Guinea fowl Christmas roast with Brussels sprouts
For centuries, Christmas has been celebrated with a roast, and that's cooking aromas that fill the house for hours before the festive dinner starts. Sometimes the roast is a goose, sometimes a duck, in other families a ham or pork roast and then, in some families, it is a turkey or guinea fowl (the latter two very traditional to France). Most of the time, very different from the rest of the year, the roast is stuffed with seasonal vegetables, and chestnuts in France are the ultimate seasonal treats used everywhere, also in stuffing a roast. And once tried, I see why, as their nuttiness ans roundness of the taste goes so well with the taste of any meat served.
2,5 - 3 kg guinea fowl
sea salt
100 soft butter
filling:
30 g butter
140 g apple in small cubes
190 g bacon, cut into small cubes
2 garlic cloves, grated
1 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped
90 g boiled chestnuts, chopped
sea salt to taste
Heat the oven 200° C hot.
In a pan, add butter and melt it. When melted, add apples and sautee on medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes and then on high heat for 2-3 more minutes. Take out and add to a bowl. Let it cool a bit.
In the meantime, wash and wipe dry the inside cavity of the bird and rub it with some salt.
Rub half of the butter under the skin of the fillet part, as this will make the bird much more juicy.
When the apples have cooled, add the rest of the filling ingredients and mix. Push the stuffing into the cavity. You can add any leftovers to the pan 20 minutes before the end of the cooking.
Sit the bird in a roasting tin. Roast for 25 minutes. Then lower the oven to 180° C and roast for 35-45 mins for a 1kg bird (or longer if bigger – use the timings for a roast chicken). Mine was about 2,5 kg, and it took me 70 minutes. The fowl is done if, when piercing the inside of the thigh with a knife, the juices that run out are clear. If there is still something to be done, cover the bird loosely with foil and top with a towel (it keeps it warm), and rest, but not too long.
Brussels sprouts
600 g Brussels sprouts, bigger ones cut into half and smaller ones left as they are
40 g mild extra virgin olive oil*
sea salt to taste
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
2 tbsp maple syrup
50 g pecan nuts
freshly ground pepper to taste
chopped parsley
Heat the oven 200° C degrees hot.
In a bowl, add the Brussels sprouts, oil or any other fat you use, salt, thyme and mix until coated. Put them on a pan, cut side down, place in the oven, and cook until they are almost done. Around five minutes before the end, add maple syrup and pecans and mix. Put the pan back in the oven for 5 more minutes. Take out, sprinkle with pepper and parsley and serve.
* I like to use the fat from cooking guinea fowl, or even if you make