Pullets

Poularde rôtie (roast pullet) teaches the discipline that settles every roast bird: protect the breast until the legs have nearly caught up, then expose it just long enough to take colour. Salt belongs inside, bacon belongs outside, and the final ten minutes uncovered are not decoration. They are the moment the bird becomes roast poultry rather than merely cooked poultry.

The original hung large birds before a concentrated fire, with a cook tending their distance and a very hot dish waiting. The plural entry becomes one large pullet for four, and a wire rack in a fierce oven supplies the same dry, surrounding heat. The spit, hook, and constant attendant are brigade scaffolding and can go; the trussing, interior salt, bacon shield, and late uncovering are the dish and must stay. A brief rest replaces the hands that once unhooked, plattered, and carried the bird while it settled. Bread Sauce (No. 113) remains a finished preparation, served hot and separately as the book intended. One cook, one stove, one evening.

Judge doneness by two witnesses. Tilt the bird over a white plate and look for juice that runs white or clear rather than rosy, then confirm with a thermometer at the breast and thigh. If the breast colours before the legs finish, cover only the bronzed area and keep roasting. Ça se rattrape. The step that matters most is removing the bacon when the bird is nearly cooked, not before; too soon dries the breast, too late leaves it pale.