Partridge is great game bird but people usually think of cooking pheasant before partridge. Let us change that as there will be plentiful partridge about this year. Usually available from September, once the season starts, right through until the end of January. Generally speaking we don’t think it needs hanging but a brace will keep for several days in the fridge before they’re needed.
Braised partridge with onion tatin and Madeira sauce
By Published: September 2, 2016
- Yield: 2 Servings
- Prep: 15 mins
- Cook: 60 mins
- Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
Partridge is great game bird but people usually think of cooking pheasant before partridge. Let us change that as there will be …
Ingredients
- 2 partridge breasts
- 250 grams potatoes
- 1/2 leek
- 100 grams baby spinach
- 1 large brown onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 100 grams ready-made puff pastry
- 200 grams white sugar
- 125 grams butter
- 2 tsps sherry vinegar
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- pinch dried orange zest optional- can be found online
- 100 ml Madeira liquor Sauce
- 200 ml white wine sauce
- 100 ml veal stock sauce can purchase
- 200 ml chicken stock or game stock sauce
- lemon juice or sugar sauce - to taste
- 2 cloves garlic sauce
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme sauce
Instructions
- Heat a few drops of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan with a crushed clove of garlic and a sprig of thyme. Add the partridge breasts. Once the oil has warmed up again, add a knob of butter.
- Seal the partridge breasts until they are lightly browned on one side. Then flip and repeat for the other side. This should take no more than two minutes per side.
- Just before they are ready add a teaspoon or so of sherry vinegar to take the browning off the pan. Season to taste with salt, pepper and (optional) dried orange zest.
- Roll the partridge breasts in the juices, remove from heat and rest in a warm place (oven or grill) for five minutes or so
- Madeira Sauce
Reduce Madeira and white wine by half. Add garlic, thyme and veal and chicken stock. Reduce to preferred consistency.
Check for preferred consistency and flavour. Remember a thin sauce with a good flavour is better than a thick, coating sauce with a bitter, overpowering flavour. Add sugar or lemon juice to taste.
- Onion or shallot Tatin
The first step is to make the caramel shells for the tatin. This can be done days in advance.
Mix 200g / 7oz of white sugar and 125g / 4 1/2oz of unsalted butter in a saucepan.
Stir and boil until the mixture turns to a golden brown caramel and emulsifies.
Spoon into individual cake or pudding tins and leave to set.
- Poach half onions or banana shallots in seasoned water or stock until tender.
This should take about 20 minutes.
Remove and season with soy sauce, sherry vinegar, salt and pepper.
Place each shallot or onion in an individual cake tin on the caramel shell and top with puff pastry.
Bake for 10 minutes at 180 degrees.
When the puff pastry is browned and the caramel is bubbling, turn out carefully.
- Vegetables
Peel and slice new potatoes and sauté raw in olive oil and butter until golden brown. Thinly sliced potatoes will cook this way without boiling. At most this takes eight minutes or so. In the meantime sauté the leek and spinach in butter until soft
Put the tatin on a plate and layer the potatoes, spinach and leek
- Layer the two breasts on the vegetables and drizzle with the Madeira sauce
