Poularde à la Grammont

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6-quart (5.7-liter) narrow stockpot
• •Two 2-quart (1.9-liter) saucepans
• •Wide sauté pan
• •16-inch (41-centimeter) broiler-safe oval platter
• •Fine-mesh strainer
• •Flexible boning knife and kitchen shears
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Butcher's twine
• •Small channel knife for grooving mushrooms, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   Set the kitchen

   Choose a narrow pot that holds the poularde without leaving it adrift, and have a broiler-safe oval platter ready. Tie the legs loosely and tuck the wing tips beneath the bird so it keeps a generous shape. Put the stock, onion, carrot, leek, bouquet garni, measured salt, and crushed peppercorns in the pot, then bring them to a bare simmer for 10 minutes. The liquid should taste lightly seasoned, never salty, because part of it will be reduced into the Allemande.

2. 2

   Poach the poularde

   Lower the poularde breast-side down into the seasoned stock. Add enough hot water to cover it, bring the liquid back to 180 to 185°F (82 to 85°C), then partially cover and poach for 25 minutes. Turn the bird breast-side up and continue for 25 to 35 minutes, until the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F (74°C) and the thigh reaches at least 170°F (77°C). The surface should barely tremble, with only an occasional lazy bubble. If it breaks into a boil, lift the pot from the heat and add a little cold water. Ça se rattrape. Return it to gentler heat rather than letting the breast tighten.

   A narrow pot matters more than a vast quantity of stock. The bird stays submerged, the stock keeps its strength, and you have less liquid to manage.
3. 3

   Build truffled Béchamel

   While the poularde poaches, melt the Béchamel butter in a saucepan, add the flour, and stir over low heat for 2 minutes without letting the roux color. Whisk in the warm milk by degrees, then cook for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring, until the Béchamel is stiff enough to hold a mound. Season lightly and stir in the reserved truffle juice. If it lumps, pass it through a fine sieve; if it becomes too stiff to fold, loosen it with a spoonful of warm milk. Melt the mushroom butter in a sauté pan. Cook the mushroom caps for 4 to 5 minutes until glossy and tender, then add the prepared cocks' combs and kidneys and warm them through gently. Fold them into the truffled Béchamel, cover closely, and hold the mixture warm over a pan of barely hot water. Do not add the quail yet. Its last-second sauté is part of the dish.

4. 4

   Finish the Allemande

   Lift the cooked poularde carefully from the stock, let the cavity drain, and place the bird breast-side up on the broiler-safe platter. Tent it loosely and let it half-cool for 15 to 20 minutes, only until your hands can work without a quarrel. Strain 2 cups of the poaching liquor. Melt the Allemande butter in a clean saucepan, stir in its flour, and cook the pale roux for 2 minutes. Whisk in the hot poaching liquor gradually, then simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until the velouté is reduced, smooth, and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon heavily. Whisk the yolks with the cream, temper them with a ladleful of hot velouté, then return the mixture to the saucepan over very low heat. Stir until the Allemande falls from the spoon in a broad ribbon. Add the lemon juice and ground white pepper. Never let it boil after the yolks enter. If it begins to grain, take it off the heat, put a tablespoon of cold cream in a clean bowl, and whisk in the troubled sauce little by little before straining it. Ça se rattrape.

   Correct a thin Allemande by reducing the velouté before adding the yolk liaison. Once the yolks are in, boiling is no longer available to you.
5. 5

   Remove the suprêmes

   Heat the broiler to high and set a rack about 5 inches (13 centimeters) below it. Remove the trussing string. With a narrow sharp knife, cut down each side of the breastbone and follow the ribs to lift off the two suprêmes, the breast fillets, in whole pieces. Cover them so they stay moist. Use kitchen shears to remove the exposed keel and front rib bones, leaving the back, legs, and wings intact so the carcass remains a serving shell. If the breast opening tears, draw the sides together with a short wooden skewer. The sauces will cover the repair, and you will remove the skewer while serving. Never apologize at your own table.

6. 6

   Sauté the quail

   Season the dry quail fillets lightly with salt and white pepper. Melt their butter in a wide sauté pan over medium-high heat and wait until the foam subsides. Add the fillets in one uncrowded layer and sauté for 60 to 90 seconds on each side, just until firm, opaque, and cooked through to 165°F (74°C). Fold them immediately into the warm mushroom, comb, kidney, and Béchamel mixture. These little fillets go in at the last second because earlier cooking turns them dry and anonymous.

7. 7

   Rebuild the poularde

   Spoon the hot garnish into the boned breast cavity, filling it generously but without crushing the quail or mushroom caps. Slice each suprême crosswise into pieces about ½ inch (1.25 centimeters) thick. Return the slices to their original positions over the filling, overlapping them slightly and placing a thin slice of preserved truffle between every two pieces. Pour any juices from the resting breasts over the filling. The poularde should recover its rounded outline; if it sits a little proudly, good. Cooking well is not cooking fancy.

8. 8

   Coat and glaze

   Warm the Allemande gently if needed, without boiling, then coat the entire upper surface of the rebuilt poularde in a layer about ¼ inch (6 millimeters) thick. Cover it evenly with the grated Parmesan and trickle the melted butter over the cheese. Set the platter beneath the fierce broiler for 2 to 4 minutes, rotating once, until the sauce bubbles at the rim and the top becomes a deep hazelnut gold. Do not step away. If one patch darkens too quickly, shield that spot with a scrap of foil while the rest colors. The salamander worked quickly, and so does your broiler.

   The broiler supplies color, not deep heat. The filling, breasts, and Allemande must all be warm before the platter goes underneath it.
9. 9

   Serve at once

   Carry the glazed poularde directly to the table. Cut down through the arranged suprêmes and spoon some of the central garnish beside each serving, making certain everyone receives quail, mushroom, comb, kidney, truffle, and sauce. There is no resting here; the contrast between the bronzed glaze and yielding filling is at its best immediately. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A poularde is a plump young hen raised for tenderness and generous fat. If your butcher cannot obtain one, choose an air-chilled chicken near 4½ pounds (2 kilograms), with broad breasts and unbroken skin. Technique first, always.
• •Wild larks are not commercially available to most home cooks, so farmed quail is the honest equivalent. Its fillets are small, darkly flavored, and quick to dry, which is why the original last-second sauté remains exactly where it belongs.
• •Order cocks' combs and kidneys already cleaned, blanched, and cooked from a specialist poultry or charcuterie supplier. If neither can be found, use 5 ounces (140 grams) of gently poached veal sweetbread cut into small lobes. The exact garnish changes, and it should be named honestly, but its mild offal richness and yielding texture preserve the dish's intent.
• •Preserved whole black truffle is preferable to a tired fresh one. Its packing juice is the home equivalent of truffle essence, while the whole truffle provides the slices required between the suprêmes.
• •Serve a full-bodied white Burgundy or another restrained French Chardonnay. The wine needs enough body for cream, Parmesan, and truffle, but aggressive oak would flatten the delicacy of the poached bird.
• •Strain and chill the remaining poaching liquor promptly. It freezes well and gives you a fine poultry fond for another sauce; the classical kitchen wasted nothing useful.

Advance Preparation

• •Up to 1 day ahead, groove the mushroom caps and drain the prepared cocks' combs and kidneys. Keep each covered and chilled separately.
• •The Béchamel can be made up to 4 hours ahead. Cover its surface directly and reheat it over barely hot water before adding the warm garnish and truffle juice.
• •The Allemande can be taken through the velouté reduction up to 4 hours ahead. Reheat it gently, then add the yolk and cream liaison shortly before assembly.
• •Do not poach, bone, or rebuild the poularde ahead. The method depends on handling a half-warm bird and carrying warm components directly beneath the broiler.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 600g)