Dish of Chicken Hindle Wakes
(click to enlarge)

Chicken Hindle Wakes


England origin 14th Century   -   Hen de la wake?
Makes:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 2-1/2 #
****
5 hrs
Almost all		 Served at room temperature, this is a spectacular do-ahead dish. Complex but not difficult. Making it can be spread over 3 days. See also History & Comments.




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Prunes, pitted
Tea, cold
-- Simmer
Chicken Thighs (1)  
Giblets (2)
Salt
Onion
Bay Leaf
Parsley sprig
Malt Vinegar
Brown Sugar
Water
-- Prunes
Breadcrumbs (3)
Sage, dried
Parsley, dried
Marjoram, dried
Thyme, dried
Lemon zest
Lemon juice (4)
-- Sauce
Butter
Flour, allpurp
Chicken stock
Lemon Zest
Lemon Juice
Heavy Cream
Salt
Pepper
-- Serving
Chicken
Sauce
Prunes
Lemon Slices
Do-Ahead   -   (1-3/4 hrs + cooling & soaking)
  1. Soak PRUNES in cold tea at least 3 hours or preferably overnight.
  2. Place CHICKEN THIGHS in a wide pan. Add all Simmer items and Water to cover. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for about 40 minutes until Chicken is tender and the bones can be removed.
  3. Pull Chicken from the stock. Remove skin and bones. You can toss them back in the pot and let simmer another hour or so to make a stronger stock. Let the Chicken cool, and if not to be used right away, bag and refrigerate.
  4. Strain Stock well and defat using your Gravy Separator. Refrigerate if not to be used right away.
Prunes   -   (25 min + 30 min baking time)
  1. Preheat Oven to 300°F/150°C.
  2. As the Oven heats up, toast bread very lightly and break into Bread Crumbs.
  3. Cut Soaked Prunes in half lengthwise to make little cups.
  4. Combine all the rest of the Prunes items and mix well to make the stuffing.
  5. Stuff the Prunes with the Stuffing.
  6. Arrange the Prunes, stuffing side up, on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and slide into the oven for about 30 minutes. Take out as soon as the bread starts to color and let cool.
  7. If making ahead you can cover the prunes with plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed - but make sure you give them time to come to room temperature before serving.
Sauce   -   (35 min + cooling)
  1. Zest Lemon, then squeeze so it will be ready. Mix.
  2. In a medium sauce pan, melt Butter over low heat. Stir in Flour and continue to cook stirring over low heat until the flour is cooked, but no browning.
  3. Start stirring in cold strained and de-fatted Chicken Stock a little at a time and stirring constantly until you have a thick but pourable sauce.
  4. Stir in Lemon Juice & Zest.
  5. Let the sauce cool, then stir in the Cream.
  6. Season to taste with Salt and Pepper - careful with the salt, there's some in the stock.
  7. If making ahead you can refrigerate the sauce for as much as 2 days, but give it plenty of time to come to room temperature before use.
Serving   -   (35 min)
  1. If making ahead, separately refrigerate Chicken, Prunes, and Sauce - but give it plenty of time to come to room temperature before assembling and serving.
  2. Cut skinned and boned CHICKEN into the size chunks you prefer and arrange on a shallow bowl.
  3. Spoon Sauce over the Chicken until completely covered.
  4. Arrange filled Prunes around the Chicken.
  5. Garnish with Lemon Slices.
  6. Serve at room temperature.
NOTES:

  1. Chicken:

      The pattern recipe calls for 5 to 6 pounds whole chicken, cut up - because that's the only way you could get chicken in the day. I use thighs, bone-in, skin-on, as they are the best part of the chicken and make good stock too, as stock is needed for the sauce.

  2. Giblets:

      Dismantling whole chicken there will be giblets, but not using thighs. If you have a few spare hearts, gizzards, or livers in the freeze, use a few, otherwise skip, they aren't a major ingredient.

  3. Breadcrumbs:

      The pattern recipe calls for these to be freshly made. They should be toasted just barely dry. You can do this in the preheated oven - but don't forget them - just dried through.

  4. Lemons:

      Note that this recipe requires three whole Lemons. 1 for the Prunes, 1 for the Sauce, 1 for the Garnish. Best to zest the first two Lemons, then squeeze the juice. The third Lemon is just sliced into rounds, skin-on.

  5. History & Comments

      It is thought that this recipe was brought to Lancashire by Flemish Weavers in the 14th century. That the name derives from "Hen de la Wake" would make sense given how the English have traditionally butchered foreign words, and even their own words, but that would have already be a pastiche of languages. In the day, a "Wake" was a late night prayer vigil before a saint's day, so a cold dish would be quite appropriate. The recipe retains characteristics of Medieval cooking. Most recipes call for stuffing a whole chicken with prunes and bread, but this version, based on that of British food writer Jane Garmey, is far more practical for parties and buffet, or to prevent fighting over who gets what parts of the chicken at the dinner table. The stuffed prunes reflect the prune and bread stuffing of the whole chicken version.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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