Home › Poultry › Creamed Chicken
Creamed Chicken
Pound the white flesh of a chicken to a pulp in a mortar, pass it through a sieve, again place into a mortar and work into it the yolks of four eggs, a little shallot and mix well. Butter a plain mould well, cut some truffles. into shapes and arrange on the bottom and sides of mould, by making them stick on the butter. Then put in the pounded chicken, half fill the mould, tie a piece of paper over the top, and put the mould into a saucepan half full of hot water and steam one hour and a half. Serve hot with tomatoes.
This is a chicken mousseline steamed in a bain-marie — despite the title, there is no cream in it. The eggs and the moisture in the meat are the only binder, so the pounding and sieving are what decide whether it sets smooth or grainy.
- The hinge: sieve after poundingThe sieving is not optional refinement; it removes the sinew and connective tissue that would otherwise leave the set custard stringy. A food processor does the pounding in seconds, but push the purée through a fine sieve or tamis afterwards anyway.
- Quantities to expectThe white meat of a roasting chicken gives roughly a pound of flesh. With four yolks that comes close to filling a 4-cup mould to the halfway mark the recipe asks for, and would serve about four as a first course.
- "A little shallot"Read this as one small shallot, very finely minced or grated — perhaps two teaspoons. Raw shallot in a delicate white forcemeat asserts itself quickly. Salt and white pepper are assumed rather than stated; the mixture needs about a teaspoon of salt or it will taste flat.
- Half fill the mouldThe recipe asks for the mould to be only half filled. Leaving the headroom guards against the mixture pushing over the rim and dislodging the truffle pattern when you unmould.
- The paper lidButtered parchment tied with string is the period seal, and it works: it keeps condensation off the surface. Foil, or a lid, does the same job. Whatever you use must be secured or steam will drip in and water the mixture down.
- Steaming, not boiling"A saucepan half full of hot water" means a bain-marie held at a bare simmer, around 180F. If the water boils hard the custard curdles and weeps. Keep the water level halfway up the mould and top it up with hot water as it evaporates.
- Timing and donenessAn hour and a half suits a full-sized mould, but go by temperature rather than the clock: the centre should read 165F. Small individual moulds or ramekins will be done in 25 to 35 minutes.
- TrufflesFresh truffle sliced thin and cut into rounds or diamonds is what is meant. Tinned truffle peelings work for the pattern at a fraction of the cost; truffle oil does not, as the point here is decoration.
- ServingLet the mould stand five minutes, then turn out onto a warm dish. 'Serve hot with tomatoes' most likely points to a tomato sauce or coulis poured round the base, though stewed or grilled tomatoes served alongside would also fit period practice.
Steamed forcemeats of this kind belong to the classical French repertoire that English and American cookbooks of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries absorbed — a pain de volaille or chicken mousseline, pounded in a mortar, bound with egg and set in a decorated mould in a water bath. The truffle cut into shapes and stuck to the buttered mould follows professional garnishing practice, where the pattern revealed on unmoulding was much of the point. What is odd is the title: nothing here is creamed, and in American usage "creamed chicken" usually meant diced meat in white sauce served on toast. Mismatched headings are common in compilations that gathered recipes from many hands. The mortar and sieve point to a kitchen without mechanical grinders; this was heavy, slow work.