SC - Re: SC - BLOMAETH HØNS

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Bronwynmgn at aol.com wrote:
> 
> In a message dated 9/4/2000 7:56:06 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
> Seton1355 at aol.com writes:
> 
> << As I understand this recipe, one is actually making a chicken pie with
> bones
>  in the pie.  Why does one leave bones in the pie? >>
> 
> I understood it as being a sort of chopped and formed chicken nugget, but put
> back on the bone before coating with batter and cooking.  I just wonder if it
> would stay together?  I guess that would depend on the consistency of the
> meat mixture and how quickly you got the coating cooked.
> Would this count as a sort of illusion food?

I would say so. Funny, I never really thought of chicken being "flaked
and formed" as a positive influence before, but in this case it seems to
be viewed that way. Yes, pretty much a chicken McNugget with a bone in
it, possibly even a relative of City Chicken made from actual chicken.

As for its ability to stay together, I've noticed over the years some
other recipes for meat that is cooked, then chopped up and which is then
expected to be cohesive in the way we expect ground or minced raw meat
to be. I can only suggest that perhaps these are older chickens cooked a
long time, and maybe the gelatin in the meat helps hold it together.
Maybe you're supposed to reduce the stock (the liquid you boiled the
bones in, presumably to clean them) to a gelatinous consistency and add
some of it?

As written, though, the recipe seems to be for what Taillevent would
have called charpie, meat shredded along its grain into threads, a sort
of stringy hash, which might be why you can wind it around the bones.
Ultimately, though, we may have to rely on the strength of the wheat
flour and egg dough (which may be a batter but also may be a pasta
dough) to hold it all together. 

This could be a fried wonton or kreplach with a bone sticking out of it.

Adamantius
- -- 
Phil & Susan Troy

troy at asan.com