Ballontine / Gallontine of Chicken
One of my favourite ways of cooking chicken or turkey is to bone it out, add my favourite stuffing, and roll it up again in its own skin and tie it with butchers string or sew the skin back together.
When I do this for roasting, I remove the bones from the legs and wings (with the wing-tips removed), add stuffing to these as well as the main part of thejoint, when it is
finished the bird looks just as though it had been roast with the bones in, the process is a
bit time consuming but well worth the effort. I then wrap in oiled foil and roast it as as normal, removing the foil about a half hour before the endof cooking in order to brown the meatThe roasted bird is very easy to carve, almost all the slices are the same size and even.
Cool as quickly as possible, I stand it in front of a fan to cool it faster.
For a special occasion when serving cold I glaze a stainless steel serving platter with liquid gellatine, and when set I place the bird on the platter and lightly glaze this as well I makes a really nice table centrepiece.
A small turkey that has been de-boned stuffed and roasted
Chicken /Turkey Ballontine
If I intend to use a chicken or small turkey for sandwiches or salads I would prepare as above and then wrap in smoked bacon or Parma ham, this is then wrapped tightly in a sheet greaseproof paper followed by a layer foil so it looks a bit like a large sausage
It is then slowly poached in simmering water (which has had a chicken stock cube or two added) for approx 1-2 hours depending on the size of the chicken.
For serving cold
When cooked I place it still wrapped; into a loaf tin and covered with a
piece of plastic or plywood, cut to just fit into the top of the tin (you would
only have to do this once)
I then put weights on it and leave to cool under a fan.
Once cold I place it in the fridge until the next day, still with the weights on.
The poached bird when unwrapped is succulent and moist, a real joy to eat.
Chicken Gallontine
