Roast Squab With Apples Recipes

OVEN ROASTED SQUAB WITH PIQUILLO-BLACK PEPPER SAUCE WITH CHICKPEA POLENTA

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute. Increase the heat to high. Add the red wine and port and cook until reduced by three-quarters. Add the stock and cook until reduced to 2 cups. Strain the sauce into a bowl and add the piquillo peppers and, cracked pepper and season with salt.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Heat butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Season the squab with salt and pepper to taste and place in the pan, breast side down and cook until golden brown. Turn the squab over, place in the oven and roast for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest 5 minutes.
• Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until soft. Add the cumin and cook for 2 minutes. Increase the heat to high, add the water and 1 tablespoon of salt and bring to a boil. Whisk in the yellow cornmeal, reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon occasionally until the mixture pulls away from the pan. Add the chickpea puree and cook for 5 minutes. Place the mixture into a buttered 8 by 10 baking dish and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours. When ready to serve, heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cut the polenta into 2-inch squares or circles, season with salt and pepper and saute on both sides until golden brown. Garnish with parsley and serve with the squab and pepper sauce.

STEPHEN'S ROAST SQUAB WITH SEVILLE ORANGE CONFIT

Steps:

• To make the squab: Place a squab on a work surface, and with a sharp knife, remove wings and cut each wing into two pieces. Cut neck from body, and cut the body in half. Remove backbone. Split the squab in half through the breastbone. Cut off the first joint of each leg of the squab. Set all squab bones aside. Make a small slit in the excess skin of the breast. Tuck the end of the leg into this slit. Place the halved squabs in a shallow baking dish.
• Add 1/4 cup olive oil, minced shallots, minced garlic, thyme, and orange strips to the baking dish, tossing to combine. Cover and let marinate in refrigerator for 24 hours.
• In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat 1/4 cup olive oil over medium-high heat. When just beginning to smoke, add reserved squab bones, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add 5 cloves unpeeled garlic and roughly chopped shallot. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.
• Add sherry vinegar and honey, and stir to combine. Cook until pan is dry. Add orange juice, and cook until reduced and syrupy. Transfer to a small saucepan. Add veal stock, and reduce heat to low, simmering very slowly for 40 minutes. Remove from heat, and strain through a fine sieve, pushing hard on the solids. Whisk in 1 tablespoon olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Remove squab from marinade. Season both sides of the squab with salt and pepper. In a large oven-proof skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over high heat. Add squab, skin side down, to the skillet. Cook for 1 minute, reduce heat to medium, and cook until squab is brown, about 3 minutes. Turn squab, and place skillet in oven; roast for 8 to 10 minutes.
• While the squab is roasting, make the confit: Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add minced orange, and blanch for 2 minutes; strain. In another small saucepan, bring 1 cup water and sugar to a boil; add blanched orange peel. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
• Remove squab from oven, and serve with sauce and orange confit drizzled over squab.

ROASTED SQUAB WITH SICHUAN-PEPPERCORN MARINADE

Steps:

• Rinse the squabs and pat them dry. Use shears or a sharp knife to cut away the extra neck portions and back fat.
• Heat a small heavy skillet over medium-low heat and add the salt and peppercorns. Roast the mixture, shaking the pan, until the peppercorns turn dark brown. Transfer to a bowl and cool. Rub each squab inside and out with the mixture. Place the birds in a dish, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 4 to 6 hours or overnight.
• In a medium saucepan, heat the oil, add the shallots and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the shallots are soft, about 5 minutes. Pour in the port and cook until the sauce thickens and reduces by about two-thirds, about 20 minutes. Set aside.
• When ready to cook the squabs, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together the honey and vinegar. Place the squabs breast side down on the rack of a broiler pan. Brush generously with the honey mixture and roast for 5 minutes. Brush again and roast for 10 minutes more. Turn the birds over, brush again and roast for 5 minutes more. Brush again and roast for a final 10 minutes, until the squabs are nicely browned. Use poultry shears to split the birds down the middle; remove the backbone. Place the squab halves on a platter. Reheat the port sauce if necessary and spoon it around the birds. Garnish with rosemary sprigs.

ROAST SQUABS WITH PORCINI AND COUNTRY BREAD SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Bring 2 cups water, garlic, and 1 teaspoon sea salt to a boil, then drain in a colander. Blanch garlic in same manner 2 more times.
• Cut bread into 1/4-inch-thick sticks and toast on a baking sheet in middle of oven until pale golden, about 6 minutes. Leave oven on.
• Peel stems of porcini with a sharp small knife just until white flesh is exposed, then quarter mushrooms lengthwise.
• Pat squabs dry and season generously inside and out with salt and pepper. Put a sprig of thyme in cavity of each squab and divide garlic confit among cavities. Tie legs of squabs together with kitchen string and fold wings back.
• Heat 2 tablespoons duck fat in a well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown squabs in 2 batches, turning, about 5 minutes, transferring to a plate and reserving skillet.
• Add 1 1/2 more tablespoons duck fat to skillet and sauté porcini in 2 batches over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes (add another 1 1/2 tablespoons duck fat to skillet for second batch). Stir in blanched garlic, toasted bread, and salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat.
• Put a 13- by 9-inch metal baking pan on bottom rack of oven (to catch drips) and arrange squabs, breast sides up, in a small circle (without touching) on middle rack of oven directly above baking pan. Roast squabs, carefully basting once with remaining tablespoon duck fat, 15 minutes. Replace baking pan with skillet of bread salad, positioning it directly under birds. Roast squabs and bread salad until an instant-read thermometer inserted in fleshy part of a thigh (avoid bone) registers 155°F for medium meat and mushrooms in bread salad are tender, about 5 minutes. (If mushrooms are not tender, roast bread salad 5 to 8 minutes more.) Transfer squabs to a cutting board and let stand 5 minutes, then halve lengthwise with poultry shears or a sharp knife.
• Toss bread salad with parsley and lemon juice and serve with squabs.

ROAST SQUAB WITH GREEN LENTILS

Steps:

• Rinse the squabs under cold water, pat dry and flatten on a baking sheet. Season each side lightly with salt and pepper and place in the refrigerator. Using a sharp heavy knife or a cleaver, hack the reserved squab bones, neck, liver, gizzard and heart into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Place a heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat. Warm 2 tablespoons of the oil; when it is sizzling, add the bones and innards, stirring to brown darkly, about 10 minutes. Carefully pour off the oil and discard. Return the pot to high heat and use a wooden spoon to dislodge the bits of browned skin before adding the garlic, shallots, parsley, thyme, bay leaf and 4 cups of chicken stock.
• Allow the broth to come to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 4 hours, skimming frequently. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer, discarding the bones and aromatics. Place the broth in a saucepan over medium heat and simmer until the liquid has reduced to equal 1 cup. Season this with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
• Remove the squabs from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. Rinse the lentils under cold water and discard any stones. Place lentils in a heavy-bottom casserole along with the clove-studded onion halves, carrots and bacon. Add the remaining chicken broth, place over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, partly cover the pot and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour, stirring frequently.
• When the lentils are soft and all the cooking liquid has been absorbed, remove the onion, bacon and carrots. Add the butter and 1/2 cup of the squab broth, season with salt and pepper, cover and keep warm.
• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Place the squabs in a heavy-bottom, ovenproof skillet or baking pan, or 2 if necessary, large enough to accommodate the squabs. Place the pan over high heat on the stove. Add the remaining olive oil and when the oil is hot, place the squabs skin side down in the skillet. Press them down with a spatula to flatten them. Brown for 1 minute. Transfer the pan to the oven and continue cooking, skin side down, for 10 minutes for rare, and several minutes longer for medium to well done.
• Warm the squab broth and divide the lentils among 4 plates, creating a circle of lentils in the center of each. Place the squab on the lentils, drizzle each with the hot broth, garnish each with a sprig of thyme and serve immediately.