2 kg Fat chicken with giblets
Salt
Black pepper; freshly ground
1 Bunch fresh tarragon
30 g Butter
5 tb Chicken stock
6 tb Double cream
Tarragon; chopped
Season the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper and tuck the
bunch of tarragon in the cavity.
Melt the butter in a deep, flameproof casserole and brown the chicken
gently until it is a light golden colour. Slip the giblets underneath
the bird, add the stock and cover the pan. Simmer on slow heat for 40
minutes, or until the chicken is cooked. Because of the gentle heat
the cooking juices should be a pale colour, neither brown nor burned.
Remove the tarragon from the chicken and discard it. Leave the
chicken for another few minutes before cutting it up and placing it
on a heated serving dish. Stir the cream into the pan juices, correct
the seasoning, and heat the sauce thoroughly. Pour the sauce through
a strainer over the chicken. Add a small sprinkling of chopped
tarragon and serve very hot.
French name: Poularde braisee a la creme d'estragon.
Chicken with tarragon cream sauce is truly a classic of French
cooking. There are many versions. This recipe is from the Auberge du
Pere Bise, on the shore of Lake Annecy. Because herbs increase in
flavour with the sun, northern tarragon may have to be used in
greater quantity to achieve the same effect. Fresh, not dried,
tarragon must be used.
