Whole chicken in a casserole

With this method of cooking chicken, the bird is first browned on top of a stove and then casseroled in an oven with vegetables, bacon and stock.  There is not enough stock to stew the chicken – a method called “Poêlage.”

Preparation Time: 15 Mins

Cooking Time: 1¼ Hrs

Total Time: 1½ Hrs

Ingredients

For 6 servings…

80 gms            Bacon  - cut into lardons        

1                    Chicken     

20                  Onions  - pickling     

450 gms          Potatoes  - cut into 1½ cm cubes          

3 tbs               Stock  - chicken       

Method

Preheat the oven to 175°C.

Blanch the bacon in boiling water for 5 minutes.  Gently brown the lardons in a frying pan.  Remove them with a slotted spoon and reserve them.

Truss the chicken and brown it in the fat rendered by the bacon.

Remove the chicken from the frying pan and brown the onions and potatoes.

Place the chicken, lardons, onions, potatoes and stock in a close-fitting casserole and cover.  Bake the casserole in the oven for approximately 1 hour.

Transfer the chicken and garniture to a platter and strain the liquid in the casserole into a small bowl.  Skim off as much of the fat as possible and serve in a sauce boat.

Variations

Water, wine or simply butter can be used in place of the stock.

Wine recommendations

Almost any dry white or red wine.

Conventional

     Bordeaux

     Burgundy

Interesting

     Côtes du Rhône Villages blanc or rouge

     Graves blanc or rouge

     Riesling