Easy
4
Published 1974
This recipe has excited a great deal of enthusiasm in my classes. It seems to be possessed of a multitude of virtues, the ease of its preparation and the beauty of its presentation being not among the least; the breasts, moreover, being both protected from the direct onslaught of heat and nourished by the melting fats of the stuffing, remain moist and are delicately perfumed; the skin, basted from within as well as from without, crispens evenly to a rich golden brown, a miracle of beauty and flavor; it is elastic and, unlike stuffed flesh, will not shrink in contact with the heat, splitting beneath the pressure of a swelling forcemeat. I have often packed as much as a
Carving presents no problem, and it would be a pity not to carve it at table. A fairly large, stiff-bladed boning knife, which is, nonetheless, a good bit smaller than the usual carving knife, is the easiest to work with; split the bird in two (the breast bone, wishbone, and collar bone, having been broken and partially separated when the bird was flattened out, offer little resistance); delicately cut through the skin and the stuffing with the knife tip, in an arc described by the leg joint and the contour of the thigh, from the split edge to the outside extremity of the thigh; slip the knife beneath the thigh, loosening it, and far down, at the point of its contact with the backbone, cut through the fragment of vertebra—the breast and the leg will slip apart.
The stuffings I find most interesting are a cheese and fresh sage ravioli filling (
The stuffing may often be sufficient garnish in itself; a potato paillasson is a perfect supplementary garnish.
To Prepare the Chicken for Stuffing
Note: The following directions are for chickens as they are usually dressed, throat and abdomen ripped open, for the American market; in France, chickens are bled from the beak and the intestines are unraveled through the anus before being marketed, the skin being punctured at no point. If you have the good luck to find an unemptied chicken (Kosher butchers sell them), singe it, cut off the head, the oil duct above the tail, and the feet at a halfway point, leaving about
Split the chicken the entire length of the back, beginning at the tail, using heavy poultry shears, and cutting it, as nearly as possible, through the center of the backbone. Open it out on a chopping board, skin side up, the joints joining drumstick and thigh forced inward, facing. With the flat side of a mallet or cleaver—or with the heel of your hand—flatten it out with a firm (even violent) whack, fracturing breastbone, ribcage structure, collarbone, and wishbone (don’t try to remove any of the broken ribs from beneath—they are attached to thin sheets of flesh that help contain the stuffing).
Only at the summit of the breastbone, at the extremities of the drumsticks, and, to each side, the length of the spinal column is the skin securely attached to the flesh by tendons; it should remain so at these points. Elsewhere only fragile and easily ruptured membranes keep skin and flesh together. Take care not to tear the skin (intact, it is supple and resistant to tearing but, once a section is torn, the flaw transforms itself easily into a gaping wound): Work, first with fingertips and, as the skin is progressively loosened, with your entire hand, reaching in through the throat cavity and separating the skin, first from one breast, then from the thigh, and, finally, from the drumstick. Before you have the drumstick in your hand, your fist and wrist will be nearly lost to view (proof of the skin’s supple resistance); repeat with the other breast and leg. If the butcher’s original damage was serious, now is the time to patch things up with a needle and some kitchen string. Cut off the wing tips at the second joint, leaving shoulder section attached—or fold them under.
Sprinkle the chicken on both sides (but not beneath the skin) with herbs, pat and rub generously with olive oil, and leave to marinate for an hour or two.
Mash the white cheese and butter together with seasonings and fresh herbs, using a fork; add the egg, mashing; then, stirring briskly, put in the onion and the zucchini, and, finally, the Parmesan, adding enough to bring the stuffing to a firm, stiff consistency.
Stuff the chicken, taking a handful of stuffing at a time and forcing it into place, pushing with the fingers of one hand beneath the skin while molding and forcing with the other from the outside. Coat drumsticks and thighs well first before worrying about the breasts. When all of the stuffing is in place, fold the neck-skin flap (if there is any) over the throat orifice and tuck it beneath the bird. With a small sharply pointed knife, pierce the web of skin and thin flesh between the inside of the thigh and the tip of the breast, making a slit just large enough to receive the drumstick tip. Force the drumstick gently up and push its tip through the slit to the underside. Place the bird in its roasting pan (a large skillet or a round, shallow earthenware baking dish are ideal receptacles) and mold the surface with your hands to force the skin and stuffing into a plump version of the natural form. Salt and pepper and roast, starting at 450° and turning the oven down to about 375° some 10 minutes later. Start basting regularly after ½ hour. Count 50 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the chicken, and if, after about 40 minutes, it seems to be coloring too rapidly, turn the oven down further, placing a sheet of aluminum foil loosely over the bird.
Transfer to a round, heated serving platter; don’t attempt to serve the juices—they are too fat and the dish needs no sauce (chill scrapings and juices, discard the fat, and use for flavoring a dish of leftovers).
Copyright © 1974 by Richard Olney. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.