Squab and Prunes with Sherried Orange Sauce
Yield
1-4
RECIPE Ingredients
- 1 - 4 squab, semi-boneless
- 1 - 4 slices of applewood smoked bacon (one per bird)
- ¼ - 1 cup of duck and veal demi-glace
- sage leaves
- 2 cups Earl Grey tea
- Peel from 1 orange, cut into strips
- 1 piece of cinnamon stick, about ⅔"
- 4 cloves
- 1 piece star anise
- 5 tablespoons sugar
- 2 ounces Pedro Ximénez sherry, divided (or cream sherry)
- 2 ounces orange juice
- 8 ounces pitted prunes
Recipe notes
The rich red meat of squab is accented with stewed fruit in this recipe that can be adapted for a single squab, though there’s enough sauce for four birds. Any extra sauce and prunes are delicious spooned over ice cream or yogurt.
RECIPE Preparation
- Put Earl Grey tea, 1 ounce of sherry, orange juice, orange peel, sugar, and spices in a pan and bring to a boil. Add the prunes and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the prunes and simmer the sauce to reduce it a bit if needed. Add the second ounce of sherry to the sauce.
- Heat the oven to 500 degrees.
- Salt and pepper the squab and set aside.
- Using the pan you will cook the squab in, saute the bacon until crisp and remove. When cool, crumble the bacon. Keep the fat in the pan. Place the squab(s) in the bacon fat and place in the heated oven for about 12 minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Put over low flame and add the demi-glace, spooning it over the squab. Add the prunes and the sauce and the sage leaves and warm the sauce with the bird, then serve with sauce, topped with crumbled bacon.
