Poularde aux Céleris

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •5 to 6-quart covered oval roaster or Dutch oven
• •12-inch (30 cm) wide sauté pan with lid
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Gravy separator
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Warm oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare bird and celery

   Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Pat the poularde dry and prepare it for the linked poëling method. Trim the celery hearts without cutting away the root ends that hold the stalks together, remove any coarse strings, and cut the hearts lengthwise into eight neat bundles. Rinse between the stalks carefully; celery keeps grit in its folds with remarkable determination.

2. 2

   Blanch the celery

   Bring the water to a boil with 1 tablespoon of the salt. Lower in the celery and blanch for 6 minutes, just until the raw rigidity begins to relax. Drain thoroughly. Blanching softens celery's harsher edge so the later braise tastes round and vegetal, but the bundles should still be firm enough to lift without bending apart.

3. 3

   Begin the poêlé

   Set the poularde to cook according to Poëlings (No. 250), scaling the linked preparation to this single bird and following it as a whole. Keep the extra ½ cup of veal stock out of the pan for now. This restraint is the principle of Poularde aux Céleris: early moisture turns poêlé into braising. Once the covered bird is in the oven, turn your attention to the celery.

4. 4

   Braise the celery

   Melt the butter in a wide covered sauté pan over medium-low heat. Lay in the celery bundles in one layer, season with the remaining teaspoon of salt and the white pepper, then add 2 cups of the veal stock. It should come roughly halfway up the celery rather than drown it. Cover and hold at the barest simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, turning once with two spoons, until a knife enters the thickest stalk without resistance. If the liquid disappears before the celery is tender, add hot stock or water a few spoonfuls at a time. If a smaller bundle softens early, lift it out and keep it covered. Ça se rattrape.

5. 5

   Baste near the finish

   Warm the remaining ½ cup of veal stock. When Poëlings (No. 250) reaches its final uncovered coloring stage and the poularde is about 15 minutes from done, baste the bird with the stock a spoonful at a time, repeating every few minutes. The stock should glaze the skin and mingle with the cooking deposits, not flood the pan. If the skin begins to pale, stop adding stock and finish uncovered at 375°F (190°C) until the surface returns to a deep butter-gold bronze.

   Late stock is the dish. Early stock is a different technique. Keep the full measure beside the oven, but use only as much as the bird accepts without losing its color.
6. 6

   Test and rest

   The poularde is ready when the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F (74°C), the thigh reaches at least 170°F (77°C), and the leg moves freely in its joint. Transfer it to a warm platter, cover loosely, and rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Resting settles the juices and gives you time to finish the liquor without carving a bird that leaks onto the board.

7. 7

   Clear the liquor

   Complete the cooking liquor exactly as directed in Poëlings (No. 250), then strain it through a fine-mesh sieve and reserve 1 cup. Let the liquor stand briefly before passing it through a gravy separator. It should be clear brown, concentrated, and glossy, with no greasy film. If small beads of fat remain, let it settle and separate it again. Ça se rattrape. A cloth strainer and a saucier's constant skimming were brigade scaffolding; careful settling and a separator give the home cook the same clean result.

   Do not boil the finished liquor hard. Strong veal stock becomes salty quickly; if it is too intense, loosen it by teaspoons with hot water until the poultry and celery are clear again.
8. 8

   Drain the celery

   Lift the tender celery from its braising pan with a slotted spoon and let each bundle drain for a moment. Keep the braising liquid for another sauce or soup, but do not pour it onto this platter; it would thin the poëling liquor and muddy its flavor. If the celery must wait, cover it loosely and keep it warm away from direct heat.

9. 9

   Dish and serve

   Set the whole poularde in the center of the warm platter and arrange the braised celery closely around it. Spoon enough hot, degreased poëling liquor over the celery to glaze every bundle, keeping the burnished poultry skin mostly uncovered. Send the remaining liquor in a warmed sauceboat and carve the bird at the table. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A poularde is a plump, fattened young hen, not simply a grand name for chicken. If none is available, choose a well-fleshed roasting chicken weighing 3½ to 4 lb (1.6 to 1.8 kg) and check it about 10 minutes earlier; the leaner bird has less patience.
• •Use strong brown veal stock with enough gelatin to feel lightly tacky when cold. Beef broth is too dark and assertive here. If prepared veal demi-glace is your honest option, dilute it until savory but pourable before measuring.
• •The 2½ cups of veal stock listed in this recipe are for the late baste and the celery. They are additional to the butter and stock specified by the linked Poëlings (No. 250), which remains a separate preparation.
• •Choose dense, pale celery hearts with crisp ribs. Peeling the coarse strings is not decorative work; those fibers stay fibrous however tender the rest becomes.
• •A full dry white Burgundy has enough body for the butter and veal stock while keeping the celery distinct. Serve it cool rather than icy, and put plenty of the poëling liquor on each plate.

Advance Preparation

• •The strong brown veal stock can be prepared up to 3 days ahead and kept cold, or frozen in measured portions for up to 3 months.
• •The celery may be trimmed, peeled, and blanched up to 6 hours ahead. Dry it well, cover, and refrigerate, then begin its butter braise once the poularde enters the oven.
• •Cook the poularde close to service, but allow the full 15 to 20 minutes of resting time. The celery and liquor can be finished during that pause without keeping the bird waiting.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 530g)