This recipe bases on this recipe from Couteaux et
tirebouchons, by an unspecified author. I've adapted it to my situation, and of
course translated it into English, and I refer to it as CET.
The recipe calls for an old cock (rooster), but they're not generally available, so I
usually make it with a young chicken.
Ingredients
For 6 servings
quantity
ingredient
step
3 kg
cock or chicken
1
750 ml
red wine
1
4
juniper berries
1
1
clove
1
1
sprig of thyme
1
2
bay leaves
1
500 ml
water
2
bouquet garni
2
200 g
smoked pork belly
4
20 g
lard
4
200 g
onions
6
15 g
garlic
6
25 g
salt
8
black pepper
8
4 cloves
garlic
8
300 g
carrots
11
12
pearl onions
11
300 ml
fond de veau
11
50 ml
cognac
11
2 squares
black chocolate
11
300 g
mushrooms
12
Preparation
Day 1
Cut the cock into serving pieces. The general recommendation is to make 10 pieces, and
that's what the photos show, but then they're huge, about 220 g a piece. For a cock of
this size it's better to cut the breast into 6 or even 8 pieces. Keep the back and any
other bones. Add the spices to the wine, put the cock pieces in and mix well. Put in
the refrigerator.
Take the back and other bones and cut into small pieces. Fry in a little butter until
coloured. Add water and bouquet garni and cook, reducing to about half the volume.
Cut the pork belly into small cubes (« lardons ») and fry in a pan until well browned
but not crispy. CET suggests adding butter if necessary. My belly was relatively lean,
and I added lard rather than butter.
Mix salt and pepper with the marinade. Cover the onions with the remaining cock and add
the marinade and the broth from part 2. Add some water to the pan and boil to loosen
the remaining deposits:
Add to the pot. Also crush the remaining garlic, unpeeled, and place them in the pot.
Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 1 hour. Then raise the heat slightly, maybe
removing the lid, to reduce the sauce. After another 45 minutes (a total of 1¾ hours)
remove the pieces of cock and place in the pan with some of the sauce. Place in an oven
at 180° with no fan for 45 minutes. This is intended to make the meat crispier. Here
the result at the end of the 45 minutes: