Poulet de Grains à la Bergère

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch (30 cm) ovenproof braiser or wide Dutch oven
• •1-quart (1-litre) saucepan for finishing the sauce
• •3-quart (3-litre) deep saucepan for frying
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Mandoline with julienne blade or a sharp chef's knife
• •Tongs and slotted spoon

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the stuffing

   Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C) with a rack in the centre. Melt 1 tablespoon of the cooking butter in the braiser over medium heat, then cook the chopped onion and chopped mushrooms for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring often, until their moisture has evaporated and the mixture begins to gild. Cool for 5 minutes, then mix with the softened butter and parsley. Season the chicken inside and out with 1½ teaspoons of the salt and the pepper, spoon the mushroom butter loosely into the cavity, and truss the legs. Don't pack the filling tightly; it needs room to warm evenly.

2. 2

   Fry the garnish

   Melt 2 tablespoons of the cooking butter in the same braiser over medium heat. Add the salt pork belly prepared according to Blanchings (No. 273) and fry until its fat renders and the edges turn pale gold, about 4 minutes. Add the whole mushrooms and cook for another 6 to 8 minutes, turning them until glossy and lightly browned. Lift the pork and mushrooms out with a slotted spoon and leave the butter and rendered fat in the pan.

3. 3

   Gild the chicken

   Add the remaining tablespoon of cooking butter and raise the heat to medium-high. Set the chicken breast-side down and brown it carefully on every accessible surface, turning with tongs and a wooden spoon, for 10 to 14 minutes. To gild here means giving the skin a deep golden sheen through heat; the fond beneath should be bronze, never black. If the butter begins to scorch before the skin colours, lift out the bird, wipe away only the black flecks, lower the heat, and continue with a little fresh butter.

4. 4

   Reduce the wine

   Return the pork and whole mushrooms to the braiser, arranging them around the chicken. Pour the white wine around the bird, not over its gilded skin, and scrape the fond from the pan floor. Boil steadily until the wine has reduced by two-thirds, from 95 ml to about 30 ml, roughly 2 tablespoons. Tilt the pan to pool the liquid when you judge it. Don't stop at halfway: unreduced wine leaves the finished sauce thin and sharp, and flour cannot repair missing reduction. If the pan dries before the fond dissolves, add 1 tablespoon of water and keep scraping, never another pour of raw wine.

5. 5

   Finish in the oven

   Pour in the veal gravy and transfer the uncovered braiser to the oven. Roast for 55 to 70 minutes, spooning a little cooking liquor around the chicken twice, until the stuffing and the thickest part of the thigh reach at least 165°F (74°C). If the breast becomes dark enough before the legs are ready, shield it loosely with foil. If the pan threatens to dry, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of hot water or veal stock; the sauce needs moisture, not more acidity. Transfer the chicken to a warm round platter and rest it for 15 minutes.

6. 6

   Fry the pommes paille

   While the chicken roasts, cut the potatoes into pommes paille (straw potatoes), matchsticks about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick. Rinse them in cold water until the water runs clear, then dry them with almost comic seriousness; wet potatoes spit and soften in the oil. Heat the oil to 350°F (175°C) in a deep saucepan filled no more than halfway. Once the chicken begins resting, fry the potatoes in small batches for 2 to 3 minutes, until crisp and golden. Drain on a rack or paper, season with the remaining salt, and keep them uncovered. If a batch softens, raise the oil to 365°F (185°C) and return it for 20 to 30 seconds.

7. 7

   Thicken without boiling

   Lift the pork and mushrooms from the braiser and keep them warm. Skim away only the excess chicken fat, leaving the cooking liquor's butter sheen, then pour the liquor into a small saucepan and bring it just below a simmer. Remove it from the heat and whisk in the Manied Butter (No. 151), a small pinch at a time, using only enough for the sauce to lightly coat the back of a spoon. Hold it over the lowest heat for a minute, but do not let it boil after the Manied Butter goes in. If it becomes too thick or grainy, pull it from the heat and whisk in a spoonful of hot veal gravy or water. If it stays thin, add another small pinch of Manied Butter. Ça se rattrape.

8. 8

   Dress the platter

   Arrange the lardons and whole mushrooms around the rested chicken, then spoon the glossy sauce around the garnish without drowning the gilded breast. Build a border of pommes paille around the edge at the last moment, keeping the sauce away from them so they remain crisp. Bring the chicken whole to the table and carve it there. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose a compact chicken no larger than 4 pounds. A larger bird keeps the breast in the oven too long while the legs and cavity catch up, and the book's garnish-to-meat ratio becomes stingy.
• •The source's breast of pork means pork belly. Unsmoked salt pork keeps the sauce closest to the original; smoked bacon is usable, but its smoke becomes a new leading flavour, so choose it knowingly.
• •Use button mushrooms small enough to remain whole. Larger mushrooms can be halved, but don't slice them thinly; the garnish should arrive as mushrooms, not disappear into the liquor.
• •Prepared veal gravy supplies the body once provided by a stockpot kept constantly ready. If it isn't available, reduce ½ cup (120 ml / about 120 g) of gelatin-rich, unsalted veal or chicken stock to ¼ cup (60 ml / about 60 g) before beginning. The flavour changes slightly with chicken stock, but the sauce keeps its proper structure.
• •Cook with a dry, unoaked white wine and pour the same bottle at the table. A restrained white Burgundy or a dry Chenin Blanc has enough freshness for the butter without bullying the mushrooms.
• •Refrigerate leftover chicken, garnish, and sauce together for up to 3 days, but discard or store the potatoes separately. Reheat the chicken gently with a spoonful of stock and fry fresh pommes paille if you want the full dish again.

Advance Preparation

• •The salt pork belly can be prepared according to Blanchings (No. 273) a day ahead, then covered and chilled until the garnish is fried.
• •The chopped onion and mushroom mixture can be cooked and cooled a day ahead. Mix it with the softened butter and stuff the chicken only shortly before cooking.
• •The potatoes can be cut up to 4 hours ahead and held submerged in cold water. Drain and dry them completely just before frying.
• •Make the Manied Butter (No. 151) immediately before finishing the sauce, as the source directs. The chicken may rest while you prepare it and fry the potatoes.
• •Don't finish the whole dish in advance. The pommes paille lose their crispness, and the sauce is at its best directly after its last-minute thickening.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 430g)