No. 2321

Poulpetonniere of Pigeons

Poulpetonniere de Pigeons

To be made with two pigeons. Line a bottomless oval mold two inches high by six inches long and four inches wide with thin slices of fat pork, place over an eighth of an inch thick layer of godiveau (No. 82). Mix in a bowl two spoonfuls of cooked fine herbs (No. 385) and two spoonfuls of sweetbread parings or roast veal, either of these to be chopped up, mixing it in well; season with salt and pepper, and add some reduced veloute sauce (No. 415). Lay a layer of this in the oval mold, over this lay two pigeons cut in four pieces, fried in butter, then drained and moistened with a little gravy (No. 404) and brown sauce (No. 414), cooked for half an hour and cooled. Spread over some fine herbs, finishing with another layer of godiveau; cook in a slack oven, remove the mold, dress and pour over the remainder of the potted pigeon sauce after it has been strained and thickened with butter.

← No. 2320 Potted Tenderloin of Beef a la Nelson Miscellaneous Entrées No. 2322 Tenderloin of Beef Pudding with Oysters →

For the Modern Kitchen

Ranhofer writes for a brigade with a larder of standing preparations, so half this recipe lives in cross-references. Once the component parts are translated it is a squab loaf baked in a ring, closer to an Italian polpettone than to anything in a modern pie chapter.

The hinge: the godiveau must sealThe forcemeat is the wall and lid of the whole thing. Press the layers firmly and close the top completely, or the juices from the pigeon escape during baking and the loaf collapses when the mold comes off.
A slack ovenAbout 300°F, no higher. The forcemeat is a veal-and-fat emulsion and will break and weep at a brisk heat. Reckon on roughly an hour for a mold this size, until the center of the forcemeat reads 160°F.
Bottomless oval moldA metal ring or flan frame with no base, set directly on a buttered baking sheet or in a shallow pan. Two inches by six by four is small; a 6 × 4-inch oval ring, or a small loaf frame, does the same work.
PigeonsDomestic squab, sold at roughly 3/4 to 1 lb dressed, is the direct equivalent. Wild pigeon cannot generally be bought, so squab is the practical choice. Two squab quartered will fill this mold and serve about four as a plated entrée.
Thin slices of fat porkUnsmoked fatback or fresh pork belly fat, sliced almost transparent — what a butcher will call barding fat. Sliced pancetta works but brings cure and salt the recipe does not account for; reduce the added salt if you use it.
Godiveau (No. 82)Ranhofer's godiveau is a veal forcemeat pounded with beef suet or fat and ice water, bound with egg. A modern veal or chicken mousseline made in the food processor with cream in place of the ice water behaves the same and is far less laborious.
Cooked fine herbs (No. 385)Not fresh herbs. Ranhofer's cooked fine herbs is a chopped mixture along duxelles lines — mushrooms, shallot and parsley cooked down in butter and seasoned.
Sweetbread paringsTrimmings from a kitchen that broke down whole veal sweetbreads daily. Chopped cooked veal, as the recipe itself allows, is the practical substitute; leftover roast veal or even braised veal shoulder is fine.
Velouté and brown sauceA reduced light veal or chicken velouté binds the herb layer; the brown sauce is Ranhofer's espagnole. A well-reduced homemade veal stock, one thickened lightly with roux and one reduced to glaze, covers both jobs.
"Potted pigeon sauce"The cooking liquor from the half-hour braise of the fried pigeon pieces, saved, strained, then whisked with cold butter off the heat. Do not let it boil again once the butter goes in.

A Little History

The Epicurean (1894) is Charles Ranhofer's record of thirty-odd years as chef at Delmonico's in New York, and it reads like an inventory of a professional kitchen rather than a book for the home: nearly every recipe points elsewhere in its 3,000-odd numbered entries. The name is usually taken to be a French rendering of the Italian polpettone, a large seasoned meat loaf, and the dish belongs to the nineteenth-century family of molded forcemeat entrées — pains, timbales, poulpetons — in which a savory farce encloses pieces of meat or game and is turned out whole at table. Pigeon here means the young domestic bird, a standard market item in the period and a staple of American restaurant menus. The bottomless mold is a professional touch: with no base, the loaf lifts free cleanly, which matters when the sauce is to be poured over it in the dining room.