1 large leek, chopped
2 bouquets garnis (each containing 3 sprigs parsley, 2 sprigs thyme, 1 bay leaf)
4 garlic cloves, smashed, plus 2 more cloves, chopped
One 750 ml bottle dry red wine
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons rendered duck fat or olive oil
2 large carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 large plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
Season the beef generously with salt and pepper and add to a cast-iron Dutch oven (cocotte) along with the leek, 1 of the bouquets garnis, the 4 smashed garlic cloves, and the wine. Stir to combine. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.
The next day, remove the chunks of beef from the marinade and pat the meat dry with paper towels. Strain the marinade using cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer; discard the leeks, the smashed garlic, and the used bouquet garni. Divide the strained marinade between two bowls; whisk the flour into half the strained marinade.
Working in batches, brown the meat in the duck fat (or oil, if using) in the bottom of the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Transfer the browned meat to a plate. Add the carrots, onion, celery, tomatoes, and chopped garlic to the Dutch oven and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables soften slightly. Return the meat to the Dutch oven along with the second bouquet garni and all the reserved marinade and stir to combine. Simmer, covered, over medium-low heat until the meat is tender, 21/2 to 3 hours.
Remove the Dutch oven from the heat and allow the stew to come to room temperature. Refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove the congealed fat from the surface of the daube, and remove and discard the second bouqet garni. Allow the stew to come up to room temperature. Bring to a simmer again over medium-low heat and cook for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
Serve with steamed potatoes and plenty of crusty bread.
Poule au Pot
Chicken in a Pot
Serves 4 to 6
Finding a tough old hen like the one Nadine Cauzette used when we made this dish isn’t easy in the States. This recipe, which includes the classic sauce gribiche accompaniment, has been adapted for a quicker-cooking roasting chicken.
For the sauce gribiche
1 hard-boiled egg, yolk and white separated, white part chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon minced capers
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon minced fresh chervil
1 tablespoon minced fresh tarragon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the stuffing
1/2 cup bread crumbs, soaked in milk
2 large eggs, beaten
4 parsley sprigs, leaves chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
One 6-ounce piece dry-cured ham such as prosciutto or jambon de Bayonne, chopped
Giblets (heart, liver, gizzard) from the chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the chicken
One 3 1/2- to 4-pound roasting chicken with its giblets and, if possible, its neck and feet
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 extra-large bouquet garni (6 sprigs parsley, 6 sprigs thyme, 1 celery stalk, 1 bay leaf)
1 onion, pierced with 2 whole cloves
1 teaspoon white peppercorns
6 medium carrots, halved
2 large leeks, trimmed, halved crosswise, and tied with twine (so they don’t fall apart during cooking)
2 large turnips, quartered
10 small waxy potatoes, peeled
Make the sauce gribiche: Mash the egg yolk in a bowl while slowly adding the vinegar, bit by bit, mixing constantly to create a smooth texture. Once the vinegar has been added, start adding the oil in a thin stream, stirring vigorously all the while, until the mixture becomes smooth and emulsified. Stir in the capers, parsley, chervil, tarragon, and chopped egg white and season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until an hour before serving time.
Make the stuffing: Drain the excess milk from the bread crumbs, transfer the soaked bread crumbs to a bowl, and stir in the eggs. Pulse the remaining stuffing ingredients in a food processor until they’re very finely chopped; add them to the egg mixture and stir until thoroughly combined. Season the stuffing with salt and pepper and set it aside.
Stuff and cook the chicken: Season the chicken inside and out with salt and pepper. Fill the cavity with the reserved stuffing. Sew the cavity shut with kitchen twine and truss the bird. Bring 5 to 6 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the stuffed chicken and its neck and feet (if using) and let the water return to a boil. Skim any foam that rises to the surface, then reduce to a simmer over medium heat. Add the bouquet garni, studded onion, and the peppercorns and cook, covered, for 30 minutes, skimming as needed. Add the remaining ingredients and continue cooking, skimming occasionally, for another 40 to 45 minutes until the vegetables are very tender and the internal temperature of the chicken is at least 165°F. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. Strain the broth and discard the bouquet garni, the onion, and the neck and feet.
To serve: Cut up the bird and transfer it to a large platter with its stuffing and the cooked vegetables. Ladle a little of the broth over the chicken and vegetables. Serve the remaining strained broth as a first course, if you like, and serve the bird and the vegetables with the sauce gribiche and some coarse salt.
Confit de Cuisses de Canard
Confit Duck Legs
Serves 4
Gascon cooks usually make confit in large quantities, in the fall, and preserve the meat in sterilized jars or cans, but you can make confit in small batches for more-immediate enjoyment at any time of year—if you’re able to find enough rendered duck fat. Ask your butcher for some, or order a container of it from the specialty-foods purveyor D’Artagnan.
4 whole duck legs
4 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
6 cups rendered duck fat
1 bouquet garni (3 sprigs parsley, 3 sprigs thyme, 1 bay leaf)
1 medium onion, quartered
6 garlic cloves, peeled
Trim any excess skin from the duck legs and reserve the trimmings for cracklings. Mix the salt, thyme, and pepper in a bowl. Rub the seasoning mixture onto the duck legs. Cover the duck with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours.
The next day, rinse the duck legs and pat them dry. Place the duck legs, skin side down, in the bottom of a large cast-iron Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot. Turn the heat to medium and cook until some of the fat has rendered out from the skin, about 5 minutes. Transfer the duck to a plate, add the additional rendered duck fat to the Dutch oven, and let the fat melt. Return the duck legs to the Dutch oven, submerge them completely in the fat, and let the fat come to a steady simmer over medium-low heat, about 20 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the fat should read 200°F. Add the bouquet garni, onion, and garlic and continue cooking, covered, for another 11/2 to 13/4 hours, stirring gently from time to time, until the duck is tender when pierced with a fork.
Remove and discard the onion, garlic, and bouquet garni. Let the duck cool in its cooking fat to room temperature, then cover the Dutch oven and refrigerate, making sure the duck pieces are covered completely in the fat. (You can also transfer the duck and its fat to another container, if you want.) The duck will keep, fully covered in fat, for up to 3 weeks.
When ready to serve the duck, remove the pieces from the fat and bake them, skin side up, in a 400°F oven until the skin is golden and crisp and the duck is heated through, 30 to 40 minutes.
Foie Gras Poêlé
Pan-Seared Foie Gras
Serves 4 as an appetizer
Searing fresh foie gras in a skillet is the simplest, and arguably the best, w
ay to appreciate the delicacy. A dusting of sugar and quatre-épices, four-spice powder, enhances caramelization during cooking, and gives a sweet dimension to the foie gras’s fatty richness.
One 12-ounce piece fresh foie gras, cut into 1-inch-thick pieces
1 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon quatre-épices (four-spice powder), plus more if needed (alternatively: 1/4 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and ground white or black pepper)
1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Coarse salt
Spread the foie gras pieces out on a baking sheet or large plate. Season both sides with the sugar, quatre-épices, crushed black pepper, and kosher salt. Cover the foie gras with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours.
Place a heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat. When the pan is very hot, add the foie gras pieces and cook, flipping once, until nicely browned, 1 to 2 minutes per side. (They will release a great deal of fat.) Transfer the foie gras to a serving plate and pour off the rendered fat. Add the vinegar to the pan to deglaze it; let the liquid boil for a few seconds, then drizzle it over the foie gras.
Sprinkle the foie gras with a little coarse salt. Serve hot.
Le Gâteau Basque d’Henri
Henri’s Basque Tart
Serves 6
Of the many versions of this dessert that I’ve tried, Henri de Rességuier’s humble, unadorned one is my favorite.
For the dough
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon almond flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 large egg, lightly beaten
8 tablespoons (4 ounces/1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and allowed to cool
For the cream filling
1 cup whole milk
3 tablespoons sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon Armagnac or dark rum
Make the dough: In a large bowl, mix together the all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, almond flour, and baking powder until thoroughly combined. Whisk in the egg. Add the melted, cooled butter and mix until a dough has formed. Shape the dough into a ball, flatten the ball, and separate it into two halves.
Make the cream filling: Heat the milk in a saucepan until steaming. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, whisk the sugar with the egg yolks until thoroughly combined, then whisk in the cornstarch. Slowly add half the hot milk to the bowl to temper the eggs, then pour the mixture into the saucepan and heat, stirring constantly, until the liquid boils and thickens, about 3 minutes. Let the cream filling cool to room temperature. Stir in the Armagnac.
Assemble and bake the cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Press half the prepared dough evenly into the bottom of a greased, 9-inch round cake pan. Pour the cooled cream filling evenly over the dough layer. Then begin cutting off small pieces of the second dough half, flattening them, and laying the flattened pieces gently on top of the cream layer until all the dough is used up and the cream layer is completely covered. Bake the tart until golden, about 45 minutes.
Fritons de Canard
Duck-Skin Cracklings
Portion size varies
One of the finest pleasures of duck cookery is also the simplest. To make fritons, just trim off the excess skin of a duck leg, duck breast, or whole duck, cut the trimmings into small pieces, and spread out the pieces on a baking sheet. Roast in a medium-hot oven, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes. Pour off and reserve the rendered fat, and transfer the cracklings to paper towels to drain. Sprinkle the cracklings with a little kosher salt, then toss them on a salad or—better yet—eat them as an apéro snack.
About the Author
DAVID McANINCH is the features editor at Chicago magazine and was an editor at Saveur for nine years. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, New York magazine, the New York Daily News, Newsday, Rodale’s Organic Life, and Departures, among other publications. He lives in Chicago with his wife and daughter.
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Credits
Cover design by Gregg Kulick
Cover illustration by Dan Funderburgh 2016
Copyright
DUCK SEASON. Copyright © 2017 by David McAninch. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
FIRST EDITION
Illustrations by Alexis Seabrook
Print ISBN 978-0-06-230941-9
EPub Edition March 2017 ISBN 9780062309426
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