Fricassée of Pullet with Mushrooms
Pieces of pullet simmered in a white sauce thickened with egg yolks, perfumed with mushrooms and fine spices. The great classic of affluent tables, rich without being heavy.
Pieces of pullet simmered in a white sauce thickened with egg yolks, perfumed with mushrooms and fine spices. The great classic of affluent tables, rich without being heavy.
My learned friends, when I entertained at the Arsenal after our long sessions, it was this fricassée that was brought to table. We carved a fine pullet, seared it in butter without letting it take color, then simmered it in its own juices with mushrooms and a hint of nutmeg. The liaison is done at the last moment, off the heat, with egg yolks and a dash of verjuice: beware, for a miscalculated heat turns the sauce, and all the art lies in that just measure. Madame de Lavoisier herself ensured the sauce was a perfect white.
- •Pullet — a fine piece (main meat)
- •Fresh butter — a good piece (to sear the poultry)
- •Mushrooms — a full handful (umami garnish)
- •Egg yolks — three or four (thickener)
- •Verjuice — a dash (fine acidity)
- •Nutmeg, mace, clove — to taste (fine spices)
- •Herb bundle (parsley, spring onion, thyme) — one bundle (aromatics)
Fricassée of Pullet with Mushrooms
Pieces of pullet simmered in a white sauce thickened with egg yolks, perfumed with mushrooms and fine spices. The great classic of affluent tables, rich without being heavy.
Why this dish? As a Farmer-General and prominent scientist, Lavoisier entertained at the Hôtel de la Ferme générale, and his wife Marie-Anne Paulze held a salon frequented by men of science. The fricassée of poultry, a prestigious yet unostentatious dish, was the centerpiece of these dinners.
My learned friends, when I entertained at the Arsenal after our long sessions, it was this fricassée that was brought to table. We carved a fine pullet, seared it in butter without letting it take color, then simmered it in its own juices with mushrooms and a hint of nutmeg. The liaison is done at the last moment, off the heat, with egg yolks and a dash of verjuice: beware, for a miscalculated heat turns the sauce, and all the art lies in that just measure. Madame de Lavoisier herself ensured the sauce was a perfect white.
Ingredients (period version)
- Pullet — a fine piece (main meat)
- Fresh butter — a good piece (to sear the poultry)
- Mushrooms — a full handful (umami garnish)
- Egg yolks — three or four (thickener)
- Verjuice — a dash (fine acidity)
- Nutmeg, mace, clove — to taste (fine spices)
- Herb bundle (parsley, spring onion, thyme) — one bundle (aromatics)
Ingredients
- Free-range chicken, cut into pieces — 1.2 kg (main meat)
- Butter — 50 g (to sear the poultry)
- Button mushrooms — 250 g (garnish)
- Egg yolks — 3 (thickener)
- Verjuice (or lemon juice + water) — 2 tbsp (acidity)
- Chicken broth — 500 ml (cooking liquid)
- Nutmeg + 1 clove — 1 pinch grated (fine spices)
- Bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, bay) — 1 (aromatics)
Method
- Sear the chicken pieces in butter without browning for 5 minutes.
- Dust with a little flour, add the broth, bouquet garni, clove, and a little nutmeg.
- Cover and simmer for 35 minutes, then add the sliced mushrooms and cook 10 more minutes.
- Remove the pieces and keep warm; beat the egg yolks with the verjuice.
- Off the heat, whisk a ladle of hot sauce into the yolks, then pour back into the pan and thicken over very low heat WITHOUT boiling.
- Adjust salt, coat the poultry, and serve immediately.
How it was made : The fricassée of chicken 'à la française' was codified by Massialot and Menon: poultry seared in butter, white sauce thickened with egg yolks and verjuice. Verjuice (green grape juice) then held the place that lemon has since taken.
The contemporary twist : Dress a single beautiful piece coated with sauce, a few mushrooms sliced into even strips, and a comma of sauce: a witty touch to remind that Lavoisier reinvented the very language of chemistry.
Sources : François Massialot, Le Cuisinier roïal et bourgeois, 1691 · Menon, La Cuisinière bourgeoise, 1746
Antoine de Lavoisier · Charactorium