Faisan Souvaroff

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy covered casserole sized for poëling one pheasant
• •3 1/2 to 4 quart (3.3 to 3.8 L) ovenproof lidded terrine or oval casserole
• •Small heavy saucepan
• •Kitchen twine and poultry skewer
• •Leave-in probe thermometer
• •Pastry scraper or small blunt knife for breaking the pâte à luter

Instructions

1. 1

   Ready bird and lute

   Set an oven rack in the middle and heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Pat the pheasant completely dry, then season it inside and out with the salt and pepper. Mix the flour with the 1/4 cup water until a firm, smooth pâte à luter forms, adding the extra water only if dry crumbs remain. Knead it briefly, cover it, and leave it supple at room temperature. It should roll into a rope without sticking or cracking.

2. 2

   Poach the truffles

   Combine 1/2 cup (120 ml) of the Madeira with the light meat glaze in the smallest saucepan that will hold the truffles closely. Bring it to a gentle simmer, add the truffles, and turn them through the liquor for exactly 5 minutes. Lift the truffles into the terrine in which the pheasant will finish. Keep the cooking liquor over low heat; it should coat a spoon lightly. If it is watery, reduce it briefly. If it has tightened into paste, loosen it with a spoonful of Madeira.

3. 3

   Stiffen the foie

   Lower the truffle liquor to the barest tremble and add the cold foie gras dice. Turn them gently for 45 to 60 seconds, just until their surfaces firm while their centers remain cool, then lift them immediately to a plate. If their corners begin to soften and render, stop the cooking and chill the dice for 5 minutes. Ça se rattrape: leave the released foie fat in the liquor, where it enriches the sauce instead of disappearing down the drain.

   Cold foie gras keeps its large dice during the first poach. Warm foie melts before it ever reaches the pheasant.
4. 4

   Stuff and truss

   Spoon the foie gras and enough of its clinging truffle liquor to coat it into the pheasant cavity. Do not ram it tight; a loose filling heats more evenly and leaves room for the juices to circulate. Close the opening with a poultry skewer, truss the bird compactly, and wrap the breast and legs with overlapping bacon slices. Tie the bacon in place with kitchen twine.

5. 5

   Poêle to two-thirds

   Cook the wrapped pheasant according to Poëlings (No. 250), stopping at two-thirds doneness rather than completing the preparation. Begin checking after about 25 minutes: the bacon should be lightly bronzed, the breast should register 125 to 130°F (52 to 54°C), and the thigh about 135 to 140°F (57 to 60°C). Reserve every spoonful of poëling liquor. If the breast has already passed 140°F (60°C), assemble the terrine at once and begin checking the sealed finish after 8 minutes; the bird is not lost, but it has no more time to spare.

   The early stop is deliberate. Fully cooking the pheasant during the poëling and then sealing it for another quarter hour would dry the breast before the truffles had done their work.
6. 6

   Seal the terrine

   Set the hot pheasant over the truffles in the terrine. Pour in any remaining truffle and foie liquor, all the reserved poëling liquor from Poëlings (No. 250), the remaining 1/4 cup (60 ml) Madeira, and the game gravy. Insert a leave-in thermometer probe into the center of the foie stuffing. Roll the pâte à luter into a rope, lay it around the terrine rim, fit the lid, and press the dough firmly over the entire seam, including the thermometer cable. The seal must be continuous. If it splits before entering the oven, patch it with a dab of wet dough and press again.

7. 7

   Finish and serve

   Bake the sealed terrine for about 15 minutes, or until the center of the stuffing reaches 165°F (74°C). If it needs longer, leave the lute intact and continue in 5-minute intervals. Rest the terrine for 8 minutes, still sealed, then carry it to the table as it stands. Crack the pâte à luter, lift the lid, and remove the twine and skewer. Carve the pheasant, giving each guest foie gras, truffle, and a generous spoonful of the glossy Madeira juices. If excess butter pools on top, spoon off only the heavy slick and leave the sauce's proper sheen. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A farm-raised pheasant of about 3 lb (1.4 kg) gives the best balance here. A smaller wild bird cooks too quickly for the two-stage method, while a very large one may need more time under the seal.
• •Fresh black truffles give the dish its full perfume. Outside their season, use excellent whole preserved black truffles at the same drained weight, never truffle oil; the preserved version is quieter, but it remains an honest classical pantry answer.
• •Use prepared light meat glaze with a clean veal or poultry flavor, not a salty commercial concentrate. The game gravy may come from pheasant trimmings or a good gelatin-rich brown poultry stock reduced to gravy strength. These prepared foundations replace the saucier's separate stockpots without changing the formula.
• •Choose a terrine only slightly larger than the bird. Too much empty space dilutes the captured aroma, and a loose lid makes the pâte à luter work harder than it should.
• •Serve a mature red Burgundy or a restrained red Bordeaux. The wine needs enough depth for game and truffle, but not so much weight that it flattens the Madeira and foie gras.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare or obtain the light meat glaze and game gravy up to 3 days ahead, or keep them frozen in measured portions. This saucepot work is the brigade scaffolding, and having it ready makes the final cooking possible in one evening.
• •The pâte à luter can be mixed up to 2 hours ahead and held tightly covered at room temperature. If its surface dries, knead in a few drops of water before rolling it.
• •The pheasant may be dried, seasoned, and left uncovered in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours. Do not stuff it with the foie gras in advance; stiffen the foie and fill the bird immediately before the poëling.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 400g)