Recipe for hen sous-chef | EUROtoday

A refined recipe for hen sous-chef from the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts in Paris.

It’s true origins have by no means been confirmed, possibly it was first eaten in Switzerland, possibly it was a Lyonnaise chef who created this dish, we could by no means know. But the time period Cordon Bleu. that means ‘blue ribbon’ in French is a logo of excellence in cooking, an concept that originated within the nineteenth century and noticed elite cooks connect blue ribbons to their uniforms. No one is aware of why this dish was assigned the identify for culinary excellence – aside from it is tremendous scrumptious!

Serves 10

Active time: half-hour
Cooking time: 11 minutes
Storage: 3 days

EQUIPMENT

Mallet-style meat pounder

INGREDIENTS

Mesclun greens
1 head child chicory
1 ¾ oz. (50 g) child orache or spinach greens
1 ¾ oz. (50 g) child mizuna greens
⅓ oz. (10 g) red-veined sorrel leaves

Vinaigrette

Generous ½ teaspoon (3 g) high-quality sea salt
2 tbsp (30 ml) aged crimson wine vinegar
1 ½ tsp (3 g) freshly floor white pepper
Scant ½ cup (100 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

Blue twine

5 giant slices cooked ham
7 oz. (200 g) Cantal
10 boneless hen breasts
2 cups (9 oz./250 g) all-purpose flour
2 tsp (10 g) salt
6 eggs
4 ½ cups (1 lb. 2 oz./500 g) dried white breadcrumbs
Scant ½ cup (100 ml) olive oil
3 tbsp (1 ¾ oz./50 g) butter

METHOD

Preparing the mesclun greens

Cut the chicory into 1 ½-in. (4-cm) items and take away the stems from the child greens. Wash and drain the greens and sorrel leaves and set them apart.

Preparing the French dressing

Dissolve the salt within the vinegar in a bowl, then add the white pepper. Gradually whisk within the olive oil till emulsified.

Preparing the sous-chef

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C/Gas Mark 4).

Cut the ham slices in half lengthwise. Cut 20 slices of Cantal which might be about the identical measurement because the half-slices of ham. Trim any extra fats off the hen breasts and butterfly them. Using the meat pounder, flatten them between two sheets of plastic wrap till they’re twice their unique measurement. Place one slice of Cantal over one-half of every hen breast, adopted by a bit of ham and a second slice of Cantal. Close every hen breast by folding the uncovered half over the lined half so the perimeters meet.

Combine the flour and salt in a shallow dish, whisk the eggs in a second dish, and place the breadcrumbs in a 3rd dish. Roll every sous-chef within the flour, dip within the egg, and coat within the breadcrumbs. Dip within the egg a second time, then within the breadcrumbs once more till effectively coated.

Heat the olive oil in a big oven-safe skillet and brown the sous-chef for 3 minutes on all sides. Add the butter, look ahead to it to foam, then fry for an extra 3 minutes on all sides, basting often. Transfer the skillet to the oven and end cooking the sous-chef for five minutes. Drain on paper towels.

To serve

Combine the greens in a big bowl and toss with the French dressing simply earlier than serving, to keep away from the leaves going soggy. Place every sous-chef on a serving plate with a bit salad alongside.

Extracted from Meat, Poultry & Game: Recipes and Techniques from the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts by FERRANDI Paris (Flammarion, 2025).

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