Compote de Pigeons (Stewed Pigeons)

Ingredients

• half to three quarters of a pound of streaked bacon
• three or four young pigeons
• a large tablespoonful of flour
• a pint of boiling veal-stock
• a few small button-onions

Method

1. 1

   Fry diced bacon in butter until lightly browned.

2. 2

   Remove bacon and add pigeons, cooking until firm and lightly colored.

3. 3

   Stir in flour to the fat, then gradually add boiling veal stock.

4. 4

   Return pigeons and bacon to the pot, adding onions if desired, and stew gently for 45 minutes.

5. 5

   Serve pigeons with bacon and onions, skimming fat from the sauce.

Nutrition per serving

Estimated from matched ingredients across 2 servings.

As published

This recipe was extracted from Modern cookery, in all its branches (1884) by Eliza Acton, page 532. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

OMPOTE DE PIGEONS (STEWED PIGEONS.) The French in much of their cookery use more bacon than would generally be suited to a very delicate taste, we think. This bacon, from being cured without saltpetre, and from not being smoked, rather resembles salt pork in flavour: we explain this that the reader may, when so disposed, adapt the receipts we give here to an English table by omitting it. Cut into dice from half to three quarters of a pound of streaked bacon, and fry it gently in a large stewpan with a morsel of butter until it is very lightly browned ; lift it out, and put in three or four young pigeons trussed as for boiling. Wh$ji they have become firm, and lightly coloured, lift them out, and stir a large tablespoonful of flour to the fat. When this thickening ( roux ) is also slightly browned, add gradually to it a pint, or something more, of boiling veal- stock or strong broth ; put back the birds and the bacon, with a few small button-onions

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.