An adaptation of a recipe recorded by an 18th-century British gentlemen on his "grand tour" through northern Italy. I discovered it in the British Library: chicken with fennel, pumpkin, asparagus and a lot of herbs. Utterly delicious.
Poultry Enlightenment
While researching eels in the British Library (no, don’t ask) I chanced upon a collection of Italian recipes collected by an English gentleman on his “grand tour” in the 18th century, not published until the late 19th century, after his death. Given my own father’s passion for collecting recipes during his travels, it’s easy to see how this appealed and drew me in.
This recipe for Lombard chicken with pumpkin, fennel and asparagus is based on an 18th-century recipe the writer describes as being from Mantua, where he and his party spent some time en route from Milan to Venice. I've tried to remain true to its spirit, merely adjusted it for contemporary tastes: yes, you can make it with a capon, or poussin per diner, but I’ve opted for the same effect on a more compact scale. And, indeed, I’ve actively dialled back the 18th-century bon vivant’s passion for sugar…
These small tweaks aside, it’s pretty much a blow-by-blow reenactment of the original. This recipe is for 2 diners. Scale it up as required.
Shopping list
1 to 2 chicken thighs, skin-on, per diner
A rasher of prosciutto crudo, per chicken thigh
Approx. 4 tbspns of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 medium-to-large fresh fennel
Approx. ¼ of a pumpkin
Approx. 250g fresh asparagus
3 or 4 shallots, peeled
3 or 4 sweet peppers, sliced
2 eggs
A generous clutch fresh sage
A generous clutch of fresh rosemary
A generous clutch of fresh thyme
A generous clutch of fresh tarragon
3 or 4 bay leaves
1 cup of chicken stock
Salt and coarse black pepper to taste
½ glass of white wine (optional)
4 tspns of brown sugar
Cooking Method
for the Lombard chicken with pumpkin, fennel and asparagus
Wash and peel the pumpkin; wash the fennel. Cut both into large segments and bring to the boil in a pot of salted water with sprigs of rosemary, thyme, tarragon and thyme. Boil for about 5mins, then simmer for a further 10mins and then drain
At the same time, in a large pot with a lid, heat the olive oil, then add the garlic. As it browns, add the whole, peeled shallots and the sliced sweet peppers, stirring to ensure they are coated in the oil. Then, add the chicken thighs, skin side down and allow these to sear. Add approx. ⅓ of the rosemary, thyme, tarragon and sage to the pot, on top of the chicken, but do not stir. Cover and allow to sweat for approx. 5mins
While the chicken is searing, cut your drained pumpkin and fennel into bite-sized pieces, decanting to an oven-proof baking dish. Coat with a little olive oil using a pastry brush and place some of the remaining fresh rosemary, thyme, sage and tarragon on top of the dish. Bake in the oven on a medium heat while you complete the initial stage of cooking the chicken
Gently budge the chicken—the skin may well have seared by now—and pour in the chicken stock. Gently place the asparagus to the sides of the pot. Add the eggs. Bring the contents of the pot to the boil and allow to boil vigorously for about 5mins. Then reduce the heat, cover and allow to simmer for 15 to 20mins
Remove the asparagus, chicken, peppers, eggs and shallots using a draining spoon. Remove the baking fennel and pumpkin from the oven. Place the peppers and shallots into the dish, stirring slightly
Season the poached chicken thighs with salt and pepper and wrap each thigh in an individual rasher of prosciutto crudo. Place on top of the fennel and pumpkin. Add lemon slices and return to the oven, on a medium heat until the prosciutto is crisp
Remove the cooked chicken and keep it warm with the asparagus while you cook the gravy
Into a small pot, i.e. a real saucepan, add a few tbspns of olive oil and heat until smoking. Into this, pour approx ½ a cup of the "juice" left over from the pot in which the chicken was cooked (pour through a sieve if needed) and ½ a glass of white wine. Stir continuously as it reduces, adding the brown sugar, one tspn at a time, in the classic manner as needed. If it remains peskily thin, add a little cornflour until it thickens
Plate your chicken and asparagus and serve with the roasted pumpkin and fennel and gravy on the side
Alternatives
Dude, I'm pretty compliant, having lived that veggie life for much of mine, But this is based on an 18th-century recipe, so let's just chill if I don't have a non-meat option readily available.
Pairings
I'm gonna say it, words that I never thought I'd say, but this was was really great with a Pinot Grigio.
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