for a minute or two, then mix in 1 cup brown sauce (you may use the Quick Brown Sauce, page 533), blend well, and heat through. Serve with the ducks.
A Favorite Oregon Wild Duck
This recipe gives you a well-flavored but rather well-done duck. Stuff the cavities of the ducks with onion quarters and sections of tart apples. Cover the breasts with bacon or salt pork and roast in a 400° oven for 45 minutes, basting well with melted butter and white wine.
For the sauce, sauté 1 onion and 1 apple, both chopped, with the chopped duck hearts and gizzards in 3 tablespoons butter. Add 2 cups rich stock (duck, if you have some, otherwise chicken) and simmer for about 1 hour. Add the drippings from the roasting pan and thicken the sauce with beurre manié (page 536), if desired.
Spitted Wild Duck
Charcoaling ducks on a spit is a traditional way of roasting them. Brush the ducks with oil, arrange them on a spit, and balance them. Roast over fairly hot coals for 18 to 20 minutes for rare to medium rare.
Flamed Spitted Wild Duck. I like to flame the ducks with cognac or Armagnac after they have roasted. This seems to give them a nice glaze and certainly adds to the flavor.
Roasted Stuffed Wild Duck
Serve fresh cornbread, a purée of fresh turnips, and an orange and onion salad with a rosemary-hinted vinaigrette.
Makes 2 servings
STUFFING
½ cup thinly cut celery
1 medium-size onion, finely chopped
¼ cup (½ stick) butter
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 cups bread crumbs
¼ cup (½ stick) melted butter
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 ducks
4 tablespoons butter
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
⅓ cup melted butter
⅓ cup red wine, Port, Marsala, or Madeira
The duck giblets
Sauté celery and onion in the ¼ cup butter until just beginning to soften. Combine with the thyme, salt, pepper, parsley, bread crumbs, and ¼ cup melted butter, then mix in the egg. Stuff the ducks with the mixture, tie and truss them, and place on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
Rub the ducks with 2 tablespoons butter and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Roast in a 350° oven, basting every 10 minutes with a mixture of the melted butter and wine, for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on how well done you like your ducks.
While the ducks are roasting, sauté the giblets in 2 tablespoons butter, chop fine, and season to taste.
Remove the ducks from the oven to a hot platter. Blend the pan juices with the giblets and serve as a sauce for the ducks. To serve, split the ducks in half lengthwise with poultry shears.
Southern-French-Style Wild Ducks. Sauté 1 thinly sliced medium-size onion, ¾ cup finely cut celery, ¼ cup finely chopped parsley, 18 to 20 pitted soft black olives, and 1 minced garlic clove in ½ stick butter. Stir in 1 cup fresh bread crumbs, 1 teaspoon pepper, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ cup Armagnac. Stuff 2 ducks with this mixture, truss, and rub with butter. Roast as above, basting every few minutes with a mixture of ½ cup red wine and ½ cup hot stock. Split ducks and serve with a purée of broccoli.
Broiled Wild Duck
Allow 1 duck per serving. Halve ducks with poultry shears, cutting from the vent at the tail along the side of the breastbone and then down the center of the back. Rub bone and skin sides with a cut lemon. Then rub both sides with 1 tablespoon softened butter per duck and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Melt 4 tablespoons butter for basting.
Preheat the broiler. Arrange ducks, bone side down, on the greased rack of the broiler pan. Broil 4 inches from the heat for 11 to 12 minutes, basting once or twice with butter. Turn, brush bone side with butter and broil for 6 minutes. A total broiling time of 18 minutes is sufficient for wild duck, which should never be overcooked. Serve with sautéed turnips and mushrooms.
Broiled Wild Duck with Soy Sauce. Rub ducks well with soy sauce and crushed rosemary or tarragon. Baste during broiling with a mixture of soy sauce and butter.
Broiled Wild Ducks Flambé. Rub ducks with crushed garlic and rosemary. After broiling, flame with ¼ cup warmed gin.
Wild Ducks Teriyaki. Marinate split ducks for 6 to 8 hours in a teriyaki marinade of ½ cup soy sauce, ½ cup oil, ¼ cup dry sherry, 2 finely chopped garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger root, 1 tablespoon grated tangerine or orange rind. Turn frequently. Baste with marinade during broiling.
Salmi of Wild Duck
A salmi is a traditional English way of using up leftover game and a good dish to make if you have roasted more ducks than you needed. To make stock, which is essential to this dish, be sure you’ve saved the carcasses and other bones from your ducks. Serve with noodles or rice, or on squares of fried polenta.
Makes 2 to 4 servings
Carcasses from several ducks
1 small onion, stuck with 2 cloves
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
4 cups beef stock
4 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons flour
2 to 3 cups cold roasted wild duck meat
½ cup port
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
1 cup small green olives
Combine bones from the ducks, plus any extra you may have in the freezer, with the onion, thyme, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and beef stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours. Strain broth and cook down to 2 cups. Taste and correct seasoning. Melt the butter in a pan, blend in the flour, and cook 5 to 6 minutes, until lightly colored. Stir in the 2 cups duck broth and cook, stirring, until thickened. Add the duck meat, and simmer 25 to 30 minutes. Add port and orange rind and heat through. Blanch olives in boiling water for 5 minutes and add all but 6 or 8 to the sauce. Serve the salmi on a bed of rice or noodles, or on polenta squares, and garnish with the remaining olives.
Roast Wild Goose
A young and tender wild goose may be roasted like wild duck. Baste it well with a mixture of melted butter and wine and roast in a 400° to 425° oven for 35 to 40 minutes. You might put crushed juniper berries in the cavity for flavor. According to size, 1 goose will serve 2 to 4. Red cabbage, braised in red wine with apples, and sautéed polenta are good accompaniments.
Wild Goose Gumbo
Makes 6 servings
1 wild goose
1½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon Tabasco
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup chopped onion
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 to 5 tablespoons oil
2 quarts water
2 dozen oysters and liquor
Cooked rice
Cut the goose into serving-size pieces and season with salt, pepper, and Tabasco. Melt the butter and add the flour, and cook slowly until it becomes a dark roux. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, until the onions soften.
Meanwhile brown the pieces of goose in the oil. Combine with the onion roux and add the water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the goose is tender. Remove meat from the bones and add to pot. Add the oysters and oyster liquor and simmer 15 minutes longer. Correct the seasoning. Serve in bowls with rice.
Partridge
Roast Partridge
Partridge has been a popular game bird for centuries. The opening of the partridge season in France is a major event, and people feast on the first birds of the season as they do on the first asparagus or raspberries. Domesticated partridge raised on game farms can be obtained most of the year, either from the farms, from specialty meat markets, or from companies that ship frozen game by mail. When roasting partridge, a bird that tends to be dry, be sure to bard the breasts well with fat and don’t overcook. Traditional accompaniments for partridge are chip or shoestring potatoes and a bowl of plain watercress, green peas, or turnips, but braised celery or endive is also good.
FOR EACH SERVING
1 young partridge, 1 to 1¼ pounds, well cleaned and skin singed to remove any hairs
6 tablespoons butter
A sheet of fresh pork fat or salt pork, pounded thin, large enough to fit over the breast of the bird
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
2 slices firm white bread
Giblets from the bird
2 tablespoons Madeira
Preheat the oven to 450°. Rub each bird all over with a tablespoon of butter, then bard the breast with the fat, tying it on securely. Put each bird on its side on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Roast at 450° for 5 minutes, turn onto the other side, roast another 5 minutes, then repeat the process once more, so each side has had 10 minutes in all. Reduce heat to 375°, turn birds breast side up, and roast for 20 to 25 minutes, depending on size. Test for doneness by wiggling the legs and piercing the thigh joint. The juices should run pinkish red or the bird will be overcooked. Season with salt and pepper.
While the birds are roasting, sauté the bread in a skillet on both sides in hot butter (about 3 tablespoons for each 2 slices) until crisp and golden. Chop the giblets and sauté them quickly in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter until cooked through, season with salt and pepper and add the Madeira. Spread this mixture on the sautéed bread and serve the partridge on top, with the barding pork still on the breast. It will be brown and crisp and a delicious contrast to the bird.
Roast Partridge with Orange Sauce. Roast 4 partridges. Sauté 1 tablespoon chopped shallot or green onion in 2 tablespoons butter with 1 teaspoon dried tarragon. Add 1 cup game or beef stock and cook down to ⅓ cup. Add ¼ cup Grand Marnier, ½ cup orange juice, and the grated rind of 1 orange. Cook the sauce down for a few minutes, season to taste, and add ½ cup orange sections. Remove barding pork from roast birds, arrange them on toast, and pour sauce over them. Serve with risotto and green beans, see page 293, garnished with almonds.
Braised Partridge with Cabbage and Sausage
Braising is the best way to deal with older partridge—not grandfathers but those past their tender prime. Serve with boiled potatoes or rice.
Makes 6 to 8 servings
2 mature partridges
½ lemon
8 juniper berries
2 medium-size savoy cabbages (curly type) or good-size white cabbages
¼ cup oil
4 tablespoons butter
2-pound piece salt pork
3 tablespoons goose fat, lard, or butter (for greasing pan)
4 slices salt pork, cut in 2-inch pieces
6 whole carrots, scraped
3 whole onions, peeled
2 cloves
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1½ teaspoons dried thyme
2 cups broth (beef, veal, or chicken)
2 large sausages (Italian cotechino, Polish kielbasa, or French garlic sausage)
Rub cavities of birds well with the cut lemon. Put 4 crushed juniper berries in each cavity. Blanch the whole cabbages in boiling salted water for 10 minutes, until leaves separate easily. Drain well, upside down, then leave until cool enough to handle. Cut out cores and carefully separate leaves.
Meanwhile, heat the oil and butter in a heavy skillet and brown the birds well on all sides. Blanch the piece of salt pork in boiling water for 4 minutes. Grease an 8-quart braising pan with the goose fat or lard. Arrange some of the larger cabbage leaves overlapping on the bottom and up the sides of the pan (if you like, roll the bottom leaves), making a nest of cabbage several layers thick. Place a few of the 2-inch pieces of salt pork on the cabbage. Nestle the partridges on top of the pork. Cover with the carrots and onions (stick cloves in 1 onion), the whole piece of salt pork, and more cabbage leaves. (You may also chop the cabbage cores coarse and add.) Season with salt and pepper and the thyme. Pour in the broth; cover the pot tightly with foil and then with the lid. Braise in a 350° oven for 40 minutes. Lay sausages on top of the cabbage, cover, and cook another 40 minutes.
Remove sausages to a hot platter, cover tightly with foil and keep warm. Test partridges for tenderness (insert a knife point into the thigh). If not tender, continue cooking for another 15 minutes, or until tender.
Return the sausages to the braising pan. Carve each bird into 5 pieces—each leg in 1 piece, the breast in 2 pieces, and the back in 1 piece. Remove and slice the large piece of salt pork and the sausages. Arrange cabbage on a large serving dish and ring with the sausage slices. Place the partridges and sliced salt pork on the cabbage and garnish with the carrots and onions (remove clove). Skim excess grease off and serve the pan juices separately. Season with salt and pepper.
Quail
Roast Quail
Tiny white-meated quail are probably the most plentiful of all our game birds. They are also raised in vast numbers on game farms, so you will have no difficulty finding them in your local markets or ordering them by mail. These delicate little birds weigh only about ⅔ to ¾ pound and can’t take much cooking, so roast them fast at a high temperature, and bard or baste them well. One quail is usually considered a serving, but true quail lovers can easily polish off two or three at a sitting. Serve roast quail with shoestring potatoes, watercress, and, if they come with giblets, a sauce made from the livers and pan juices. Cold roast quail are delicious with a rice salad (see page 96), and mayonnaise or a rémoulade sauce (see pages 76, 77).
Makes 2 to 4 servings
4 quail, fresh, or frozen and thawed
4 tablespoons butter
4 sprigs parsley
4 sheets of barding fat, pounded until thin and cut to fit over the breasts of the birds
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
THE SAUCE
3 tablespoons butter
Livers from the quail
1 cup chicken stock
Preheat the oven to 450°. Wipe the quail with a damp cloth and put 1 tablespoon butter and 1 sprig parsley in each cavity. Tie barding fat around the breast. Arrange birds on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Roast for 15 minutes, then remove the barding fat and baste the birds well with the fat and juices in the pan, adding melted butter if there is not enough fat. Sprinkle the birds with salt and pepper, roast for another 5 or 6 minutes, and baste again. During the final roasting time, about 5 minutes, melt the 3 tablespoons butter in a small heavy skillet and sauté the livers very quickly over high heat, just until firm. Chop fine. Transfer the quail to a hot platter and keep warm while you make the sauce. Add livers and stock to the roasting pan, bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce over high heat for 5 minutes, stirring to scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon the sauce under the birds before serving.
Quail Stuffed with Oysters. Put in the cavity of each quail 4 to 6 oysters, depending on size, 2 tablespoons butter, a slice of lemon. Roast as before. Serve each bird on an oval of hot buttered toast, slightly larger than the quail. Garnish with fried parsley. Serve with shoestring potatoes and steamed cucumbers (see page 145) or a cucumber salad.
Quail with Tarragon. Rub quail breasts with tarragon butter before barding. Put a few tarragon leaves in each cavity. Roast as before. Serve with shoestring potatoes and sautéed zucchini (see page 175).
Quail with Duxelles. Place a spoonful of duxelles (see page 535) in each cavity. Roast as before. Serve with creamed mushrooms and turnips, and shoestring potatoes.
Quail in Vine Leaves. Rub quail with butter, salt, and pepper. Put 2 or 3 crushed juniper berries in each cavity. Wrap with barding pork and then in vine leaves, tying securely. Roast as before, but do not remove the vine leaves and barding fat or baste during the roasting. Remove twine before arranging quail on a hot platter. Skim fat from pan juices, add enough dry white wine to deglaze the pan and 1 cup seedless grapes. Cook 4 minutes over fairly high heat. Serve the leaf-wrapped quail on fried toast, with the sauce poured over them. Accompany with fried hominy grits or polenta (see page 300).
Quail on Scrapple. Rub quail with salt and pepper. Put 1 small onion and 1 celery rib in each cavity. Roast as before. Fry slices of scrapple (fresh or canned) and arrange a quail on each slice. Pour pan juices over quail.
Quail with Mustard. Split quail down the back and flatten out. Brush breasts and legs with a heavy coat of Dijon mustard. Tuck bacon slices over breast and legs. Arrange the quail flat on rack of broiler pan and roast for 20 minutes only. Serve with shoestring potatoes and salad, or a purée of carrots and turnips. Also good halved as finger food for a cocktail buffet.
Sautéed Quail
Split birds and dust lightly with flour. Sauté in butter and oil until delicately browned on all sides, turning frequently, then reduce heat and continue cooking until tender, about 12 to 18 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and serve on fried toast. If giblets came with birds, sauté in butter, chop fine, and put on toast before adding quail.
Quail Sautéed with Juniper Berries. After browning quail, add 8 crushed juniper berries to the pan, reduce heat, cover and cook 5 minutes. Flame birds with ⅓ cup warmed gin and cook gently until done, basting with pan juices. Season with salt and pepper and serve on toast.
Quail Sautéed with Shallots and Mushrooms. Sauté 8 chopped shallots and ½ pound finely chopped mushrooms in 8 tablespoons butter, reduce heat, and cook down slowly for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, and a dash of Tabasco. Cook 5 minutes. Sauté quail with 1 finely chopped garlic clove. Flame with ⅓ cup cognac, add mushroom-shallot mixture, reduce heat, and simmer until quail are tender and flavors blended (if too dry, add a little chicken broth). Serve with polenta (see page 300), sliced and sautéed in butter.
Braised Quail with White Wine
Makes 3 to 6 servings
2 teaspoons chopped shallots
11 tablespoons butter
8 mushrooms, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 cup dry bread crumbs
Salt, freshly ground black pepper, nutmeg
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon or 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
¼ cup sliced blanched almonds
1⅓ cups dry white wine
6 quail
Fried toast
Sauté the shallots in 3 tablespoons of the butter, then mix in the mushrooms, parsley, and bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper to taste, a dash of nutmeg and the tarragon. Add the almonds and ⅓ cup wine. Mix well.
Stuff the quail with this mixture. Melt the remaining butter in a heavy casserole and brown the birds very quickly on all sides. Turn breast side down, add the remaining wine, cover, and cook in a 350° oven for 20 minutes. Uncover, arrange breast up, increase heat to 450°, and cook for 5 minutes more, basting frequently. Season with salt and pepper and serve on fried toast with the pan juices as a sauce.
Although wild pheasant are fairly plentiful, the hunting season is very short. Most of the pheasants we eat come from game farms that supply markets and restaurants. While these lack the rich, gamy flavor of the wild birds, they are perfectly palatable and young and tender enough for roasting, broiling, or sautéing. Older birds are best braised or made into fricassees or pies. One pheasant will serve 2 or 3, depending on size and the menu.
Roast Pheasant Pompadour
Pheasant is a dry bird that needs plenty of lubrication. It should be barded and basted frequently during roasting. This recipe is a French version of roast pheasant, named for the gracious and beautiful Madame Pompadour. Serve with a cornmeal soufflé (see page 302) and a purée of spinach with mushrooms.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Two 2½- to 3-pound pheasants
¾ cup butter
2 sheets of fresh pork fat or salt pork, for barding
½ teaspoon thyme
1 onion, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
½ cup red wine
¼ cup capers
1½ cups small green olives
GARNISH: Chopped parsley
Put 2 tablespoons butter in the cavity of each bird, and melt the rest. Pound the sheets of fat until thin and tie them over the breasts of the pheasants. Rub with thyme. Scatter the onion and carrot in the bottom of a roasting pan and arrange the pheasants on a rack in the pan, on their sides. Roast in a 375° oven for 15 minutes, basting every few minutes with melted butter; turn on the other side and roast another 15 minutes, basting well with melted butter mixed with red wine. Turn breast side up, cut the string that holds the fat so it hangs loosely, and roast another 15 minutes, basting frequently. Test for doneness by piercing the joint between thigh and body. If the juices run pale pink, the bird is done but still moist and juicy. If not, remove barding fat and roast until done, basting well. Strain pan juices, skim off excess fat, and add capers and olives. Heat through. Pour this sauce over the pheasants. Garnish with parsley.
Long, slow simmering tenderizes the flesh of older birds. Serve the fricassee on a platter with a mound of rice in the center, and pass the sauce separately. I find braised baby carrots are a nice addition.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
½ cup flour
2 mature pheasants, cut in serving pieces
6 tablespoons butter
1½ cups chicken broth
1 onion, stuck with cloves
1½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
Beurre manié (see page 536)
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup sherry or Madeira
Flour the pheasant pieces lightly and sauté in butter until just delicately colored. Do not brown. Add broth, onion, and seasonings and bring to a boil. Cover the pan, lower the heat and simmer slowly for 45 minutes to 1¼ hours, or until the pheasant is tender. Do not overcook.
Remove the pheasant to a hot platter. Correct the seasoning and remove the onion and bay leaf. Thicken the broth with beurre manié and finally stir in the heavy cream and sherry or Madeira. Simmer until the sauce is the right consistency. You may return the pheasant pieces to the sauce in order to reheat them for a few minutes, if you like.
Braised Pheasant with Sauerkraut
One of the more delightful marriages of flavor is pheasant with sauerkraut. Mature pheasants are ideal for this.
Makes 6 servings
6 pounds fresh sauerkraut
½ pound salt pork, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
18 juniper berries
2 mature pheasants
½ lemon
2 onions, each stuck with 2 cloves
4 sprigs parsley
4 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons oil
2½ cups chicken or veal stock
2 garlic sausages or 1 Italian cotechino sausage, sliced
Wash the sauerkraut well under cold running water in a colander. Drain, squeezing out the excess water. Line a deep 8-quart braising pan with the salt pork slices, and arrange a layer of the sauerkraut on top. Add the garlic, 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, and 12 juniper berries.
Rub the insides of the pheasants with a cut lemon and in each cavity put a clove-stuck onion and 2 sprigs of parsley. Truss the birds. Heat the butter and oil in a 12-inch skillet and brown the birds on all sides until nicely colored. Transfer to the braising pan and cover with the rest of the sauerkraut. Add the remaining juniper berries, another grind or two of pepper, and the stock. Bring the mixture to a boil over rather high heat, cover the pan tightly, transfer to a 300° oven, and cook for 1½ hours, or until birds are tender. Add the sausage for the last 45 minutes’ cooking time. If additional stock is needed, add it at the same time.
To serve, heap the sauerkraut in a mound on a large, hot platter, cut the pheasants into serving pieces and arrange on top. Garnish the platter with the sliced sausages.
Sautéed Pheasant
Young tender pheasant is delicious sautéed and served with a creamy sauce. If you are cooking two pheasants, put the meat in two skillets, the white meat in one and the dark meat, which takes longer to cook, in the other. For one pheasant, arrange the white meat on top of the dark for the final cooking, as you do when sautéing chicken. Serve with a potato purée and buttered green beans.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
2 pheasants, cut in quarters
¾ cup flour
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon thyme
8 slices good bacon
6 tablespoons butter
1¼ cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons cognac
Put the pheasant pieces in a plastic bag with all but 3 tablespoons of the flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, and thyme. Shake until coated, remove, and shake off excess flour. Divide the bacon between two 10-inch skillets and cook until just starting to get crisp. Remove bacon, drain on paper towels, and keep warm. Add 3 tablespoons butter to one pan and heat. When sizzling, add the dark-meat pieces, skin side down, and sauté until brown; turn and sauté on second side. Five minutes after putting the dark meat in the pan, repeat procedure in second pan with white meat. Reduce heat under both skillets and continue to cook pheasant until just tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cover the pan containing the dark meat so the steam will tenderize it.
Remove pheasant to a hot platter. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons fat from pan in which the dark meat cooked, and blend in the remaining 3 tablespoons flour. Scrape the pan to loosen the brown particles, then gradually stir in the cream, and cook, stirring, until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the cognac, simmer for 5 minutes, and serve with the pheasant. Garnish the pheasant with the bacon strips.
Pheasant with White Wine and Tarragon. After pouring off fat, do not add flour. Deglaze pan with ½ cup dry white wine or chicken stock. Let this reduce by one-third, add 2 tablespoons chopped tarragon, and pour over the pheasant.
Sautéed Pheasant with Calvados and Apples
For this dish, it is preferable to use only the pheasant breasts, although you may, if you wish, cook the dark meat in another skillet as a second helping for guests with hearty appetites. Serve with steamed buttered rice garnished with pistachio nuts.
Makes 4 servings
Breasts of 2 young pheasants
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) butter
⅓ cup Calvados or applejack
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
½ cup dry white wine
6 apples, cored and thinly sliced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup heavy cream
3 egg yolks
Cut breasts in two, removing the breastbone. Sauté gently in 6 tablespoons butter until a rich ivory color—do not brown, this is a blond sauté. Flame the breasts with ¼ cup Calvados or applejack, sprinkle with salt and pepper, add the white wine, cover, and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, or until just tender. Do not overcook. Remove to a hot platter.
In the same skillet sauté the apple slices in the remaining butter, sprinkling with the sugar so they glaze. Garnish the platter with the apple slices.
Add remaining Calvados to the pan. Beat the cream and egg yolks lightly, add a little of the hot pan juices, then stir into the pan, keeping the heat low, and cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and thickened. Do not allow to boil. Serve in a bowl.
Young pheasants may be broiled like chicken. Split the birds, rub them well with butter, and broil, bone side up, about 6 inches from the heat, for 12 to 15 minutes, depending on size. Turn, brush well with butter, and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Broil for 12 to 15 minutes on the skin side, according to size. Be careful the skin does not become too brown—you may have to lower the rack so the pheasant is farther from the heat. Serve with crisp fried potatoes and either asparagus or broccoli.
Broiled Pheasant with Tarragon Butter. Cream ½ cup (1 stick) butter and mix with 1½ tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon or 1½ teaspoons dried tarragon. Loosen the skin over the breasts of 2 split pheasants and push a quarter of the tarragon butter under the skin of each half breast. Brush the birds well with butter and broil as before.
Rabbit
Rabbit Provençal
The combination of rabbit and anchovies is unusual and extremely good. Try to get the salted anchovies, which are much better than the canned fillets. Serve this typically Provençal dish with rice or noodles.
Makes 4 servings
2 dozen anchovies in salt (available in Italian markets)
Flour
1 rabbit, cut in serving pieces
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons oil
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup cognac
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 cups tomato purée
½ cup dry white wine
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
GARNISH: Chopped parsley
Soak the salted anchovies in water for 36 hours, then remove the skin and backbones. Reserve 6 anchovies and coarsely chop the remainder.
Lightly flour the rabbit and brown on all sides in the butter and oil in a heavy skillet, sprinkling them with salt and pepper during the cooking. Flame the pieces with the warmed cognac and transfer them to a casserole. Add the chopped anchovies, basil, garlic, tomato purée, and white wine. Cover and cook in a 350° oven for 1 hour, or until rabbit is tender. Add the Parmesan cheese, arrange the reserved anchovy fillets on top, and sprinkle with parsley. Serve from the casserole.
Mustard Rabbit with Turnips
Domestic rabbit, fresh or frozen, may be used for this dish, but use wild rabbit if you can get it—it has more flavor. Fresh rabbit should be cut into serving pieces—the 2 hind legs, the 2 front legs, the rib and loin sections, which may be cut in 2 crosswise. Frozen rabbit comes already cut up and packaged. It requires less cooking time, as a rule.
Makes 4 servings
1 rabbit, cut in serving pieces
8-ounce jar Dijon mustard
1 onion, stuck with 2 cloves
Red wine
7 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
6 to 8 small white turnips
2 teaspoons sugar
Beurre manié (optional, see page 536)
GARNISH: Chopped parsley and tarragon
Spread the rabbit pieces liberally with the mustard and place them in a deep glass or earthenware bowl with the onion and enough red wine to cover. Marinate in the refrigerator for 24 to 36 hours.
Melt 3 tablespoons butter and the oil in a heavy skillet, drain and dry the rabbit pieces, and brown them on all sides in the fat. Remove them to a 6-quart casserole and season with salt and pepper to taste, the thyme, and the bay leaf. Strain and add the wine from the marinade. Bring the liquid to a boil, then put the casserole in a 350° oven and cook for 1 to 1½ hours, or until tender. The time will depend on the age and size and whether the rabbit is domestic or wild.
Meanwhile, peel the turnips and brown them all over in a skillet in the remaining 4 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle with the sugar and shake the pan until they are caramelized. Cover the pan and steam the turnips gently over very low heat until just tender, adding more butter or a little stock if necessary to keep them from drying out and burning.
To serve, arrange the rabbit on a hot platter and surround with the turnips. Strain the sauce, add ½ cup red wine, bring to a boil, and let it boil until reduced by half, or thicken it, if you wish, with beurre manié. Taste, correct seasoning, and pour some of the sauce over the rabbit. Sprinkle liberally with chopped parsley and tarragon. Serve the rest of the sauce in a bowl. Serve with boiled or steamed potatoes.