Chicken Wrapped in Bacon with Bread Sauce and Devils on Horseback

Helga Glaesel de BlandingAugust 14, 2010

This post is also available in / Esta entrada también está disponible en ESPAÑOL (SPANISH)

I saw an episode of the F Word, and it featured this recipe. It was made with pheasant instead of chicken but it looked so good and easy to make, that I decided to try it out. It was really good. The flavor of the bread sauce is very nice, it is smooth and because of the star anise it has a bit of sweetness to it. The original recipe says you have to roast the bird for 25-35 min… I don’t know if this is because it was a different kind of bird, but it took my chicken 1 hour 15 min to roast properly. Use a meat thermometer and be sure that the temperature reaches 175°- 180°F, the temperature will continue to rise after the chicken is removed from the oven.

Devils on horseback are prunes wrapped in bacon…. I can’t tell you how good those are. If you’re not gonna try this entire recipe, I recommend that you at least try these!

Chicken wrapped in Bacon
with Bread Sauce, and Devils on Horseback
Adapted from Gordon Ramsay
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 Chicken (about 4 lbs)
6 Rashers of streaky bacon
3 sprigs fresh thyme

Bread Sauce:
4 cups milk
1 loaf white bread
4 pinches of thyme
1 Onion, peeled and sliced
5 Cloves
2 Star anise
8 Peppercorns, lightly crushed
1 Bay leaf
1 tablespoon Butter
8 prunes
4 slices bacon
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Procedure:

Pre heat oven to 375F Season the bird well with salt and pepper. Wrap the bacon all over to prevent the meat from drying out and secure with either cocktail sticks, or by tying with string.
Drizzle a little olive oil over the bird and sprinkle over some fresh thyme. Roast, basting occasionally, for about 1 hour 15 minutes, depending on the size of your bird.
Remove the chicken from the oven and rest the bird breast side down (to catch the juices), set the bacon to one side.

For the Bread Sauce:

Remove the crusts from the bread and cut into rough cubes. Transfer to a food processor, season with a little salt and pepper and ‘pulse’ until well crumbed. Add the thyme springs and blend again.
Sweat the onion in a little butter, add the cloves, star anise, crushed peppercorns and the bay leaf. Pour over the milk and bring to the boil. Taste and season if necessary.
Strain the milk through a sieve – using a wooden spoon to push through as much of the flavour as possible.
Return the infused milk to the heat and gradually add the breadcrumbs until you’ve reached your preferred consistency. Finally, whisk through the butter to add a little extra richness and gloss.

For the devils on horseback:

Simply slice the bacon in half lengthways and wrap around the prunes securing with a cocktail stick.
Pan fry in a little olive oil until the bacon is crispy and prunes have softened. (adding the olive oil will make the bacon extra crispy, but since the bacon already releases a lot of fat… add only a little oil)

Serve a leg and breast of chicken along side the bread sauce, and devils on horseback.