Game Royale

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Small food processor with a 3-cup or larger bowl
• •Fine-mesh sieve and flexible bowl scraper
• •8 by 4-inch (20 by 10 cm) metal loaf pan
• •Deep roasting pan for the bain-marie
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the cold setup

   Chill the food-processor bowl, blade, and game meat for 15 minutes. Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Butter an 8 by 4-inch (20 by 10 cm) metal loaf pan very lightly and lay a narrow strip of parchment across its base and long sides, leaving enough overhang to lift the royale later. Set the mold inside a roasting pan and put a kettle of water on to heat.

2. 2

   Pound the game

   Process the cold game until it becomes the finest paste the machine can make, stopping several times to scrape the bowl. Add the cold Espagnole Sauce one teaspoon at a time, processing each addition completely into the meat. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the measured cream, then add the remainder in small spoonfuls until the paste is smooth and softly glossy. The gradual addition is essential because it keeps the fat and liquid bound. If the mixture becomes warm, greasy, or smeared around the bowl, stop and chill it for 10 minutes, then pulse in the reserved cold cream. Ça se rattrape.

3. 3

   Season and strain

   Add the very small pinch of cayenne and pulse once or twice. Taste the paste now, before the raw eggs enter; the cayenne should warm the finish without announcing itself. Press the mixture firmly through a fine-mesh sieve with a flexible scraper, leaving every visible fiber behind. A modern sieve replaces the tammy, but the straining itself cannot go. It is what turns pounded game into a royale rather than a coarse forcemeat.

4. 4

   Bind without aerating

   Whisk the whole egg and three yolks only until no separate streaks remain. Stir them gradually into the strained game paste with a spatula, keeping the motion calm so you don't beat in bubbles. The finished mixture should fall in a thick, unbroken ribbon. Pour it into the prepared mold, then tap the mold twice against a folded towel to release trapped air.

5. 5

   Poach in bain-marie

   Cover the mold loosely with foil. Pour hot, not boiling, water into the roasting pan until it reaches halfway up the mold, then transfer the pan carefully to the oven. Poach for 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges are set, the center retains a slight tremble, and an instant-read thermometer reaches 160°F (71°C). The bain-marie must remain quiet. If bubbles begin breaking around the mold, remove a cup of hot water, replace it with cool water, and lower the oven slightly; catch it there and the texture is safe.

6. 6

   Unmold and cut

   Lift the mold from the water and rest it for 15 minutes. Loosen the short ends with a thin knife, use the parchment to lift out the royale, and turn it onto a board. Its cut face should look close, moist, and satin-smooth, without large holes. Cut it into small diamonds, rounds, or 1/2-inch (1.25 cm) dice and place them in four warm bowls of clear game soup just before serving. Let the hot soup warm the royale gently, but never boil it again. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Use one bird throughout. Pheasant is mild and generous, partridge is finer, and grouse is darker and more assertive. Mixing several birds muddies the identity, while the classical name follows the game that actually went into the mortar.
• •The cooked meat and Espagnole Sauce must be thoroughly cold before processing. Warm ingredients release fat and give the finished royale a grainy cut face; cold ingredients bind into the smooth paste the poach requires.
• •Rich cream means heavy cream with at least 36 percent fat. This is part of the structure as well as the pleasure, and a reduced-fat substitute produces a thinner mixture with a weaker set.
• •Do not skip the sieve because the processor appears to have done enough. Blades shorten fibers but do not remove them; pressing the paste through fine mesh is what gives the royale its silken finish.
• •For the cleanest shapes, cool the royale completely before cutting it, then warm the pieces in the finished soup. If serving immediately, let it rest the full 15 minutes and use a knife dipped in hot water between cuts.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare the finished Espagnole Sauce ahead and chill it thoroughly before measuring. Keep it whole as its own preparation; only the finished cold sauce belongs in this formula.
• •The royale can be poached one day ahead. Cool it in its mold, cover, and refrigerate, then unmold and cut it shortly before service.
• •Cut pieces may be held covered in the refrigerator for several hours. Warm them only in hot soup at service, never at a boil, or the egg custard will toughen and release moisture.
• •Do not freeze the royale. Freezing breaks the custard's fine structure and leaves the thawed surface wet and porous.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 85g)