My Dad's Real Chicken Rillettes
For the broth
Ingredients · Servings 10 people
- 100 g lard
- 1 unit onion
- 2 cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 unit leek
- 1 stalk of celery
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 2 carrot units
- For preservation and aesthetics: allow for an extra block of lard.
Method · 45 min
- Start by removing the skin from the chicken and deboning it completely, removing as much meat as possible. Lightly chop the carcass into small pieces. Cut the chicken and cutlet meat into pieces about 4 cm square. Prepare a large casserole dish (cast iron if possible), and melt half a block of lard (125 g) in it. Add the pieces of chicken meat and note the time you're starting to cook. Brown them gently over low heat for about thirty minutes. Meanwhile, in a smaller casserole dish, we'll make the stock for the rillettes: Melt 100 g of lard and brown the pieces of carcass in it over medium heat. Add the bouquet garni, vegetables, and herbs… Peel the garlic and shallot. Mince them finely, and chop the parsley. After half an hour of cooking, add the garlic, shallot, parsley, thyme, cloves, and bay leaf to the meat. Cover the carcass with water. Cover both pots and simmer for 45 minutes. After this time, add the white wine to the larger pot, along with salt, pepper, and the bouillon cube. Remove the carcass and scrape off the remaining meat. Strain the broth. Add the meat from the carcass to the meat in the larger pot and add the strained broth. Also add the carrots from the broth and 125g of lard. Partially cover the pot to allow some steam to escape, but not too quickly. (I use a small spatula, for example, to prop the lid open.)
- Simmer over low heat for two hours, stirring occasionally and checking very regularly. After this time, turn off the heat and stir vigorously with a spatula to separate the meat fibers. You can remove a few pieces of chicken beforehand, or choose not to stir too much if you want some chicken pieces in your rillettes. Then add the remaining 175g of lard to the meat and mix to distribute. (You can add more lard if you prefer your rillettes to be even more melt-in-your-mouth and if you're not worried about calories! At this point, we're not exactly counting them;))
- Let the rillettes cool slightly so they firm up a bit, but don't let them cool and set completely. Stir lightly and transfer the rillettes to their containers. Let them cool completely, at least 6 hours, in a cool place.
- Melt a block of lard and let it cool slightly, firm up, and begin to become opaque again, but still liquid enough to pour. Then spread a layer of lard, slightly less than 1 cm thick, on top of the rillettes. This layer will not be eaten (unless you wish to), but it will seal the rillettes, making them easier to store and also improving their appearance. You can then keep your rillettes in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 weeks.
- For more details and many other recipes, visit the blog: http://ceriseetcompagnie.over-blog.com/2015/11/les-veritables-rillettes-de-poulet-de-mon-papa.html
Lard 100 g
Onion 1 unit
Cloves 2 units
Bay leaf (1 leaf)
Leek 1 unit
Celery 1 stalk
Thyme 2 sprigs
Carrot 2 units
