Poached Chicken and Wild Herb Mayonnaise
My son has started talking. Not just the obvious first words which are always nearest family members. These are his first real words; some in English, some in Italian, all with his own particular pronunciation:
Ky – sky
Woah-vo – ouvo, egg
Pane – said Pa-nay, bread
Botto – biscotto, biscuit
Oh Noooooo –the same in both (all?) languages
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And just like that, he seems to have made sense of it all. An egg, the sky, bread, biscuits, disaster. Life: its bigness, its smallness, its biscuits.
I know I’m not the first parent to believe their child is a prodigy, but I have to say his first words seem a near perfect summary of what’s to come.
Of course there are animal sounds too, cra cra for frog (ribbit has never sounded so primly British) baaaaah for sheep (universal) meow for cat (equally) and bow for dog (Italian). Seeing as Ferdinando (the tortoise) is frustratingly silent he has invented his own sounds (pitchikum pitchikum pitchikum followed by delighted growling in the blinking reptile’s face).
It feels like Spring here now, Ferdinando is stirring. This is why we went to talk to him (I try to respect hisletargo and leave him in peace). My narcissus is out, the rosemary smothered in purple-blue blossom (I never remember seeing rosemary bloom in England, is this just my poor memory?). All the windows are open and the first clumsy flies buzz in and out, batting against the window panes. I have started to wash my vegetables in the outdoor sink. I think, if anyone asked me now what my ambition was in life, I would say, to live most of my life outside. Ideally without shoes. I am airing my alabaster feet now and again. Yesterday we went to the beach and I saw Lorenzo’s creamy white toes for the first time in 6 months (this is a man who wears socks at all hours of the day and night until at least late June). The birds are cheeping, and a spotted woodpecker came and tap tapped at the fig tree yesterday.
Mid February in Sardinia feels like Mid April back home, I always think the weather is 2 months ahead here. And then we must cancel a season, by logic. I suppose it’s autumn. There is no real russet autumn here, summer yawns all through October, and then the skies open for a week or so before winter sets in in Mid November.
The countryside is at its greenest, and foraging at its best. Wild leek, wild fennel, sorrel, dandelion, wild asparagus are everywhere, and as I dig my hand in each jacket pocket I find a wilted spear or leaf or two that I have picked and forgotten about. The best way to eat wild asparagus is simply, either in pasta, risotto or with eggs. Wild Chicory (dandelion) best raw in salads with rich things like eggs or cheese or sweet things like citrus or pear, and the same with sorrel (which also works very well in desserts due to its green apple flavour. I used to make a delicious sorrel and crème fraiche ice cream in my pastry chef days). The wild herbs provide perfect fuel for a little experimentation.
I poached a chicken over the weekend, simply because I didn’t have time to roast it, and throwing it in the pressure pot with some spring onions, wild herbs, a potato or two, some young carrots and then forgetting about it was easier than greasing it up and putting it in the oven. Also because with poached chicken you Cannot Fail. The meat – including the treacherous breast – is always tender, juicy, flavoursome. The liquid means you have instant chicken stock for baby meals, risotto, soup and more. And then, best of all, you can eat it with homemade mayonnaise.
Roast chicken is excellent with homemade mayonnaise, but I think poached chicken with mayonnaise is possibly even more delicious, it’s tenderness sort of melts into the mayo, and – to quote a terrible love song – the two become one. Also poached meat has such a delicate flavour it allows the flavour of your homemade mayo to sing, providing the perfect foil, the perfect supporting act.
I love classic mayonnaise, we make it with the olive oil we produce, and using this oil it has the most beautiful, fragrant and peppery flavour (not bitter as some people think). But we are lucky in that we make our own oil. If your budget is tight and you don’t want to use all good extra virgin olive oil you can use a mix of extra virgin and then another flavourless oil such as sunflower. In this one, I blitzed in some of the wild herbs from the hedgerows, a mixture of wild leek and wild fennel, but wild garlic would do brilliantly, as would dill, parsley, basil, tarragon(!). Perhaps just steer clear of mint.
Poached Chicken
1 whole free range chicken (around 1.2kg)
3 young carrots
1 leek or a couple of spring onions
A potato or two, washed
A sprig or a few of herbs (parsley, dill, wild fennel, you can also use rosemary or bay))
A chunk or two of fennel (optional, I had some outer bits of a fennel bulb lying around so threw them in)
Salt (2 tsp)
Put everything in a roomy lidded pot (I use a pressure cooker) and fill with water until the chicken is completely submerged. Cover. Bring to the boil and then turn down to the lowest simmer and cook for an hour and half. Serve. You can reduce the stock if you like it more concentrated, and you can eat the boiled vegetables with the below mayo too.
Spring Herb Mayonnaise
3 egg yolks
3 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp white wine vinegar
300ml extra virgin olive oil
Salt
A handful of herbs of your choice, or wild garlic (about 30g leaves) (note: I blanch the wild leek leaves I pick here but blitz in the wild fennel whole, because it’s dainty and blends easily. I would blanch parsley but not dill. Equally I wouldn’t blanch basil or tarragon as their flavour and texture is relatively delicate.)
Wash your herbs/wild garlic and blanch in boiling water for around 30 seconds. Remove and place in iced water (this is not essential, but keeps things vividly green).
Drain and blitz the leaves with your oil until well blended and there remains only flecks of green.
Place your egg yolks and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer or a bowl with a hand whisk and mix on a low speed/slowly, drizzling/pouring the oil in, mixing all the time. Once you have a thick unctuous mayonnaise, taste for seasoning, and add the lemon and vinegar. Serve woth the poached chicken and spring salad, boiled new potatoes or some spring vegetables poached in the broth. Or a lovely fresh spring salad.
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