Christmas perry partridges
Another fantastic festive recipe from Rachel Green of partridges cooked with pears and spiced red cabbage
Ingredients
Fresh Ingredients
- 4 Oven-ready partridges
- 4 Small sprigs of fresh thyme
- 75 g Butter
- 4 Large shallots, peeled & diced
- 2 Garlic cloves
- Rind & juice of 1 lemon
- 2 handfuls Fresh parsley, chopped
- 150 ml Cream
- 4 Small pears
Store Cupboard Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp Plain flour
- Sea salt flakes
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 300 ml Perry cider
- 2 Bay leaves
- 750 ml Chicken/game stock
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp Redcurrant jelly (optional)
- 1 tsp Caster sugar
To Serve
- Braised red cabbage
- Pomme purée
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan
- Make sure the partridges are clean and dry inside by wiping them out with kitchen towel and place a sprig of thyme in the cavity of each bird.
- Season the flour with some salt and pepper and dust each partridge with the flour.
- Place a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the oil and 25g of the butter.
- Add the partridges to the pan and fry for around five minutes turning the partridges until all the sides are lightly coloured.
- Place the partridges in a casserole dish, breast side down. Deglaze the pan with a dash of the Perry and scrape into the casserole.
- Using the same saucepan, melt another 25g of butter and fry off the shallots and garlic for approximately five minutes until soft and then add the lemon rind, bay leaves and the Perry.
- Reduce the Perry by half and then add the chicken/game stock to the pan.
- Stir in the mustard, a handful of chopped parsley and the cream. Add the redcurrant jelly (if using). Allow to reduce by half until the sauce has thickened. Season to taste.
- Pour the sauce over the partridges, cover with a lid or foil, place in the preheated oven and cook for 20-25 minutes.
- Whilst the partridges are cooking, add the lemon juice to a bowl. Peel, core and quarter the pears and toss in the lemon juice.
- Melt the remaining butter in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the pear quarters to the frying pan, sprinkle over the sugar and fry gently on both sides until they start to caramelise. Remove from the heat and leave to one side.
- About 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time, take the casserole out of the oven and turn the partridges over so that they are breast side up.
- Add the pears to the casserole and return to the oven for a further 10 minutes, or until cooked.
- Remove the casserole from the oven, check the seasoning and scatter over the remaining chopped parsley.
- Allow the partridges to rest uncovered for at least 15 minutes before serving with some braised red cabbage and pomme purée.
