Food in Provence (and elsewhere)

Back in Valréas after the Beziers adventure we have to decide on what to eat tonight and tomorrow before shopping at the market in Valréas on Wednesday. I offer to cook the chicken breasts and the ballotine legs of last week and J. readily agrees. The first problem is that today is Monday so we can’t buy an un-prepared chicken from the butcher. J. procures a fermier one from the supermarket which I quickly see hasn’t been emptied as well as chef would have liked. No matter. I cut off the wings and legs (which I debone for tomorrow), prepare the crown, prepare a stock, cook the crown and ready a jus. At which point I realise that J. hasn’t managed to buy the salad leaves I expected (there were none in the supermarket), so I quickly prepare a couple of little gems for pan frying.

Final cooking and plating goes well. No pictures here, folk, but J. is happy for a demonstration of what I’ve learnt and I consider the chicken to be even better cooked than that of last week at the school.