Stuffed Chicken Thigh

STEP 1: BONE THE THIGHS AND BUILD THE TRIM

Bone the eight chicken thighs, keeping the skin attached and intact where you can. Trim away sinew and any ragged edges, setting 150 g of that trim aside for the mousseline, and reserve the bones for the sauce. Take the skin from four of the thighs, scrape it clean of fat and reserve it separately for crisping; the remaining four thighs keep their skin on for the ballotines. Butterfly each thigh out flat with a shallow cut, lay them between two sheets of cling film and bat gently to an even thickness. You are working in overlapping pairs, so two thighs will form one ballotine. Season the interior faces with fine sea salt and white pepper and chill.

STEP 2: MAKE THE BLANQUETTE SAUCE

Start this first, ideally a day ahead. Roast the chicken bones and carcass hard until deep golden. Render the reserved chicken skin in a dry pan until the fat runs and the skin is bronze, then add the shallots, celery, leek trimmings and garlic to that fat and sweat without colour. Add the roasted bones. Pour in all the dry white wine and reduce slowly, until it is nearly a glaze. Add the chicken stock and the tied thyme, bay and parsley stalks, bring to a bare simmer and cook for 90 minutes, skimming often and never boiling. Add the cracked white peppercorns for the last ten minutes only. Pass through a chinois, pressing firmly, then reduce again until it coats a spoon. Finish off the heat with the double cream and creme fraiche, correct with salt and lift with a few drops of lemon juice.

STEP 3: CONFIT THE WINGS

Season the chicken wings and confit them in warm duck or chicken fat at 90C for about two hours, until the meat slips from the bone. Pick the meat while warm, discarding skin, bone and cartilage, and season it. Press it between two sheets of parchment on a tray, weighted, and chill for at least four hours until firm, then cut into four neat rectangles. These are crisped in a hot pan to serve.

STEP 4: MAKE THE MOUSSELINE

Wilt the Swiss chard leaves in a little of the unsalted butter, squeeze them bone dry and chop finely. Sweat the banana shallot, garlic and picked thyme leaves in the remaining butter, add the chicken livers and cook briskly until just pink at the centre, then cool completely. Blitz the chilled chicken thigh trim with the egg white and a pinch of salt to a smooth paste, add the cooled livers and blitz again, then pass through a drum sieve. Beat in the cold double cream a little at a time over ice. Fold through the chopped anchovy fillets, lemon zest and chard. Fry a teaspoonful to check the seasoning and adjust, remembering that the anchovy is doing much of the salting. Chill firm.

STEP 5: ROLL AND TIE THE BALLOTINES

Lay two butterflied thighs overlapping on cling film, skin side down, to make one broad rectangle. Pipe a generous log of mousseline along the near edge, noticeably more than looks sensible. Roll tightly in the film, twisting the ends to compact it, and tie. Poach at 68C for 45 minutes, until the core reads 65C. Chill fully, then unwrap and tie with butcher's string at regular intervals. Check the seam is properly sealed so the filling cannot escape.

STEP 6: COOK THE FONDANT POTATOES

Cut two thick cylinders from each of the large floury potatoes with the round cutter and trim the ends square. Dry both cut faces thoroughly on a cloth, because wet potato will not colour. Melt the unsalted butter in a pan just large enough to hold the fondants without touching, and let it foam. Sit the potatoes on one face and leave them completely undisturbed for four to five minutes, until the underside is a deep, even bronze; lift one to check, but do not fidget with them. Flip and repeat. Only then add the garlic, thyme and enough hot chicken stock to come halfway up, and braise at 180C for 30 to 35 minutes, until a knife slides through with no resistance. Rest in the liquor.

STEP 7: PAN-FRY THE LEEKS AND ASPARAGUS

Split the medium leeks lengthways, fan them open and rinse under running water between every layer until there is no grit whatever, then cut into neat batons. Blanch the asparagus spears for 90 seconds in heavily salted water and refresh. Just before serving, pan-fry both in the foaming unsalted butter until lightly coloured and just tender, and season with sea salt.

STEP 8: COLOUR AND FINISH THE CHICKEN

Bring the ballotines to room temperature. Colour them all over in a hot pan with the unsalted butter, basting, then finish in a 180C oven for 8 to 10 minutes, until the core reads 68C. Rest for at least 8 minutes before slicing. Meanwhile, crisp the reserved thigh skin flat between two trays in the oven until it shatters, and sear the pressed wing rectangles hard on both sides. Return the fondants to a hot pan for sixty seconds on their coloured face, to recover the bronze lost during braising.

STEP 9: PLATE

Slice each ballotine into two thick rounds and set them at the centre of the plate, cross-section up, so the mousseline is the first thing seen. Add a crisped wing rectangle alongside. Add two fondant potatoes, coloured faces up, with the leeks and asparagus tucked around rather than spread across. Shard the crisp skin over the top and pour the blanquette generously at the table.