Squab with madeira sauce

In my ongoing attempts to eat as many critters as I can, I present to you:  squab.



Squab is also commonly called pigeon. Or "rats with wings". The pigeons that are sold as squab are generally "utility pigeons", bred to grow quickly, and harvested fairly young.  So where does one buy "rats with wings"?  I got mine through special order at Iowa Meat Farms.  $15 each.  And these things are tiny.  A bit less than a pound each, I got two for Mrs. Dude, Bbq Jr., and myself.  Two tiny breasts each for Mrs. Dude and I, and all the tiny drumsticks that a little guy could want.  So this isn't something we're going to be buying ten of for a party.

The following recipe is really nice, because it requires about 10 minutes of prep time to dismember the squabs, followed by about 10 minutes of cooking.  Take that, Rachel Ray.  This is fast cuisine.  Straight from Meat: A Kitchen Education.

Start with:

2 squabs
salt
pepper
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
½ cup madeira
¼ cup sherry vinegar
2 tbsp veal glaze
4 tbsp cold butter

Remove the organs from the cavity (if your squab comes with organs).



Chop the liver finely, and chop into it the 4 tbsp of cold butter.  Smush that butter-liver mix through a fine sieve.



Keep the butter mix cold.

Now.  Dismember the squab.  The instructions in Meat: A Kitchen Education are awesome, with very detailed pictures.  So go out and buy that book.  Really.  I'll wait.

...

Okay, so you're back.  I'll assume that you sliced off the drumstick/thigh portion by cutting through the skin around the leg, and then the joint attaching it to the bird.  Then you sliced off the breasts by cutting through the length of the breastbone, and down the length of the breast (just like you would a turkey).  Seriously, my description is deeply lacking.  Go get yourself a good meat dismemberment book like Meat: A Kitchen Education.  And save the dismembered carcass and hearts for making squab stock.  I've frozen mine tightly in a ziploc bag.

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Generously salt and pepper the breasts and legs.  Bring to room temperature over about an hour.

Bring the 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter to a foamy mess over high heat.  Toss in the breasts and legs.  Gently.  That hot fat splashing on your eye will really hurt.  Seriously.



Two minutes, then flip.



Two more minutes on this side, then place the squab on a piece of paper towel.  Deglaze the delicious charred on bits with the madeira.  Reduce the madeira to thick slurry.  Add the vinegar, reduce again.  Add the veal glaze.  Whisk thoroughly, and adjust the consistency with water to get a nice sauce consistency.

Whisk in the cold butter/liver mixture 1 tablespoon at a time, until you have a nice gravy.  Drizzle over the squab and serve.



I wish I had gotten a picture of the interior of this breast. It had just a hint of pink, cooked medium. (Indeed, squab is safe to eat medium to medium-well).  I also wish I could get a photo of how it tasted.  This was ridiculous.  Like steak.  Only more tender.  Like lamb.  Only more flavourful.  And ten-minute meal?  Hell, yeah.  Dismember the squab in advance, and this is a ten-minute meal.

Yum.