Poularde à la Montmorency

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •5- to 6-quart heavy lidded casserole
• •Narrow paring knife for piquer aux truffes
• •Food processor
• •Fine-mesh sieve and strainer
• •Wide sauté pan for poaching
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Large oval serving platter
• •Warmed sauceboat

Instructions

1. 1

   Piquer aux truffes

   Cut six paper-thin slices from the truffle and reserve them for decorating the quenelles. Cut the remainder into about sixteen slender batons. Piquer aux truffes means larding the flesh with truffle: loosen the skin carefully over the breasts and upper thighs, then use a narrow paring knife to make short tunnels parallel to the surface of the meat. Push in the truffle batons without piercing the outer skin, smooth the skin back into place, and season the bird with 1½ teaspoons of the salt and ½ teaspoon of the white pepper. Keep it chilled while you make the quenelles.

2. 2

   Make the forcemeat

   Chill the food processor bowl and blade if the kitchen is warm. Process the diced chicken breast with the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon white pepper until smooth and sticky. Add the egg white and process again, then pour in the cold cream in a thin stream with the motor running. Stop as soon as the mixture is smooth and glossy, and press it through a fine-mesh sieve. If it turns loose or greasy, it has become too warm. Stop, chill it for 15 minutes, then pulse briefly until it gathers again. Ça se rattrape.

3. 3

   Poach the quenelles

   Bring a wide pan of lightly salted water to 175 to 180°F (80 to 82°C), a quiet tremble with no rolling bubbles. Butter two large tablespoons, divide the forcemeat between them, and shape two generous smooth ovals about 5 inches (13 cm) long. Lower them into the water and poach for 12 to 15 minutes, turning once, until firm and 165°F (74°C) at the center. Boiling makes quenelles coarse; if the first begins to feather at the edges, lower the heat and chill the remaining mixture for 10 minutes before shaping. Drain well, press three reserved truffle slices onto each warm quenelle, brush lightly with butter, and refrigerate if they will wait longer than 30 minutes. Wash the processor, blade, board, and utensils thoroughly before preparing the vegetables.

4. 4

   Brown the poularde

   Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy lidded casserole over medium heat. When the foam subsides, brown the poularde carefully on the breast, back, and both sides, about 10 to 12 minutes in all. Move it only when the skin releases cleanly and has reached a deep butter-gold. If the butter blackens, lift out the bird, pour away only the burnt fat without disturbing the brown fond, and begin again with fresh butter from the measured amount. Burnt butter cannot become a good sauce.

5. 5

   Braise in Madeira

   Set the poularde breast-side up and take the casserole off the heat. Pour 1¼ cups (300 ml / 300 g) of the Madeira around the bird, keeping it off the browned skin, then scrape every bit of fond from the bottom. Return the casserole to medium heat for 2 minutes, add the chicken stock, and cover tightly. Braise in the oven for 70 to 85 minutes, basting twice, until the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F (74°C) and the thigh reaches at least 170°F (77°C). The liquid should barely tremble. If it boils hard, lower the oven to 300°F (150°C); fierce heat toughens the breast and clouds the liquor.

6. 6

   Prepare the garniture

   While the poularde braises, blanch the asparagus tips in lightly salted water for 2 to 3 minutes, just until tender and vividly green, then cool them promptly in cold water and drain well. Warm the artichoke bottoms in a shallow pan with 1 tablespoon of the butter and 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 30 g) water. Toss the asparagus with another tablespoon of butter until each tip gleams, then arrange six tips snugly in every artichoke bottom. This is the source's instruction to cohere them with butter: the tips remain distinct, but the butter gathers them into one garnish. Cover and hold them gently warm.

7. 7

   Rest and strain

   Lift the cooked poularde onto a warm plate, tent it loosely, and rest it for 15 minutes. Pour every drop of braising liquor into a wide saucepan through a fine-mesh strainer, scraping the casserole so the dissolved fond comes with it. Let the liquid settle briefly and skim away excess surface fat. The braising liquor is not waste or an incidental by-product. It is the foundation of the finished sauce.

8. 8

   Reduce the sauce

   Boil the strained braising liquor until reduced to about 1 cup (240 ml / 240 g). Add the prepared demi-glace and the remaining ¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g) Madeira, then simmer until the sauce is glossy and naps the back of a spoon, about 8 to 12 minutes. If it tightens too far, loosen it with a spoonful of unsalted stock or water; if it remains thin, give it another minute of reduction. Remove it from the heat and monter au beurre, whisking in 2 tablespoons of cold butter a little at a time to enrich and emulsify the sauce. If the butter beads apart, whisk in 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) cold water off the heat. Ça se rattrape. Taste before adding any salt.

9. 9

   Assemble the platter

   Rewarm the quenelles for 5 minutes in barely trembling water if they were chilled, then drain them carefully. Set the poularde in the center of a warmed oval platter and brush its skin with a spoonful of the finished sauce. Place one decorated quenelle at either end. Arrange two asparagus-filled artichoke bottoms along each side of the bird, spooning any remaining melted butter over them. Pour the rest of the Madeira demi-glace into a warmed sauceboat and serve it separately, exactly as the dish requires. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A true poularde is a specially fattened young hen with unusually tender, well-marbled flesh. If it isn't available, buy a plump roasting chicken with intact skin and a broad breast. Technique first, always: careful browning and a quiet braise matter more than the label.
• •Fresh black truffle gives the fullest perfume, but a good whole preserved truffle is the honest answer outside its season. Avoid truffle oil. It cannot be cut into larding batons, and its blunt perfume overwhelms the Madeira instead of seasoning the flesh.
• •Choose an unsalted demi-glace with real gelatin and a clean beef or veal foundation. Many commercial versions are aggressively salty, and reduction only concentrates the problem. Dilute a concentrated product according to its own directions before measuring it.
• •Use dry or medium-dry Madeira, such as Sercial or Verdelho, not salted cooking wine. Serve the same Madeira in small glasses, or pour a full white Burgundy whose breadth can meet the truffle and sauce.
• •Keep leftover chicken, quenelles, vegetables, and sauce in separate covered containers for up to 3 days. Reheat the sauce gently and whisk in a teaspoon of cold water if the butter separates.

Advance Preparation

• •The quenelles can be made and poached 1 day ahead. Chill them covered, then rewarm for 5 minutes in water held at 175 to 180°F (80 to 82°C).
• •The artichoke bottoms and asparagus can be cooked earlier on the serving day. Keep them chilled separately, then warm and bind them with butter while the poularde rests.
• •The poularde can be piqué with truffle and seasoned up to 6 hours ahead. Keep it refrigerated, then let it stand out for 30 minutes before browning so it cooks evenly.
• •Have the prepared demi-glace measured before the bird enters the oven. Once the braising liquor begins reducing, the sauce needs your attention, not a search through the refrigerator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 570g)