Pluviers Dorés (Golden Plover)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch (30 cm) heavy flameproof metal skillet or shallow roasting pan
• •Fast instant-read thermometer with a narrow probe
• •Warm oval serving platter
• •Small whisk or wooden spoon for the jus

Instructions

1. 1

   Ready the fire

   Set a rack in the upper third of the oven and heat it to 500°F (260°C). Put a 12-inch (30 cm) heavy flameproof skillet or shallow metal roasting pan inside for at least 20 minutes. Fill the serving platter with hot water so it will be warm when needed, set the table, and have the diners within calling distance. Immediate service is part of the cooking here, not ceremony.

   Use metal or cast iron, never glass. The pan must tolerate fierce heat, direct burner heat, and deglazing without complaint.
2. 2

   Prepare the birds

   Keep the plovers cold until the oven and table are ready. Inspect each bird for pinfeathers, bruised shot channels, or pellets, then dry the skin and cavities thoroughly. Season inside and out with the salt and pepper. Brush every surface with the clarified butter, leaving no heavy pools. Butter, not bacon: the source is emphatic, and barding would soften the skin and mask the bird's own flavor.

3. 3

   Roast fiercely

   Using dry oven mitts, pull out the blistering-hot skillet and arrange the birds breast-side up with space between them. Return the pan immediately to the upper rack. Roast undisturbed for 6 minutes, rotate the pan, then continue for 3 to 6 minutes. Begin checking each bird at 9 minutes by inserting an instant-read thermometer horizontally into the thickest breast without touching bone. Remove each one as it reaches 162°F (72°C); their skins should be taut and deep hazelnut-brown. If the flesh reaches temperature while the skin is pale, place it under the broiler for 15 to 30 seconds and watch without looking away. If the wing tips darken too quickly, shield only those tips with small pieces of foil rather than wrapping the bird.

   Birds seldom weigh exactly alike. Remove them individually as they reach temperature instead of sacrificing the smallest while the largest catches up.
4. 4

   Reduce the jus

   Empty and dry the warmed platter, then transfer the birds to it and leave them uncovered. Set the roasting skillet over high heat. Pour off loose fat but preserve the mahogany fond, add the boiling water carefully, and scrape until every brown deposit dissolves. Boil hard for 45 to 90 seconds, until about 3 tablespoons (45 ml) remain and the liquid looks concentrated rather than watery. Take the pan off the heat and whisk in the cold butter a few pieces at a time. If the jus looks greasy, skim the loose fat and whisk in 1 teaspoon (5 ml) boiling water; if it reduced too far, loosen it with another spoonful. Ça se rattrape. Taste before adding any salt.

5. 5

   Serve without delay

   After the birds have rested for about 3 minutes while the jus was made, confirm that each breast has reached 165°F (74°C). If one has not, return it to the hot skillet and oven for 60 seconds, then check again. Spoon a little jus beneath and around each plover, keeping the burnished breast skin exposed. Add no bacon, herbs, vegetables, or decorative garnish. Carry the platter directly to the table, warn diners that whole game birds contain fine bones and may retain an occasional shot fragment, and serve at once. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Golden plover is protected or restricted in many jurisdictions. In the United States, native golden plovers cannot be treated as market game. Use only a species, season, source, and method of sale that are lawful where you cook, with the birds passed through an approved game dealer. If lawful plover is unavailable, choose a separate farmed-quail recipe rather than buying a dubious bird or pretending the substitution is invisible.
• •Ask for birds of nearly equal dressed weight and, when possible, birds taken with non-lead shot. Inspect them with your fingertips as well as your eyes, trim any heavily bruised channel, and tell guests that carefully dressed wild game can still contain a pellet or tiny fragment.
• •Clarified butter is still butter, with the milk solids removed so they cannot scorch before the plover browns. Melt ordinary unsalted butter gently, let it separate, then pour off the clear golden fat and leave the milky sediment behind.
• •The gravy must remain short. Water, fond, reduction, cold butter: c'est la même grammaire as a larger jus, only concentrated into a few spoonfuls. Stock, cream, wine, herbs, and roux would turn the bird into another dish.
• •Pour a supple, mature red with modest tannin. A light Burgundy is particularly graceful with delicate game, while a heavy young wine will flatten everything the fierce roast preserved.

Advance Preparation

• •Up to 8 hours ahead, inspect and dry the plovers, then refrigerate them uncovered on a rack over a tray. This dries the skin without holding the birds at room temperature. Season and butter them only when the oven is fully heated.
• •Twenty minutes before roasting, preheat the skillet, warm the platter with hot water, set the table, and finish every other part of the meal. Neither the roast nor its pan jus can be made ahead without losing the point of the dish.
• •If leftovers remain, refrigerate them within 2 hours and use within 1 day. Reheat to 165°F (74°C), knowing that a second heating will dry such small birds considerably.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 155g)