Poulet de Grains Mascotte

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 4 to 5-quart lidded cocotte
• •Small sharp paring knife
• •Kitchen twine
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Truffle slicer or very sharp thin-bladed knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare bird and potatoes

   Set a rack in the middle of the oven and heat it to 350°F (180°C). Dry the chicken thoroughly, including the cavity, then season it inside and out with the salt and white pepper. Truss it into a compact shape so the breast stays plump and the legs cook close to the body. With a small paring knife, turn the peeled potatoes into even olive shapes about 1½ inches (4 cm) long, weighing out four ounces after trimming. Their shape isn't plating theater; equal dimensions let every potato finish cooking with the bird.

   Save the potato trimmings for soup or a purée. The Mascotte ratio calls for four ounces of finished olive shapes, so weigh them after turning.
2. 2

   Brown in butter

   Melt 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) of the butter in a heavy lidded cocotte over medium heat. When it foams, lay in the chicken breast-side down and brown it patiently on the breast, both legs, and the back, turning with tongs until the skin is an even deep gold, 8 to 12 minutes. The butter may turn hazelnut brown, but it must not blacken. If the milk solids scorch, lift out the chicken, wipe away the bitter butter, and begin again with 1 tablespoon of the reserved butter. Ça se rattrape. Oil would make browning easier, but butter is the flavor of the dish and stays.

3. 3

   Toss the potatoes

   Lift the browned chicken onto a plate. Add 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) of the reserved butter and the olive-cut potatoes to the cocotte, then roll them through the butter for 4 to 5 minutes, until glossy and beginning to color at their narrow edges. Return the chicken breast-side up and arrange the potatoes around it. Dot the bird with the final tablespoon of butter.

4. 4

   Cook en casserole

   Cover the cocotte and place it in the oven. This is the essential method of Poëlings (No. 250): gentle covered cooking with butter, not a braise, so add no stock or water at this stage. Cook for 30 to 40 minutes, basting the chicken once or twice with the butter from the bottom. Begin checking at 30 minutes. It is nearly ready for its finish when the breast registers 155 to 158°F (68 to 70°C), the thigh has reached at least 165°F (74°C), and the potatoes yield to the point of a knife without breaking apart.

   If the potatoes become tender before the chicken reaches its temperature, lift them into a warm bowl and return them for the final ten-minute finish. Better that than letting their careful shapes collapse.
5. 5

   Seal in truffle

   Set the cocotte over low heat and spoon away any large excess of butter, leaving about 1 tablespoon and all the browned juices behind. Pour the concentrated brown veal gravy around the chicken, stirring it gently through the butter and fond without wetting the crisp skin. Arrange the potatoes neatly around the bird, then lay every slice of truffle over the breast and legs. Cover at once. Lower the oven to 325°F (165°C), the home equivalent of the gentler front of the oven, and cook for exactly 10 minutes without lifting the lid. The gravy must mingle with the flavored butter, but it must never boil.

6. 6

   Check and serve

   After ten minutes, check the thickest part of the breast without touching bone; it must reach 165°F (74°C), while the thigh should approach 175°F (79°C). If it is short of that mark, replace the lid and return the cocotte to the oven in 5-minute intervals. The truffle remains enclosed, so its perfume is protected while the chicken finishes. Spoon the glossy juices over the bird and bring the cocotte directly to the table, potatoes surrounding it and truffle still laid across the skin. Serve it as it stands. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose a compact chicken no larger than 3½ pounds. A larger bird needs longer cooking, by which time the four ounces of potatoes lose their shape and the final ten-minute truffle finish can no longer complete the chicken safely.
• •Fresh black truffle gives the fullest perfume, but good whole preserved black truffles are the classical pantry's honest answer outside their season. Drain and dry them before slicing. Truffle oil changes the flavor and does not belong in this preparation.
• •The veal gravy must be concentrated enough to cling lightly to a spoon. Loose stock floods the cocotte and turns the poëling into a braise, which changes the character of the chicken. Buy a good frozen brown veal gravy from a butcher if you don't keep your own.
• •Turn the potatoes with a small paring knife, rotating each potato against the blade rather than carving toward your palm. The first may be awkward. By the fourth, your hand understands.
• •Serve a white Burgundy with enough body for the butter and truffle, or a supple light red. This dish is best the moment the lid comes off; leftovers keep chilled for up to two days, but the truffle perfume fades.

Advance Preparation

• •The concentrated brown veal gravy can be prepared up to three days ahead and kept chilled, or frozen in two-tablespoon portions.
• •Turn and weigh the potatoes up to four hours ahead, hold them under cold water, then dry them completely before they meet the butter.
• •Season and truss the chicken earlier the same day and keep it uncovered in the refrigerator. Bring it out about thirty minutes before cooking so it loses its deepest chill.
• •Keep the truffle whole until the chicken is nearly cooked. Slice it immediately before the final ten-minute finish so its perfume stays in the cocotte.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 250g)