Oison au Raifort

Oison au Raifort (braised gosling with cold horseradish cream) teaches reduction with unusual clarity. The one true thing to know before touching the pan is this: the reduced braising liquor is all the final seasoning the buttered noodles or rice receive. Brown the bird deeply, braise it gently, then boil that liquor down until a spoonful tastes complete.

The original assumes a whole young bird in a deep braising pan, stock never off the fire, a saucier free to reduce the liquor, and separate hands finishing the garnish. At home, one 6-to-7-pound gosling fits a 7-quart cocotte, a wide saucepan does the saucier's work, and each cross-referenced component appears only in the quantity four people need. The separate staff and oversized batches are scaffolding and can go. The braise, hard reduction, buttered starch, and cold Horse-radish Sauce (No. 138) served apart are the dish and stay. A salamander is irrelevant here, since there is no gratin to brown. One cook, one stove, one evening.

The finished platter should be generous: soft, burnished gosling surrounded by butter-glossed noodles or Riz au Gras (No. 2252), the dark braising liquor caught in their folds, and the pale cold sauce waiting beside it. Watch the reduction, not the clock. Stop when it coats the spoon and tastes deep without becoming salty.