chicken Archives - Miss Foodwise

Medieval Chicken Compost

Regula — Mon, 15 Dec 2014 22:10:00 +0000

Many people ask me if I come across weird and unappetising dishes in those old British cookery books I collect and devour.

Of course there are always recipes in historical cookery books which might seem odd to us today, but I am quite sure if someone from the 18th century would come and visit us today, he would go home with as much stories about strange foods to tell his contemporaries.
It’s all a difference in how we look at food, and how we approach it. For example, most of us only ever see meat, packed in plastic, neatly arranged in the supermarket shelves. Small independent butchers are disappearing on our streets and so is our connection to the animal that provides us with our much savoured sausage. Only last year a butcher shop in Suffolk was asked to remove his elaborate game displays from the window so children wouldn’t be upset by the sight of dead animals. Man has become disconnected and doesn’t think past the plastic surrounding the factory farmed meat.

I don’t find eating the head of a pig weird at all, people in the past would have been happy to have it. But today it is seen as ‘medieval’ and not very appetising. I must confess I do not have a desire to eat a pigs head any time soon, but many have told me it is exquisite.

I am talking about a Medieval dish with a name that might sound strange to us today, but only because we have given a different explanation to the word, or the word as evolved. Medieval dishes have always delighted me in their inventiveness, and elegance. A pure kind of cooking, with herbs and spices that give your tastebuds a whole other experience.

In the 14th and 15th century the dish with the name ‘compost’ has been the term for any stewed mixture. A ‘composition’ of ingredients. This could have been meat, vegetables or fruit. The French term ‘compote’ very likely derives from the English ‘compost’ which later only meant stewed fruits. The name ‘Compost’ for a recipe can also be found in Flemish Medieval cookery books.
To anyone, this dish must sound intriguing, especially as one would immediately think this was a recipe for creating the best compost to fertilise your veggie patch with.

But no, the etymology of the word might be obscure, we are not making any kind of compost for the garden today.
This recipe for ‘compost’ I am bringing to you today is made with chicken and green herbs, and spices. Another contemporary recipe is made with chickens and some of its offal. Herbs vary in recipes and another ‘compost’ is made exclusively from root vegetables, dried fruits and spices. They are all very clean and pure dishes.

Chicken was always a noble type of meat on a banquet. It was considered more economical if a chicken was kept for her eggs. Killing off a chicken meant killing of your egg factory so chicken would be on the tables of those who could miss a bird, the elite.
This dish is fantastic, it is so pure and simple, it is the kind of dish that just makes my heart skip a beat when I first have a little taste. The dish eats like a soup, and I like to add a nice slice of stale sourdough bread as a ‘sup’ – which was in the past frequently added to thicken the soup and give more substance. This ‘sup’ is also what gave us the term ‘supper’ later on in history. A ‘sup’ could also have been a piece of cake soaked in booze or sauce, the Italian word for trifle ‘Zuppa Inglese’ still gives shows us the link with the ‘sup’.
To make it into an evening meal I added some new potatoes. This of course not ver Medieval as the potato was not known in the Middle Ages, but it is a lovely addition to this dish.

New potatoes are a lovely addition to make it into a main dish, but not very Medieval.

Original recipe from A Noble Boke off Cookry (England, 1468)

To mak composte tak chekins and halve them then tak saige parsly lekes and other good erbes and chop them small then tak a pint of hony and som of the erbes and lay in the botom of the pot and som of the chekyn then tak lard of pork smale mynced and lay it on and cast ther to pouder of guingere and canelle and boille it and serue it.

I brown my chicken before stewing, this isn’t done in the original Medieval recipe, but I find it improves the flavour and the look of the dish, I leave my chicken whole, but you can cut it in half if you prefer.
It might be so that the Medieval cook also browned the chicken, but recipes of that period weren’t complete as they were more often just aide-memoirs rather than clear instructions.

What do you need – serves 4 or 2 very hungry people with leftovers, it is very good the next day.

1 large hen, free range (please, if you can)
1 stalk of leek, chopped
a bunch of parsley
a bunch of sage
a teaspoon of cinnamon, and one of ginger
two large tablespoons of honey
optional, some pieces of bacon fat, for flavour
optional, stale bread, only decent sourdough or other artisan bread

Method

Preheat your oven to 160°C, you can do this just on the hob too, I just prefer to use the oven.

Have a big pot ready, large enough so you can cover the whole chicken with water, but small enough so it fits snugly.

In a frying pan, melt a generous knob of butter and brown your chicken slightly on each side. You just want some color, no crust or full browning. A medium flame on the hob is fine for this.

Place half the herbs and leek on the base of your pot, place your chicken on top and add the rest of the herbs.

Smear your chicken with the honey, doesn’t have to be neat.
Fill the pot with water so the chicken is completely covered, add the spices and give it a stir.

Bring to the boil and let it boil for 5-10 minutes without the lid.

Close the lid and transfer to the oven (or leave on the hob on a small flame) for 45 minutes – 1 hour. Cooking time depends on the size of your chicken, and the quality, a free range slowly grown bird cooks faster than a factory farmed chick. The meat should just not be falling of the bone, so keep an eye on it on those last 15 minutes.

Strain your broth using a colander or something similar, and take out your herbs and veg.
Then, take the meat of the bones and place in the broth. Place some or all of the herbs and veg back into the broth if you like, I do, as I like to eat the whole thing.

Have warmed soup plates ready and place a piece of bread in each of them, pour over the broth and give everyone some meat from the breast and some from the legs.

Serving tip: some nice cooked new potatoes work well to make this a main dish. It is very strengthening and ideal for winter, or on chilly summer evenings. It is also very nurturing when you are unwell.

You might also enjoy
Medieval mulled wine – Ypocras >
The poor man’s bread >
Sussex stewed Steak >

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Chicken tarragon pie, bringing back memories

Regula — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 21:01:00 +0000

Chicken and tarragon pie will always make me think of my wedding dress.

Last year in april I had my first dress fitting in London, it was a terribly hot day and everyone was out enjoying walks along the Thames. The queues in front of the ice cream vans were long and the dresses short.

I arrived in London at 11 and had to be back on a plane by 5.

Obviously I didn’t have a lot of time but for some reason I was very relaxed and enjoyed my short visit to ‘the big smoke’. I took the underground to Neil’s Yard dairy and bought cheese and artisan bread, did some shopping, dropped of 3 jars of apple syrup I brought with me for one of my readers and set sail to the bridal shop.

By then my dress was soaked, the sun was burning and my bag of cheese was so heavy it started to be a burden to drag along.

I was so glad to get out of my clothes and I just stood there behind the red velvet curtain enjoying the cooling feeling before I had to get into my huge petticoat. It’s an emotional moment, the first time you are wearing your actual wedding dress. When I left the bridal shop, I headed over to a bench in the shadow looking over the Thames and just let it all sink in. I was in London and just tried on my -terribly over budget- wedding dress. When I was sitting there I looked up at a clock to see its was actually just before 3. I had to get my flight in Stansted at 5, I did the math and realised there was a good chance I would miss my flight. I started to run to the underground but passed a pie shop, knowing I was out of time I went in anyway and ordered two chicken and tarragon pies to go. Now I really had to rush and I did almost miss my flight.

The entire journey home, I smelled the chicken and tarragon pies in my purse.

I almost missed my flight for them, but they made a fantastic dinner in the garden when I got home that evening. No regrets! Oh well, perhaps I do regret not having the time to stop for a pint of stout!

What do you need (serves 2)

2 free range chicken breasts (350g)
1 cube of chicken or vegetable stock or real chicken stock (you need 250 ml liquid)
2 small carrots chopped into fine cubes
3 finely chopped sjalots
3 spring onions (only the light part)
3 tsp of fresh tarragon leaves
2 tsp of double cream
1 bay leaf
100 ml white wine (dry)
1 clove of garlic
3 tsp of dry roux -> see method for roux below
olive oil
for the pastry
2 eggs (1 for egg wash)
300 g plain good quality white flour
150 g unsalted butter or 75 g lard/ 75 butter
0,5 tsp of seasalt
2 tsp of ice cold water
cling film

Method
Sift flour and salt to a large bowl, add the lard and/or butter.
Use your hands to rub the butter/lard into the flour until the batter looks like bread crumbs.
Whisk one egg and add iced water to bring the dough together.
Knead for a minute to form a smooth pastry, shape into a flat rectangle and wrap with cling film.
Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
You can do this the day before.

for the roux
140g flour
125 g butter

If you are making a roux which is the base of a white sauce you need to know one thing: flour and butter is 1 to 1 ratio.
I always make a large quantity and store in an airtight container in the fridge for when I need it. If you want to do this you just make the dry base which is the flour and butter together, let it cool before you put it into a container.
When you want to use it you need to warm the milk, when you are using the roux straight away you need your milk to be cold.
So the rule is: warm dry paste = cold milk – cold paste = warm milk.
When you’ve added the milk to the dry paste, you need to cook it until the taste of flour is completely gone.Method
Melt the butter in a small pan, add flour and stir constantly until you get a crumbly paste that smells a bit like pancakes. Use your nose, if you think it smells like flour you’re not done yet and keep stirring.

The pie filling

Method
Bring your stock or you water with stock cube to the boil, add a bay leaf.
Gently poach the chicken breasts in the stock, the water should be simmering, not boiling.
Leave until the meat is cooked and the juices run clear. Drain the meat, let it cool a bit and cut into small pieces (+-1cm)
Keep the stock, we need it for the sauce.
Add olive oil to a heavy based pan, add the onion, then the carrot, the garlic and spring onion last.
Cook it until the vegetables are almost done (+-7min)
Add the chicken to the veggies and stir for about 3 minutes, add half of the tarragon.
Pour in the wine and let it evaporate so the alcohol is gone.
Now bring the stock back to the boil, add the roux and stir until you get a silky sauce.
Add the sauce to the chicken and vegetables, add the last of the tarragon and simmer for 5 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 180°C

Get your pie dishes out!
Pour the chicken tarragon into your pie dishes (I used 16 cm good old fashioned Falconware)
Take your last egg and whisk it so we can use it to egg wash the pie.
Use a brush to egg wash the border of the pie dish.

Take your pastry out of the fridge and roll it out (on a floured surface) so it has the thickness of a pound coin.
Gently place a ice of pastry that is slightly bigger than the dish over the pie.
Cut the edges so the pastry covers the entire dish.
From the leftover dough you can make decorations if you like.
Brush the egg generously onto the pastry, add the decorations and give them an egg wash too.

Put in the oven for 30 minutes, until golden brown and simmering underneath it’s pastry blanket.

Serve with silky mashed potatoes and a side of vegetables to your liking.

Enjoy

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Smoked chicken and a little compassion

Regula — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 10:47:00 +0000

I am having a strange feeling of happiness…
It’s sunday evening, I’m ready to go to sleep and I m looking back on my weekend.
This weekend was all about a chicken, not any chicken, a chicken that was reared with care and had lived a worthy life.
From the moment the ‘Poelier’ handed over this *chicken to me I felt like I had the task of giving this animal the send off it deserved.
It might sound strange but I truly felt that it was my duty to continue to care for this animal.
Someone had taken good care of this -very large- chicken, it had been roaming free in the Vogesen in France for at least 120 days. Knowing that the chickens we usually come by have only lived 40 days and sometimes less, this was a big bird.
After I picked up the chicken, my whole weekend started to evolve around it. First I had to clean it, quite a task as it was the first time I had to clean a bird from scratch.
I stood there for a minute, until I came to my senses. If I am going to eat this animal I might as well look it straight in the eye.
If you buy these chickens you get everything, the whole bird. This is so you can see first hand how this animal has lived.
What might be disgusting to some, really made me feel humble.
I wasn’t going to let anything go to waste out of respect and gratitude for the life this beautiful animal has given.
This is a feeling we have often forgotten in Western civilization, raising and caring for an animal and then when it comes to the point where it’s going to be eaten, use every part so not one single bit of this animal will go to waste.

So this is what I made of my beautiful bird.
On saturday I smoked the whole bird for 6 hours and had it for dinner, on sunday we had the leftovers and froze what was left of the leftovers to make chicken pie next weekend and sunday evening I made stock from the bones, smoked chicken stock! So this chicken will be enjoyed for months to come.

For the smoked chicken

1 free range/Organic chicken, mine was a 4,5 kg Bresse* Chicken
(Just try and find the best quality animal and ask your butcher for advice)
1 onion
a hand of fresh parsley
a hand of fresh sage
a few sprigs of fresh thyme
apple juice
1 apple

For the smoker
Wood chips, wood from fruit trees works best. I used wood from old Whisky barrels which gave an extra flavour.
Coals
Extra wood, I used wood from old grape vines. As coals do have some glue and/or additives in them most of the time, I think it’s best to use wood when the chicken is already in the smoker.

I served the chicken ‘old school’ with apple compote, carrots and hand cut chips which I baked in the oven.

Method

Clean your chicken if your butcher hasn’t done so yet.
Start by firing your smoker or closed up BBQ
Stuff the chicken with 1 onion, fresh parsley, sage and thyme.
Bind the chicken with some kitchen rope so the stuffing doesn’t fall out.
Rub the meat with apple juice.

Soak the wood chips in some hot water

Prepare a jug with water, add a glass of apple juice, some apple slices and thyme.
When your fire is ready, add the watercontainer to the smoker which you then fill with the water you just prepared.
Just before you put the chicken on the heat, add the soaked wood chips by placing them on top of the coals.

The heat inside the smoker has to be at least 80% to cook chicken.
Now the fire is ready to start cooking the meat.
Close the lid and don’t open it again for at least 4-5 hours.
This will prevent any dropping of temperature in the smoker.

After an hour check on the coals and add some new ones or a piece of wood if necessary.
I found it was necessary to do so, to keep up the temperature in the smoker. (I used the old grape vines at this stage)
After 3 hours we added some wood chips again.
You can check on it after 4-5 hours, but with a 4 kg chicken like ours it took almost 6 hours to be perfect.
Remember the juices have to run clear before it is safe to eat chicken.

*Bresse chickens are protected by Appellation d’origine contrôlée since 1957 – the first livestock to be granted such protection. The rules about raising these chickens are very strict, for example, stocks are limited by the size of the farm – with a minimum allocation of 10 square meters for each bird.

Today is world food day, I signed up for Blog Action day #bad11 and that’s why I felt I needed to write the next bit:
I haven’t had chicken in my country for years and when I did I felt guilty but frankly more sick then guilty.
The cruelty these animals are raised in is just beyond your imagination.
They live -survive- on a tiny spot in a large closed barn until they drop dead or stop laying eggs.
I hate intensive farming, we do not have the right to let an animal suffer to put food on our table.
The most important thing I feel is “think before you eat”. You don’t have to become a vegetarian or a vegan if you don’t want to, just think before you buy your meat.
Try and find an alternative to the meat you usually buy in supermarkets, search for a farm where you can go, so you can see first hand where and how the animals live.

I used to be a vegetarian for 6 years because I didn’t want to eat an animal that had a miserable life. I found a farm where I can go and see the animals every month, when it’s meat day.
I do not get veal as the children on that farm don’t want to slaughter their calves, so I don’t eat veal. (and one of my favourite dishes is Osso Buco -veal shank- so I would love some veal)

I don’t want to get all ‘activist’ on you, it’s just something I feel very strongly about.
You make your own choices in life. I choose to only eat meat from humanely raised animals.
I firmly believe that happy animals just produce better meat and I know a few chef’s and farmers who will back me up on that.

Buying my meat from a farm changed the way I live.
For example, I missed last months meat day (as you have to order your meat a week in advance so the butcher on the farm knows what to prepare) so now I have no pork or beef for two weeks, and I’m fine with it. We only do have meat once or twice a week anyway.
It does take some planning, but to be honest I like it that way.
Does it cost more, no it doesn’t.
Not on a local farm, you are a huge help to them if your buy directly from them. The price supermarkets pay the farms for their meat is criminal, the animals cost more to raise then what they get back from the meat. (not saying it is this way in every country) No wonder some farmers resort to cheaper feeds and more animals in one barn.

The system is just wrong.
I’m not saying it’s the same in every country, it is not.
For example France has ‘label Rouge’ for poultry and eggs which is very strict, the UK has more and more farms with rare breed animals who are allowed to live longer than other livestock.

But if you want the system to change, you have to change your own.
Once you go directly to the producer, you never go back!
The end.

A few good websites to take a look at:
www.action.ciwf.org.uk
www.fishfight.net
www.fao.org/getinvolved/worldfoodday/en/

If you know of a great producer, feel free to post the details in the comments section below.(doesn’t matter where it is, we want to know)
Help others to find meat from animals that are raised with kindness and compassion.
(I will group this information and turn it into a page for all to use.)
Many, many thanks for sharing!

Here are a few to start with:
The Ginger pig
www.thegingerpig.co.uk
Shop’s all over London, farms based in Yorkshire

Foxbury farm
www.foxburyfarm.co.uk
Family run farmshop in the Cotwolds

Salts farmshop near Rye
Folkestone Road East Guldeford, Kent
‪01797 226 540‬

Daylesford farm
www.daylesfordorganic.com
Farm and farmshop based in the Cotswolds, shop’s in London

Sandfields Farm
www.sandfieldsfarm.com
Family run farm in Oxforshire

De zeshoek
Family run farm in East-Flanders, Belgium
www.hoevevleesdezeshoek.be

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