Dindonneau Chipolata

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •5 to 7-quart heavy lidded oval casserole
• •12-inch wide sauté pan
• •Small saucepan
• •Fine-mesh strainer
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Sturdy broiler-safe tray
• •Long warmed serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the crown

   Pat the turkey crown thoroughly dry, then season it all over and beneath the skin where you can reach with the salt and pepper. Tie any loose skin neatly underneath and leave the crown at room temperature for 30 minutes while the oven heats to 325°F (165°C). Dry skin and moderate heat matter here: moisture prevents browning, while fierce heat tightens the breast before the braise can do its work.

   Choose the smallest heavy casserole that holds the crown without pinching it. A vessel much wider than the bird spreads the braising liquor too thin and makes it reduce before the turkey is ready.
2. 2

   Brown and braise

   Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy lidded casserole over medium heat. Brown the turkey crown deeply on every accessible side, turning it with two sturdy spoons or tongs and giving the skin 10 to 12 minutes in all. Lift it out. Pour in the white wine, scrape the fond from the pot floor, and reduce the wine by half. Whisk the tomato purée into the demi-glace until its color and flavor are plainly perceptible, which is what the book means by tomatéd. Pour this half-glaze into the casserole and return the crown bone-side down. The liquid should reach roughly one-third of the way up the bird; add a little consommé if needed, or hold back excess sauce if the vessel is narrow. Cover and braise in the oven for 70 to 95 minutes, basting twice, until the thickest part of the breast reaches 162°F (72°C) without touching bone. If the butter blackens during browning, lift out the bird and wipe away the burnt fat before deglazing. Ça se rattrape at that point; once black bitterness enters the sauce, it stays.

3. 3

   Bathe the chestnuts

   While the turkey braises, place the chestnuts in a small saucepan with 3/4 cup of the consommé. Bring it only to a bare simmer and cook for 12 minutes, turning the chestnuts once, so they drink in the consommé without breaking apart. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and keep them covered. If one splits, keep it for the platter, but stir the rest with a light hand; chestnuts turn to paste when bullied.

4. 4

   Glaze onions and carrots

   Make the vegetables glacer à blanc, glazed without browning. Put the pearl onions in a wide sauté pan with 1 tablespoon of butter, half the sugar, a pinch of salt, and enough consommé to come halfway up their sides. Cover loosely and simmer until nearly tender, then uncover and roll them through the reducing liquid until glossy. Transfer them to a plate. Repeat with the carrots, another tablespoon of butter, the remaining sugar, and more consommé, cooking until a knife enters with slight resistance and the glaze clings. If either glaze catches before the vegetables are tender, add a splash of consommé and roll the pan gently. Ça se rattrape.

5. 5

   Frizzle pork and sausages

   Put the diced fresh pork belly in a dry skillet over medium-low heat and let its fat render slowly. Raise the heat once the dice begin to color, then frizzle them until their edges are crisp and curled. Lift them out with a slotted spoon. Brown the chipolata sausages in the rendered fat, turning often so their thin skins color without splitting, about 6 minutes. They need not cook completely yet; the reduced sauce will finish them.

6. 6

   Rest and reduce

   Lift the turkey crown from its casserole, set it on a tray, and cover it loosely for 15 to 20 minutes. Strain the braising liquor into a saucepan, pressing lightly on any collected juices, then skim away excess fat. Boil steadily until reduced to about 1 1/2 cups and thick enough to nappe, coating the back of a spoon in a glossy film. Taste repeatedly as it narrows. If it becomes too intense before it coats, loosen it with unsalted consommé. If the seasoning is right but the sauce remains thin, knead 1 teaspoon each of softened butter and the optional flour into a beurre manié, a soft butter-flour paste. Whisk it into the simmering sauce in tiny pieces and cook for 2 minutes. Stop as soon as the sauce coats; the beurre manié is rescue, not the foundation.

7. 7

   Unite the garnish

   Put the browned chipolatas into the reduced sauce and simmer gently until they reach 160°F (71°C), about 4 to 6 minutes. Add the pork dice, onions, chestnuts, and carrots, then warm everything together for 2 minutes, folding rather than stirring so the garnish stays whole. If the sauce tightens around the chestnuts, loosen it with a spoonful of consommé. Lift the garnish into a warm bowl with a slotted spoon, then whisk 1 tablespoon of cold butter into the sauce off the heat. We don't apologize for butter. It gives the liquor its final sheen and helps it cling to the crown.

8. 8

   Glaze and serve

   Check that the rested turkey has reached 165°F (74°C). If it has not, return it to the covered casserole for 5-minute intervals until it does. Heat the broiler and place the crown on a sturdy tray at least 6 inches from the element. Brush it generously with the finished sauce, broil just until glossy and burnished, then brush and broil once more. This is the home salamander, and it works quickly; if the glaze darkens too fast, lower the tray rather than abandoning it. Set the crown on a long warm platter, arrange the chipolata garnish generously around it, and spoon over enough sauce to make everything gleam. Bring the remaining sauce separately. À table!

Chef Tips

• •French chipolatas are thin, fresh pork sausages with mild seasoning. Ask for plain small pork links if they are not sold by that name, and avoid anything smoked, sweet, or strongly flavored with fennel; the sausage belongs inside the garnish, not above it.
• •Vacuum-packed peeled chestnuts are the honest home answer outside chestnut season. They hold their shape better than canned chestnuts and still receive the required cooking in consommé. Fresh peeled chestnuts are splendid when available, but they need a longer, gentler simmer.
• •Use a prepared demi-glace with real gelatinous body and restrained salt. If it comes as a concentrate, dilute it according to its instructions before measuring 2 cups. Gravy powder has the wrong flavor and cannot reduce cleanly.
• •The source also gives a lunch presentation. For that method, use about 4 pounds (1.8 kg) of mixed young-turkey pieces, brown them in butter, deglaze with the wine, cover with the tomatéd half-glaze, and bake for about 40 minutes. Transfer the pieces to a deep timbale, add the completed chipolata garnish, and strain the sauce over everything.
• •Pour a cru Beaujolais or a supple red Burgundy. Either has enough fruit for the chestnuts and pork without pressing too heavily on the turkey.
• •Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and keep them for up to 3 days. Reheat sliced turkey gently under a little sauce, warming the garnish separately so the chestnuts and carrots remain whole.

Advance Preparation

• •Season the turkey crown and leave it uncovered in the refrigerator up to 1 day ahead. Bring it out 30 to 45 minutes before browning so the butter does not seize against an ice-cold bird.
• •The onions, carrots, chestnuts, pork dice, and sausages can be cooked earlier the same day and chilled separately. Rewarm them only in the reduced sauce at the finish; holding them together overnight softens every texture into the next.
• •The demi-glace can be diluted and mixed with the tomato purée a day ahead. Keep it chilled, then bring it near a simmer before adding it to the browned casserole.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 600g)