Recipes by Mike Robinson: Roast Partridge with Bread Sauce
This dish makes a lovely Sunday lunch or smart main course; however table manner aside, nothing beats picking up the bird at the end and nibbling off those last juicy bits from the legs & wings!
Ingredients (Serves 4)
4 Young Partridge, plucked and gutted
8 Sprigs of Rosemary
2 Bulbs of Garlic
2 Bay Leaves
Butter
4 Slices of Streaky Smoked Bacon
Salt and Pepper
For the bread Sauce:
1 Pint of Whole Milk
1 Shallot
20 Cloves
2 Sprigs of Thyme
Pinch of Nutmeg
Method
Spread the legs wide to even cooking time. Cut your bulb of garlic in half across the equator and stuff ½ up the cavity of each bird along with 2 sprigs of Rosemary. Season the top of the bird and spread with a little butter and lay bacon over the breasts.
Roast in a pre-heated oven (200c) for 20 mins then rest for 20 mins with a cloth over the top. This allows the juices to relax back into the meat, making it juicy and succulent.
For the bread sauce – peel the shallot and stud with the cloves. Pour milk into a saucepan and heat with the onion and the thyme. Just before boiling point, turn off and leave to infuse. In a food processor, whiz up the bread til you have crumbs (use the pulse button as its not so fine). Stir the bread into the milk (onion & thyme removed) and warm to thicken. Add nutmeg and salt & pepper to taste.
Serve with all the trimmings: game chips ( potato slices crisped up in hot oil), roast potatoes, good quality redcurrant jelly and slow braised red cabbage. Pour the roasting juices over the meat.