Côtelettes de Pigeonneaux à la Nesles

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Food processor with metal blade
• •Two rimmed sheet pans for pressing
• •12-inch (30 cm) heavy skillet
• •2-quart (2 L) saucepan
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Warm oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the sweetbreads

   Soak the sweetbreads in abundant cold water for 2 hours, changing the water once. Put them in a saucepan, cover with fresh cold water, bring slowly to a bare simmer, and blanch for 5 minutes. Transfer them to cold water, peel away the membrane and any coarse tubes, then place them between two trays under about 2 pounds (1 kg) of weight for 30 minutes. Pressing gives the sweetbreads an even shape that can be cut into neat collops.

2. 2

   Reduce the Madeira sauce

   Simmer the stock in a small saucepan until reduced by half and glossy with its own gelatin. Add the Madeira and continue at a lively simmer until about 6 tablespoons (90 ml) remain and the sauce naps the back of a spoon. If it reduces to a sticky glaze, loosen it with a spoonful of water or stock. Ça se rattrape. Cover and hold it off the heat.

   A thin boxed broth cannot build this sauce without becoming salty. Use a rich unsalted stock that sets softly when cold, or a good unsalted concentrated stock diluted according to its directions.
3. 3

   Make the farce gratin

   Melt 1 teaspoon of the butter in a small skillet. Add the fat bacon and let it begin to render, then add the veal and calf liver. Cook briskly until the surfaces brown and the centres are just cooked. Cool completely, then process to a smooth, close paste. Weigh out ⅓ cup (80 ml / 80 g). This is the farce gratin, and its finished bulk must remain one-third that of the godiveau.

4. 4

   Make the cold godiveau

   Chill the food-processor bowl and blade. Process the cold veal with ¼ teaspoon of the measured salt until the meat becomes tacky, then add the cold suet and egg white. With the machine running in short pulses, add 2 tablespoons of the cream gradually; reserve the final tablespoon. The godiveau should be smooth, cohesive, and very cold. If it turns greasy or grainy, stop immediately, chill everything for 10 minutes, then pulse in the reserved cold cream a teaspoon at a time. Ça se rattrape. Fold the 1 cup (240 ml / 240 g) godiveau together with the ⅓ cup (80 ml / 80 g) farce gratin and chopped truffle. Poach a teaspoonful in barely simmering water until firm, taste it, and correct the salt and pepper before chilling the finished topping.

   Temperature is the discipline here. Warm fat smears instead of emulsifying, leaving a greasy forcemeat that cannot hold its dome.
5. 5

   Shape the squab cutlets

   Pat the squab halves thoroughly dry. If the cleaned claws were supplied, leave them attached to serve as the cutlets' bones; wrap their tips loosely in foil during cooking. If your poulterer removed them, retain the lower leg bone as the handle and do not graft on a decorative foot. Lay each half between sheets of parchment and press gently with the heel of your hand until evenly flattened without crushing the bones. Season both sides with salt and white pepper.

6. 6

   Fry one side

   Heat 4 tablespoons of butter in a broad skillet over medium-high heat, working in two batches if necessary. When the foam subsides, lay the squab halves skin-side down and fry until that side alone is deep golden, about 3 minutes. Do not turn them. The source method is precise here: only the fried side receives the forcemeat, while the other side completes its cooking in the oven.

7. 7

   Press and chill

   Transfer the squab to a clean parchment-lined tray, fried sides up. Cover with another sheet of parchment and a second tray, then add a light weight of about 2 pounds (1 kg). Refrigerate for 25 to 30 minutes, until the halves are cold, flat, and firm. Use slight pressure, not force; you are setting their shape, not squeezing out their juices.

8. 8

   Crown and oven-poach

   Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C) and butter a rimmed tray with 1 teaspoon of butter. Set the pressed squab on it with their unseared sides down. Divide the truffled forcemeat among them, about 3 generous tablespoons per half, spreading it over each fried side in a smooth dome. If a dome slides, the squab or topping is too warm: wipe away surface butter, chill both for 10 minutes, and shape again. Apply Gratins (No. 268) by baking in the moderate oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until the forcemeat is set at 160°F (71°C) and the deepest part of each squab reaches 165°F (74°C). Do not use the broiler; the dome is meant to poach tenderly, not take a hard crust.

9. 9

   Bread the sweetbreads

   While the squab bakes, cut the pressed sweetbreads into 8 oval collops about ⅜ inch (1 cm) thick. Season lightly, dip each in beaten egg, then coat with the fresh breadcrumbs, pressing gently so they adhere. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat and sauté the collops until crisp and golden on both sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Hold them on a warm plate.

10. 10

    Finish the central garnish

    Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the skillet over medium-high heat. Toss the mushrooms until browned and their liquid has cooked away, then remove them. Add another 2 tablespoons of butter and sauté the sliced poultry livers in a single layer until browned and cooked to 165°F (74°C). Return the mushrooms and add the Madeira sauce a tablespoon at a time, using only enough to cohere the garnish into a glossy whole. It must hold together without swimming.

11. 11

    Build the serving circle

    Remove the foil from the claws. Arrange the 8 domed squab cutlets in a circle on a warm oval platter, claws pointing outward, and place a breaded sweetbread collop between each pair. Spoon the Madeira-bound mushrooms and sliced livers into the centre. Keep the pale truffled domes uncovered and bring the platter directly to the table. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Order the squabs and sweetbreads from a poulterer or butcher several days ahead. Ask for the squabs to be split lengthwise and, where local preparation rules permit, for one cleaned foot and claw to remain attached to each half.
• •Use fresh black truffle when it is good, or a properly preserved whole truffle from the classical pantry. Drain preserved truffle before chopping. Truffle oil cannot supply the texture or measured flavour the forcemeat requires.
• •Never skip the test spoonful of godiveau. It tells you whether the emulsion will set and whether the seasoning is sufficient before eight carefully shaped cutlets depend upon it.
• •A red Burgundy with good acidity suits the pigeon, truffle, and Madeira without making the table heavy. Serve a plain green vegetable or a restrained potato dish beside it; the platter already carries its own full garnish.

Advance Preparation

• •The sweetbreads may be soaked, blanched, trimmed, and pressed one day ahead. Keep them covered and refrigerated, then slice and bread them shortly before frying.
• •The Madeira sauce and farce gratin may be prepared up to two days ahead. Refrigerate them separately and warm the sauce gently before finishing the central garnish.
• •The truffled godiveau may be made up to one day ahead and kept below 40°F (4°C). Sear, press, crown, and finish the squab during the same cooking session rather than holding partially cooked poultry overnight.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 540g)