Giblet Pie

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide 11-inch (28 cm) sauté pan with lid
• •Shallow 1½-quart (1.4-litre) pie dish
• •Pastry brush
• •Rolling pin
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the giblets

   Pull away the tough outer membrane and any yellow lining from the gizzards, then slice them across the grain about ¼ inch thick. Trim the vessels and excess fat from the hearts and quarter them. Remove connective tissue and any green-stained portion from the livers, then divide each lobe into two or three large pieces. Pat everything thoroughly dry. Wet giblets sputter and stew in the butter; dry surfaces give you the browning that builds the sauce.

2. 2

   Brown the giblets

   Melt 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) of the butter in a wide sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the foam subsides, fry the gizzards for 6 to 8 minutes, turning until their edges are well bronzed. Add the hearts and fry for another 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer both to a plate. Brown the liver for about 1 minute on each side, just until coloured outside, then place it on a separate plate. Work in batches if the pan becomes crowded. The brown film left behind is the fond, the foundation of the sauce, so leave it exactly where it is.

3. 3

   Singer the giblets

   Return the gizzards and hearts to the pan and add the remaining 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) butter. Singer, meaning sprinkle the browned pieces moderately with flour, then turn them over medium heat for 90 seconds so the flour cooks without taking dark colour. Pour in 1¾ cups (415 ml / 415 g) of the consommé a little at a time, scraping every trace of fond from the pan. The sauce should just cover the pieces, not drown them. Hold back the remaining consommé for adjustment.

4. 4

   Cook three-parts

   Bring the sauce to the barest simmer, partially cover, and cook the gizzards and hearts for 18 to 22 minutes. Add the browned liver and simmer for another 4 to 5 minutes, until every piece has reached 165°F (74°C) but the gizzards still offer a little resistance at their centres. This is three-parts cooked toward tenderness, yet safely cooked before chilling. The sauce should be light, clear-looking, and just thick enough to cling. If it tightens into paste, whisk in the reserved consommé a spoonful at a time. If it is watery, lift out the giblets and simmer the sauce briefly before returning them. Ça se rattrape. Taste the sauce and add salt only if the consommé needs it.

5. 5

   Cool completely

   Leave the filling in the pan and set the pan in a shallow bath of ice water, taking care that no water enters it. Stir occasionally until the fierce heat has gone, then refrigerate uncovered for 45 to 60 minutes, until the sauce is lightly set and the centre is thoroughly cold. Cover once cold. If the middle still feels warm, wait. Warm filling melts the pastry's butter from below, and no amount of extra gilding can repair that.

6. 6

   Seal the pastry

   Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C), or 360°F (180°C) with a fan, with a rack in the lower-middle position. Pour the cold filling into a shallow 1½-quart (1.4-litre) pie dish. Roll the cold puff pastry about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick and slightly larger than the dish. Cut a ¾-inch (2 cm) strip from the edge. Brush the dish rim with cold water, press the strip onto it, brush the strip lightly with more water, and lay the pastry lid over the top. Press firmly to seal without stretching, then trim the edge. If the pastry becomes soft or greasy, refrigerate the assembled pie for 10 to 15 minutes before continuing.

7. 7

   Gild and streak

   Beat the egg with 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) cold water. Gild the pastry by brushing it with a thin, even coat of the beaten egg, keeping the wash away from the cut edge so the layers are not glued together. With the back of a small knife, score shallow curved streaks across the lid without cutting through it. The scoring gives the puff paste room to open while preserving the sealed cover described by the old formula.

8. 8

   Bake until bronzed

   Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the pastry is high, crisp at the edges, and a deep butter-gold, with the sauce bubbling visibly where it meets the rim. Check that the filling has returned to 165°F (74°C) at the centre. If the pastry colours before the filling is hot, cover the top loosely with foil and give it another 5 minutes. Rest the pie for 10 minutes so the light sauce settles beneath the crust, then serve from the dish. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask a butcher or poultry counter for the gizzards, hearts, and livers separately. The gizzard is the clock of the dish, so trim it carefully and slice it thin; large whole gizzards will still be stubborn when the pastry is ready.
• •Prepared chicken consommé is the honest home equivalent to the stockpot the original kitchen assumed. Choose one with a clean poultry flavour and little sediment, then season only after it reduces because packaged consommé can carry plenty of salt.
• •Use puff pastry made with real butter. Margarine pastry leaves a waxy finish and loses the sweet dairy aroma that should meet the giblets when the lid breaks. We don't apologize for butter.
• •A light, peppery red such as Beaujolais suits the mineral depth of the giblets without bullying the delicate consommé sauce. Serve the pie with a plainly dressed bitter-leaf salad or buttered green beans.

Advance Preparation

• •The filling can be cooked, cooled, covered, and refrigerated up to two days ahead. This is the best arrangement for an unhurried supper because the filling is guaranteed to be cold when the pastry goes on.
• •The pie can be assembled without gilding up to 4 hours before baking and kept refrigerated. Brush with egg immediately before it enters the oven.
• •Refrigerate leftovers promptly and reheat them uncovered at 350°F (175°C) until the centre reaches 165°F (74°C). The pastry will not regain its first full rise, but its edges will crisp again.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 320g)