Chefs Recipe: Roast Partridge by Michael Caines MBE

If you are looking for a delicious roast but keen to try something new then Partridge is a fantastic alternative. Delicate, tender and actually relatively easy to cook, Partridge offers a healthy alternative to most farmed meat as they are naturally lower in saturated fats due to the happy and active lifestyle of the bird. The great Michael Caines show us how:

Ingredients:

• 4 partridges oven-ready and trussed
• toasted walnuts
• 200g wild mushrooms prepared and washed
• quince puree
• Gewurztraminer sauce
• braised chicory

For the Quince Puree

• 100g sugar
• 500ml water
• 40g butter
• juice of half a lemon
• 500g quince, peeled, core removed and chopped

For the Gewurztraminer Sauce

• 250g partridge carcasses
• 25g shallots, finely sliced
• 125g button mushroom, finely sliced
• 500ml chicken stock
• 500ml veal glace
• 50ml cream
• 50ml vegetable oil
• 25g butter
• 375ml Gewurztraminer wine
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 10 white PEPPERCORNS
• pinch of salt

Braised Chicory

• 4 large chicory
• 1 litre chicken stock
• 1 large onion
• 50g butter
• 20g sugar
• 15g salt

To Finish

• 100g smoked lardons, finely sliced
• 50g garlic puree
• 20g butter

Method

For The Braised Chicory

Sweat the onion in the butter with the salt, but do not colour. Add the chicken stock and bouquet garni. Now add the chicory and bring to the boil. Cover with some aluminium foil and place into a pre-heated oven at 180c for about 30 minutes until tender and soft. Once cooked remove from the oven and leave to cool. Drain the braised chicory from the cooking juices, slice into thin strips and drain off any excess water. In a saucepan sweat off the lardons in the butter, add the sliced chicory and fry until dry. Once the chicory is dry add the garlic puree and season with salt and pepper.

For The Quince Puree

Mix the sugar, water, butter and lemon juice in a saucepan, add the prepared quince and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until soft. Strain off and save the liquid and liquidize to a smooth puree in a blender, then pass through a fine sieve and adjust texture using the cooking liquid. Season and place in a piping bag.

For The Gewurztraminer Sauce

Heat the oil in a roasting tray, add the carcasses and then the butter and lightly colour. Add the shallots and seat without colouring, then add the sliced mushrooms and sweat until slippery. Add the Gewurztraminer wine and reduce by half. Now add the chicken stock, veal glace, cream, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, lightly skim off any scum and reduce to a simmer, cook for 45 minutes and then pass through a colander then through a fine sieve. Reduce to sauce consistency then pass finally through a muslin cloth and correct the seasoning.

Place a handful of walnuts in a saucepan and cover with half water and milk. Bring to the boil and leave them to rest for ten minutes. Peel using a small knife and toast in the oven with a knob of butter. Season and roast off the partridge in a pre-heated oven at 200c for 8 minutes and then remove from the oven and leave to stand for a further 16 minutes. Now remove the legs and breast keeping the carcass for your sauce. In a frying pan heat some butter and place the partridge legs and breast skin side down and colour until golden brown then seal the flesh slide briefly before removing.

To Serve

Meanwhile, pan-fry the wild mushrooms in a little butter with salt and pepper, reheat the braised chicory and warm through the quince puree in a microwave for a few seconds. Place some chicory in the middle of the plate in a ring, pipe some quince puree onto the plate or around the edge and then sprinkle the mushrooms around with the toasted walnuts, Place the partridge breast on top of the chicory and then the legs to the side. Add the Gewurztraminer sauce and serve.

This is also the perfect time to dine at Michael’s own restaurant, the Michelin-starred Lympstone Manor. Enjoy with a complimentary welcome glass of Michael Caines Blanc de Blanc Champagne with the Luxury Restaurant Club. Download the free app here and follow steps to join the Club.

Happy Christmas

Lympstone Manor, Courtlands Lane, Exmouth, Devon, EX8 3NZ