Name: Méryem Puill-Châtillon
Class Year: 1980
Country of Residence: France
Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory?
This frigousse is a very old recipe from the Middle Ages, in Britanny, France. The Grand Ordre de la Frimousse is a sort of guild which promotes the culture and the local cuisine. Forgotten for ages, this dish has been recently renewed by the guild during the XXe century.
Frigousse is a sort of stew, a fricassee of poultry. This name is in fact unknowed by most people in France !
It’s a wonderful recipe, so tasty, and it’s great when you have a whole bunch of people for dinner !
La Frigousse du Grand Ordre
Serves 12. Takes approx. 1 hour.
Ingredients:
1 chicken (2,500 kg) cut into pieces
1 duck (2,500 kg, female is better) cut into pieces
4 quails cut in two pieces each
1 kg cooked chestnuts
250 g bacon lardon
2 finely chopped onions
1 bouquet garni
a few cardamom pods
1 liter dry cider
a pinch of nutmeg powder
15 cl calvados
vegetable oil and butter
salt and ground black pepper
Instructions:
In a large casserole, fry all the poultry in oil and butter. Then, put it aside.
Wipe the casserole and gently fry the finely chopped onions in oil and butter (but not until they get brown).
Add the lardon and tall he poultry pieces, and let them fry while stirring.
Now you have to flambé the whole pot with calvados. Turn the heat off under the casserole.
Flambé : heat the calvados in a small pan. Turn the heat off when it’s hot, and flame it with a match. And pour it in the casserole on the poultry, stir so that the flamed alcohol will be all around. When the flames are gone, put the heat on again under the casserole (best way to avoid burning your kitchen !).
Then pour the cider to the level of the poultry. Add the bouquet garni, the cardamom pods and the nutmeg powder. Salt and pepper.
Cover, turn heat to low, and let it simmer for 45 mn.
At the end, add the chestnuts and let it simmer for another 10 mn.
You can serve this Frigousse with basmati rice, or fried potatoes, cooked apart, or fresh pasta.
Source: Bretagne magazine, Spécial cuisine bretonne, 2011.