Poêler

Poêler

Poêler is a cookery method that blends roasting and braising. Often used for young game birds (which tend to be drier than other meat), the item is placed in a pot with a tight-fitting lid, on a bed of root vegetables, but without the addition of liquid. Instead, the item is covered with butter and the lid is placed on the pot, to keep the air around the item moist. The pot is then placed in the oven to roast.

The lid is removed for the last 15-30 minutes, depending on the size of the item to be cooked, as this facilitates browning of the item. The sediment and juices are utilised in the sauce. This cookery method is rarely used on Australian menus, but you should learn the technique and use it for suitable dishes such as quail in port wine jus.

Equipment suitable for Poêler includes any pot with a tight-fitting lid, special braising pans with lids, Roemertopf (clay braising dish) and crock pots. Poêler is also called pot-roasting, because it uses a pot, or butter-braising, because butter replaces the liquid used for braising.

This cookery method is suitable for tender items of meat. Whole joints or animals are used. Typical food items are yearling silverside, rump, veal topside, pork neck, leg of lamb, duck, chicken, turkey, guinea fowl and quail.

Food Items Suitable for Poêler

Equipment for Poêler

Application to Vegetables, Legumes and Fruit

Vegetables can be cooked using the Poêler method by simply placing the vegetables in a pot and using butter instead of oil. The vegetables should be stirred occasionally and the lid should be taken off for the last 5 minutes, to brown them slightly. Garlic, herbs and spices can be added for variety of flavour. Vegetables are most often used as a bed for a joint of meat, to enhance the flavour and develop a rich jus.

APPLICATION TO FARINACEOUS AND DAIRY ITEMS

Farinaceous items are not cooked by themselves using the Poêler method, however rice cereals and bread can be used in stuffing for meat or poultry items.

Dairy products are not cooked using Poêler directly but are often used as part of stuffing to provide texture, moisture and contrast of flavour. Similarly to roasting, milk is often used with bread stuffing to soften the bread, cheese can be diced and provide extra flavour in the stuffing. Feta cheese and other fresh cheeses are well suited to this purpose.

Application to Protein Items

Roast pork neck

This underutilised cookery method is ideal for protein items. It is used for whole joints, primal cuts, whole birds and fish. In most cases mirepoix or matignon of vegetables is placed on the bottom of the pan. The size of the vegetable cut will be determined by the size and cooking time of the protein item. Remember that the vegetables may be incorporated into the final dish, so make sure your cutting techniques are good enough.

Season the item and place it onto the vegetables, cover it with butter slices and then place a lid on top. You can start the cooking on top of the stove to colour the vegetables and then finalise the cooking in the oven. The appropriate temperature range is 100-180°C. Cooking times vary but the guidelines of ~45 minutes per kg for poultry and ~60 minutes per kg for other meat apply at 180°C.

Menu Examples Using Poêler