Chef Juliette
Pullets and Capons for Relevés
Three roads through the Paris poultry canon, poach, poêler, or braise, with one rule beneath them all: protect the breast with bacon while the legs cook, then turn the liquor into sauce.
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Poularde Marguerite de Savoie
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 1491, Poularde Marguerite de Savoie, from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
A quail-filled poularde braised in equal measures of Savoy wine and veal stock, served on fried bread with Parmesan-glazed polenta and a little dish of warm white Piedmont truffles.
Main Dishes
French
Dinner Party
Special Occasion
1 hr
Active Time
2 hr cook•4 hr 30 min total
Yield4 servings
Poularde Marguerite de Savoie (pullet filled with little birds and braised in Savoy wine) teaches that timing is part of technique. The Polenta (No. 2294) must be cold and firm before the bird goes into the pot, because a warm slab tears beneath the cutter and drinks the frying butter. That is the one true thing to know before you touch a pan.
At the table, the poularde rests on a low cushion of butter-fried bread, its pale-gold skin glossed with concentrated cooking liquor. Crisp polenta roundels make a generous ring around it, Parmesan bronzed across their tops, while white Piedmont truffles arrive separately in a little dish of butter and consommé. It is ceremonial food, certainly, but cooking well is not cooking fancy.
The original kitchen assumed ten larks, veal stock never off the fire, a saucier reducing the braising liquor, and a salamander ready while another pair of hands fried the polenta. Here, two farmed quail replace protected wild larks because they are larger and lawfully available; good unsalted veal stock replaces the perpetual stockpot, a covered cocotte handles the braise, and an ordinary broiler gives the Parmesan its quick glaze. The separate cooks were brigade scaffolding. The nested birds, equal measures of stock and Savoy wine, cold-set polenta, real butter, and truffle accompaniment are the dish, so they stay.
This is one cook, one stove, one evening. Make the Polenta (No. 2294) first, chill it until it offers clean resistance to the cutter, and only then begin the birds.
Poularde Marguerite de Savoie belongs to the named poulardes of French grande cuisine, but its map is Alpine: Savoy white wine on the French side, then polenta, Parmesan, and white Piedmont truffles across the mountains in territories long joined by the House of Savoy. The larks signal ceremonial abundance rather than a Savoyard farmhouse custom, while the preparation itself rests on French braising and sauce work. Modern cooks use farmed quail because wild larks are protected and absent from lawful markets in most places, preserving the nested-bird composition without pretending the substitution is invisible.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
prepared Polenta (No. 2294)
Quantity
3 cups (720 ml / 750 g)
made with whole milk as directed for this dish
fine poularde or plump young chicken
Quantity
1 bird (4½ to 5 lb / 2 to 2.3 kg)
giblets removed and patted dry
small farmed quail
Quantity
2 birds (about 9 oz / 250 g total)
oven-ready and patted dry
fine sea salt
Quantity
2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g)
divided
finely ground white pepper
Quantity
1 teaspoon (5 ml / 2 g)
divided
unsalted butter for frying the quail
Quantity
2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g)
unsalted veal stock
Quantity
2 cups (480 ml / 480 g)
dry white Savoy wine
Quantity
2 cups (480 ml / 480 g)
preferably Apremont or Les Abymes
all-purpose flour for dredging
Quantity
½ cup (120 ml / 60 g)
clarified butter
Quantity
½ cup (120 ml / 110 g)
for frying the bread and polenta
dense country-bread cushion
Quantity
1 round (about 6 inches / 15 cm across and ¾ inch / 2 cm thick; about 5 oz / 140 g)
finely grated Parmesan
Quantity
½ cup (120 ml / 45 g)
softened unsalted butter for the beurre manié
Quantity
2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g)
all-purpose flour for the beurre manié
Quantity
2 tablespoons (30 ml / 16 g)
fresh white Piedmont truffles
Quantity
2 oz / 55 g
brushed clean and thinly sliced
unsalted butter for the truffles
Quantity
1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g)
clear consommé
Quantity
¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g)
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| prepared Polenta (No. 2294)made with whole milk as directed for this dish | 3 cups (720 ml / 750 g) |
| fine poularde or plump young chickengiblets removed and patted dry | 1 bird (4½ to 5 lb / 2 to 2.3 kg) |
| small farmed quailoven-ready and patted dry | 2 birds (about 9 oz / 250 g total) |
| fine sea saltdivided | 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g) |
| finely ground white pepperdivided | 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 2 g) |
| unsalted butter for frying the quail | 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) |
| unsalted veal stock | 2 cups (480 ml / 480 g) |
| dry white Savoy winepreferably Apremont or Les Abymes | 2 cups (480 ml / 480 g) |
| all-purpose flour for dredging | ½ cup (120 ml / 60 g) |
| clarified butterfor frying the bread and polenta | ½ cup (120 ml / 110 g) |
| dense country-bread cushion | 1 round (about 6 inches / 15 cm across and ¾ inch / 2 cm thick; about 5 oz / 140 g) |
| finely grated Parmesan | ½ cup (120 ml / 45 g) |
| softened unsalted butter for the beurre manié | 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) |
| all-purpose flour for the beurre manié | 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 16 g) |
| fresh white Piedmont trufflesbrushed clean and thinly sliced | 2 oz / 55 g |
| unsalted butter for the truffles | 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) |
| clear consommé | ¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •Heavy 6 to 7-quart cocotte with a close-fitting lid
- •8-inch / 20-cm square tray for setting the polenta
- •1½-inch / 4-cm round cutter
- •Instant-read thermometer
- •Broiler-safe baking sheet and wire rack
- •Warm sauceboat and small shallow vegetable dish
Instructions
- 1
Set the polenta
Spread the prepared Polenta (No. 2294), made with whole milk as this dish requires, in a lightly moistened 8-inch / 20-cm square tray. Keep the layer an even 1 inch / 2.5 cm thick, smooth the surface, and let it cool before covering and chilling it for at least 2 hours. It must feel cold and solid from edge to centre. If the cutter drags or the first round bends, stop. Ça se rattrape: return the tray to the refrigerator for 30 minutes, or to the freezer for 10 minutes, rather than burying soft polenta beneath more flour.
Prepare the Polenta (No. 2294) the day before if you can. A full night in the cold gives the cleanest rounds and the crispest butter-fried surface. - 2
Nest the birds
Heat the 2 tablespoons of butter in a wide skillet until its foam subsides. Season the quail with a quarter of the salt and pepper, then fry them quickly on every side for 3 to 4 minutes, just until their skins turn golden while the centres remain underdone. Let them cool for 5 minutes. Season the poularde inside and out with another half of the salt and pepper, place the quail in its cavity, and truss the legs loosely. Cook it promptly once filled.
- 3
Braise the poularde
Heat the oven to 325°F / 165°C. Bring the veal stock and Savoy wine to a simmer in a heavy 6 to 7-quart cocotte, then lower in the filled poularde, breast upward. The liquid should reach roughly halfway up the bird. Cover closely and braise for 75 to 90 minutes, basting twice, until the deepest part of the thigh reaches at least 170°F / 77°C and a quail tested through the cavity reaches 165°F / 74°C. If the poularde is ready while the quail still lag behind, lift the quail out and finish them directly in the simmering liquor while the larger bird rests. Dry breast meat solves nothing, and the smaller birds are easily finished separately.
- 4
Cut the roundels
While the poularde braises, turn out the cold Polenta (No. 2294) and stamp it with a 1½-inch / 4-cm round cutter. You should have 14 to 18 roundels. Pat their surfaces dry and dredge them lightly in the flour, knocking off every loose trace; the coating should be a veil, not a crust. Cut the bread into a low oval or round cushion large enough to support the bird.
- 5
Fry and glaze
Heat enough clarified butter to cover the base of a broad skillet. Fry the bread cushion until deep gold on both sides, then drain it on a rack. Fry the polenta roundels in batches for 3 to 4 minutes per side, leaving space around each one, until their faces are crisp and butter-gold. If a roundel clings to the pan, do not scrape it loose; give it another 30 seconds and the formed crust will release. Arrange the rounds on a broiler-safe tray, sprinkle evenly with Parmesan, and broil 5 to 6 inches / 13 to 15 cm from the element for 1 to 2 minutes. This is the home salamander. Watch without looking away, because golden cheese becomes bitter in moments.
- 6
Thicken the liquor
Transfer the poularde to a warm board and rest it for 20 minutes. Strain the cooking liquor into a saucepan, skim away excess fat, and boil it steadily until reduced to about 2 cups / 480 ml and full-flavoured without becoming salty. Knead the softened butter and flour together into a beurre manié, a smooth flour-butter paste. Whisk small pieces into the simmering liquor until it becomes nappant, thick enough to coat the back of a spoon while still pouring freely. Simmer for 3 minutes to cook the flour. If the sauce lumps, strain it; if it becomes too thick, loosen it with veal stock or water, one spoonful at a time. Ça se rattrape.
- 7
Warm the truffles
Put the sliced white Piedmont truffles, 1 tablespoon of butter, and the consommé in a small shallow pan. Warm them over the gentlest heat for 1 to 2 minutes, swirling until the butter melts into the consommé. Do not let the liquid boil or the truffles lose their perfume. If it begins bubbling, pull the pan from the heat at once and swirl in a teaspoon of cool consommé. Transfer everything to a warm vegetable dish.
- 8
Build the platter
Remove the trussing string and set the fried bread cushion on a low warm platter. Place the poularde on top, keeping the quail inside for the table carving, and spoon over just enough sauce to glaze the skin. Ring the bird closely with the Parmesan-glazed polenta roundels. Pour the remaining sauce into a warmed sauceboat and serve the truffles beside the platter in their own dish. Carve through poularde and quail so each guest receives some of both. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Wild larks are protected and do not belong on a modern shopping list. Two small farmed quail give approximately the same filling volume as the original ten tiny birds, though their flavour is milder. This substitution changes the game note, not the nested-bird idea at the heart of the dish.
- •Choose a dry, light white wine from Savoie, preferably Apremont or Les Abymes made from Jacquère. Heavy oak or sweetness muddies a sauce that should taste clean, mineral, and distinctly vinous. Pour the same wine at the table.
- •Cold polenta is non-negotiable. If it cannot hold a sharp edge when cut, it cannot form a crisp face in butter. Make the Polenta (No. 2294) a day ahead and keep it covered so its surface does not dry or crack.
- •White Piedmont truffles make this a seasonal dish. They should smell powerfully fragrant before you buy them; an expensive truffle with little aroma will not improve when warmed. Black truffle belongs to another register, so omit the side dish or wait for the proper season rather than claiming the exchange is invisible.
- •Use unsalted veal stock with real body but little added salt. The cooking liquor reduces by roughly half, and a salty carton becomes punishing long before it becomes glossy.
Advance Preparation
- •Prepare the Polenta (No. 2294), spread it 1 inch / 2.5 cm thick, and refrigerate it up to a day ahead. The roundels may also be cut earlier that day and kept cold between sheets of parchment.
- •Measure the wine and stock, grate the Parmesan, cut the bread cushion, and make the beurre manié several hours ahead. Keep the beurre manié covered in the refrigerator, then soften it before thickening the sauce.
- •Clean the truffles earlier in the day and refrigerate them whole in a covered container lined with dry paper. Slice them immediately before warming so their perfume stays in the dish.
- •Do not fill the poularde with quail hours ahead. Brown the quail, cool them briefly, nest them inside the seasoned bird, and begin the braise without delay.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 720g)
Calories
1440 calories
Total Fat
82 g
Saturated Fat
37 g
Trans Fat
2 g
Unsaturated Fat
44 g
Cholesterol
345 mg
Sodium
1900 mg
Total Carbohydrates
68 g
Dietary Fiber
5 g
Sugars
10 g
Protein
99 g
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