CookEat Recipe
Pigeon Fricassee with Sweetbreads and Mushrooms
Jointed pigeons braised with prosciutto and a herb bundle, then finished with their giblets, sweetbreads, mushrooms, reduced white wine and lemon.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 2 young pigeons, about 400–500 g each, legally supplied for food and professionally cleaned and eviscerated, with their edible liver, heart and gizzard reserved; 30 g prosciutto in one thick slice; 30 g butter, divided into 20 g for braising and 10 g for thickening; 1 small tied herb bundle, for example 3 parsley stalks, 1 thyme sprig and 1 small bay leaf; Salt and black pepper to taste; About 350 ml poultry stock, added gradually as needed; 100 g professionally prepared edible veal sweetbreads; 150 g fresh edible mushrooms, sliced; 100 ml dry white wine, reduced separately to 50 ml; 1 teaspoon plain flour; Juice of 1 lemon.
Step 2
Inspect the professionally cleaned giblets and remove any remaining tough gizzard lining or gristle. If using gizzards, simmer them separately in water until tender and at least 74°C, allowing 45–90 minutes as needed. Poach the prepared sweetbreads separately until cooked to 74°C, about 15–20 minutes, then drain, remove tough outer membranes and cut into pieces. Keep these cooked organs hot for the braise, or cool promptly in shallow containers and refrigerate until needed.
Step 3
Joint the pigeons into quarters or large pieces at their joints. Put them in a heavy pan with the prosciutto slice, 20 g butter and tied herbs. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook over moderate heat for about 10–12 minutes, turning, until the meat begins to colour and the pan juices start to dry; add some stock and lower the heat.
Step 4
Braise gently, partly covered, for about 20 minutes. During this first part of the braise, reduce the 100 ml white wine by half in a separate small pan. Add the reserved raw liver and heart, the prepared gizzard and sweetbread pieces, and the sliced mushrooms to the pigeon pan. Add more stock as needed, then pour in the separately reduced 50 ml wine. Continue simmering gently for about 20–30 minutes until the pigeon pieces and all giblets reach 74°C and are tender. Older birds may require longer and more stock.
Step 5
Blend the final 10 g butter with the teaspoon of flour, stir it into the cooked birds’ sauce and simmer gently for at least 5 minutes until lightly thickened and smooth. Remove the prosciutto slice and tied herbs, squeeze in the lemon juice and serve promptly. Watch for small bones.
Step 6
For dried mushrooms, replace the fresh mushrooms with about 10 g dried edible mushrooms, soaked in hot water for about 20 minutes, rinsed to remove grit and sliced; add at the same point and cook for at least 15 minutes. For truffles, omit the mushrooms and add about 15 g thinly sliced edible truffle only in the last few minutes. These alternative amounts are practical estimates.
Step 7
The source also permits young chicken cooked in this way. Use about 1 kg jointed young chicken with about 150 g professionally prepared chicken giblets instead of the pigeons and sweetbreads. Cook any gizzards until tender first, then follow the same braising and sauce method, checking 74°C throughout. For a butter-free thickener only, mix the teaspoon of flour smoothly with a little cool stock instead of the final 10 g butter, then simmer it into the sauce for at least 5 minutes.
Cooked it? Rate it.
Cooked 0 times