Poularde Sicilienne

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Narrow 6-quart stockpot
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Small boning knife
• •Poultry shears
• •Four 3¼-inch tartlet tins
• •Fine-mesh strainer
• •Wide saucepan for reducing
• •Shallow roasting pan with rack
• •Kitchen twine
• •Low oval serving platter and sauceboat

Instructions

1. 1

   Bake tartlet shells

   Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Use 1 tablespoon of the butter to grease four 3¼-inch (8 cm) tartlet tins. Roll the cold puff pastry lightly on the floured surface and cut four rounds large enough to line the tins with a small overhang. Press them into the corners, prick the bases, and chill for 10 minutes. Line with parchment and baking weights, bake for 12 minutes, then remove the weights and bake for another 6 to 8 minutes, until the pastry is crisp and butter-gold. If a side slumps, press it gently back into shape while warm. Cool the shells in their tins, then lift them out.

2. 2

   Poach without boiling

   Set the chicken breast-side up in a narrow stockpot and pour in the cold chicken stock, which should cover the bird or come very close. Add 2 teaspoons of the salt. Warm it slowly until the liquid reaches a bare tremble, about 180°F (82°C), skimming any foam that rises. Hold it between 175°F and 185°F (80°C and 85°C) for 45 to 60 minutes, turning the bird once if its breast is not submerged, until the breast reaches 160°F (71°C) and the inner thigh reaches 170°F (77°C). Never let it boil. If bubbling gathers across the surface, pull the pot from the burner until it calms, then continue over lower heat. Lift the bird onto a rack and let it rest for 20 minutes. Strain the poaching liquor, measure out 5 cups for the glaze, reserve another cup for adjustments, and save the rest for another pot.

3. 3

   Reduce beef liquor

   Pour the beef stock into a small wide saucepan and boil steadily until it reduces to about ⅓ cup (80 ml), 15 to 20 minutes. This is the home equivalent of the strong braising liquor from beef à la Napolitaine that the original kitchen had waiting. It should be deep brown, gelatinous, and strong enough to coat the macaroni without making soup. If it becomes salty before it gains body, add a spoonful of the reserved unsalted chicken liquor and reduce more gently. Keep it warm.

4. 4

   Raise the suprêmes

   When the chicken is cool enough to handle, set it breast-side up. Run a small sharp knife down one side of the breastbone, then sweep the blade close against the ribs to lift the first suprême whole; repeat on the other side, leaving both wing bones attached to the carcass as the source directs. Cover the suprêmes so they do not dry. With poultry shears, carefully cut the ribs where they meet the breastbone and lift away the breastbone and keel cartilage, preserving the back, legs, wings, and as much outer skin as possible. You should now have a broad cavity where the breast meat stood. Small tears are harmless because the caul will hold the reconstruction together.

5. 5

   Bind the macaroni

   Bring a saucepan of water to the boil and season it with most of the remaining salt. Cook the macaroni until just tender but still firm at its centre, then drain it very thoroughly. Return it to the warm pan with the reduced beef liquor and toss over low heat until the pasta is coated and no loose liquid remains. Take the pan off the heat before folding in the diced cooked foie gras, diced truffle, cocks’ combs and kidneys or their home equivalent, and ¼ teaspoon of the white pepper. If the mixture runs, remove the delicate garnish and reduce the macaroni for another minute; if it tightens into a lump, loosen it with a spoonful of reserved chicken liquor. Ça se rattrape. Taste and correct the seasoning.

6. 6

   Rebuild in caul

   Raise the oven again to 400°F (200°C). Spread the caul flat on the board and trim away any especially thick knots. Fill the chicken’s breast cavity with the warm macaroni mixture without crushing it, drawing any loose skin over the filling. Set the reconstructed bird breast-side up on the caul and shape the filling into the rounded line of a whole breast. Wrap the caul snugly around the chicken with the seam underneath. If the membrane tears, overlap a wet patch of caul across the opening; once rendered, the join disappears. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter, brush it over the entire wrapping, and press on the breadcrumbs. Set the chicken seam-side down on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.

7. 7

   Brown the wrapping

   Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the caul has rendered nearly translucent, the breadcrumbs are a deep bronze, and the centre of the filling reaches 165°F (74°C). This oven time is for the wrapping and the filling, not for recooking the bird, so stop as soon as those signs are present. If the crumbs darken before the filling is hot, cover the top loosely with foil. If the filling is ready but the surface remains pale, place it under the broiler, the home salamander, for 30 to 60 seconds. Watch without blinking; the last colour arrives quickly. Rest the bird for 10 minutes.

8. 8

   Mount the glaze

   While the chicken browns, boil the measured 5 cups of chicken poaching liquor in a wide saucepan, skimming away excess fat, until it reduces to about 1¼ cups (300 ml) and coats the back of a spoon with a glossy film. Taste before seasoning with the remaining white pepper and only as much salt as it needs. Take the pan completely off the heat and monter au beurre, whisk in 4 tablespoons of cold butter a piece at a time, to make the buttered chicken glaze. Do not boil it afterward. If the glaze splits, stop. Ça se rattrape: whisk a tablespoon of cold reserved liquor in a clean warm pan, then add the broken glaze gradually until it comes back together.

9. 9

   Crown the tartlets

   Cut each reserved suprême diagonally into two broad slices, giving four pieces in all. Place one in each tartlet shell, brush lightly with chicken glaze, and warm them in the oven for 4 to 5 minutes while the reconstructed bird rests. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet until it foams, then add the cold raw foie gras slices and toss them gently in the butter for 30 to 45 seconds per side, just until coloured outside and supple within. If the butter begins to smoke, pull the pan from the heat at once; scorched fat melts the foie before it colours. Set one foie gras slice over each suprême and crown each with a truffle slice.

10. 10

    Dish and serve

    Transfer the reconstructed chicken to a warmed low oval platter. The old decorative cushion served display, not flavour, and the home table needs no such architecture. Spoon just enough buttered chicken glaze over the caul to make it gleam without soaking its whole crust, then arrange the four tartlets closely around the bird. Send the remaining glaze separately in a warm sauceboat. At the table, divide each leg into thigh and drumstick portions, cut through the caul to expose the macaroni filling, and give each guest dark meat, a spoonful of filling, and one crowned tartlet. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A true poularde is a specially fattened young hen with generous flesh and delicate fat. Ask a good poultry butcher first; if none is available, choose a plump small roasting chicken with intact skin. Technique first, always.
• •Order the caul fat from a butcher. Bacon is not an equivalent: it brings smoke and salt, while caul melts almost invisibly and bastes the reconstructed bird from the outside in. This wrapping is one of the steps that is the dish.
• •Prepared cocks’ combs and chicken kidneys preserve the source exactly when a specialist can supply them. Confit gizzards and sautéed hearts are the honest home substitution, with gizzard for spring and heart for the dark mineral note. The result changes, and it remains faithful to the garnish’s purpose.
• •Use unsalted stocks. Both are reduced hard, and ordinary seasoned stock becomes briny long before it becomes glossy. Gelatin-rich stock is what gives the beef liquor body and lets the chicken glaze hold its butter.
• •A full-bodied white Burgundy has enough breadth for foie gras and butter without bullying the truffle. Serve it cool rather than icy; fragrance is half the pleasure here.

Advance Preparation

• •Bake the tartlet shells up to one day ahead. Cool them completely and keep them airtight at room temperature, then refresh them for 3 minutes in a moderate oven before filling.
• •Reduce the beef liquor earlier in the day and refrigerate it. Rewarm it gently before binding the macaroni.
• •The chicken may be poached, cooled, and boned up to 6 hours ahead. Keep the carcass and suprêmes covered and chilled, then let the carcass stand out of the cold for 30 minutes before filling and wrapping.
• •Do not complete the caul browning or crown the tartlets ahead. Rendered caul and puff pastry both lose their crisp edges when held under sauce.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 560g)