Poularde Ambassadrice

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6-quart (5.7-litre) oval braiser with a tight lid
• •One 36-inch (90 cm) square of food-grade cheesecloth
• •Poultry shears and a narrow boning or paring knife
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Fine-mesh sieve and 2-quart (1.9-litre) saucepan
• •Warmed oval serving platter and sauceboat

Instructions

1. 1

   Begin the sweetbreads

   Rinse the lamb sweetbreads and set them in a bowl of very cold water for 1 hour, changing the water twice. This draws out blood and gives the finished sweetbreads a clean, pale interior. Keep them cold while they soak, and prepare the poularde at the same time.

2. 2

   Stud the poularde

   Dry the poularde thoroughly. Cut 1¼ ounces (35 g) of the truffle into short, narrow matchsticks. Using the tip of a paring knife, make small angled channels in the thickest parts of the breasts and thighs, then slip in the truffle without tearing broad openings in the flesh. Season the bird inside and out with 1½ teaspoons of the salt and half the white pepper. Let it stand for 30 minutes so the truffle begins perfuming the meat.

3. 3

   Wrap in Matignon

   Heat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Dampen a large square of food-grade cheesecloth and wring it well. Spread half the prepared Matignon (No. 227) over its centre, set the poularde breast-side up on top, and cover the bird with the remaining Matignon. Draw the cheesecloth around it and tie it loosely with kitchen twine, keeping the vegetables against the skin. Set the packet in a lidded oval braiser and pour 3 cups (710 ml) of the chicken stock around it, not over it. Bring the liquid only to a bare simmer.

4. 4

   Braise at a tremble

   Cover the braiser and transfer it to the oven. Braise for 75 to 90 minutes, basting the packet twice, until the thickest parts of both breast and thigh register at least 165°F (74°C). The liquor should barely tremble. If it begins boiling hard, pull the pot from the oven, add a small ladle of cool stock, and lower the heat by 25°F (15°C). The bird has not failed, but a hard boil will tighten the flesh and cloud the sauce. Lift out the packet and rest it for 15 minutes, reserving every drop of cooking liquor.

5. 5

   Braise and glaze sweetbreads

   While the poularde braises, drain the sweetbreads and place them in a saucepan of fresh cold water. Bring them slowly to a bare simmer, cook for 3 minutes, then transfer them to ice water. Peel away the outer membranes and trim any firm tubes or gristle. Press the sweetbreads between two trays with a few tins on top for 20 minutes, then divide them into eight neat pieces. Cut the remaining truffle into fine matchsticks and stud each piece. Melt 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) of the butter in a sauté pan, colour the sweetbreads lightly, and add the remaining 1 cup (240 ml) stock. Cover and braise gently for about 15 minutes, until firm and cooked through. Uncover, reduce the liquid, and baste until the sweetbreads carry a thin, glossy glaze. If the glaze catches before they are tender, add 2 tablespoons of stock or water and continue gently.

6. 6

   Prepare the asparagus

   Blanch the asparagus tips in well-salted boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes, until vivid green and just tender, then cool them in ice water and drain thoroughly. Set aside 24 even tips and arrange them as eight petits fagots, small bundles of three tips each. Tie them loosely with kitchen twine for reheating. Near serving time, melt 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) butter in a wide pan with 2 tablespoons of strained poultry cooking liquor. Warm the bundles and remaining asparagus separately, turning them until glossy. Remove the twine from the bundles. The loose asparagus should cohere in the butter without becoming soft enough to collapse.

7. 7

   Apply hot service

   Unwrap the rested poularde, scraping the Matignon back into its cooking liquor. Apply The Way to Serve Poultry Relevés Quickly and Hot (No. 1444): remove the two suprêmes, the breast fillets, whole and keep their shape intact. Through the opening, use poultry shears and a narrow knife to remove the breastbone and rib bones while leaving the back, legs, and outer body intact. Set the body on a warmed oval platter. Hold the suprêmes in ½ cup (120 ml) of strained cooking liquor over very low heat, never allowing the liquid to simmer.

8. 8

   Build sauce suprême

   Pass the remaining braising liquor and Matignon through a fine sieve without mashing the vegetables, then skim away the fat. Reduce the liquor to 2 cups (475 ml), adding a little unused stock only if you are short. In a clean saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 42 g) butter, stir in the flour, and cook this pale roux for 2 minutes without letting it colour. Whisk in the hot liquor gradually, then simmer for 12 to 15 minutes, skimming as needed. Add all but the reserved tablespoon of cream and reduce until the sauce is nappant, meaning it coats a spoon heavily and a finger drawn through it leaves a clean path. Pass it through the fine sieve once more, then whisk in 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) cold butter off the heat. If the sauce is thin, simmer it longer. If it becomes pasty, loosen it spoonful by spoonful with stock. If the butter separates, remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the reserved cold cream. Ça se rattrape.

9. 9

   Reconstruct and serve

   Fill the boned breast cavity with the loose buttered asparagus, smoothing it into the original curve of the bird. Slice the warm suprêmes across the grain into even pieces and overlap them over the asparagus to reconstruct the breast. Spoon over only enough sauce suprême to form a smooth, clinging veil; the slices should remain visible beneath it. Alternate the eight glazed sweetbread pieces with the eight asparagus bundles around the poularde, then carry the platter directly to the table with the remaining sauce in a warm sauceboat. Carve the legs for second helpings. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A poularde is a well-fleshed young hen with enough fat to remain tender through braising. Ask a good butcher. If none is available, use a plump 4½-pound roasting chicken and accept that the meat will be a little leaner; careful heat matters more than the label.
• •Use sound, fragrant black truffle. Outside its season, a firm whole preserved truffle is the classical pantry's honest answer. Dry it before studding and save any clean preserving liquor for another sauce. Truffle oil is not a substitute.
• •Order lamb sweetbreads ahead. Calf sweetbreads can stand in, but they are larger and firmer, so divide them into eight small pieces after pressing and allow several extra minutes of braising.
• •The sauce should cling like soft cream, not sit like plaster. Keep a little warm stock beside the stove, because a spoonful is all that separates a fine sauce from one reduced half a minute too far.
• •Serve with a full-bodied dry white wine and little else beyond bread. The poularde already brings meat, sauce, vegetable, and a very generous garnish to the table.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare the Matignon (No. 227) up to two days ahead and refrigerate it covered. Bring it close to room temperature before spreading it over the poularde.
• •The sweetbreads may be soaked, blanched, trimmed, and pressed one day ahead. Refrigerate them covered on a tray, then stud, braise, and glaze them on the day of serving.
• •The poularde may be studded with truffle the night before. Keep it covered in the refrigerator and remove it 30 minutes before wrapping.
• •The asparagus can be blanched and chilled several hours ahead. Rewarm it in butter only at the finish, or it will lose its bite and clear green colour.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 720g)