Roasted Capon

Ingredients

• 1 capon (2.5-3 kg, with neck and entrails)
• 800 g chestnuts
• 20 g sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 100 ml apple juice
• butter
• 50 g walnut kernels
• 100 g white bread (with crust)
• 2 large shallots
• 200 g chanterelles (or dried chanterelles as substitute)
• 300 g poultry liver
• 100 g cooked ham
• Nutmeg (freshly grated)
• Salt
• Pepper (freshly ground)
• 0.5 tsp dried marjoram
• 100 g cherry tomatoes
• 3 sprigs parsley

Instructions

1. 1.

   Season the capon inside and out with salt and pepper, setting aside the neck, stomach, liver, and heart. Score the chestnuts crosswise and roast them on a baking sheet at 225 °C for 20 minutes. Remove, peel, and quarter half of them. In a pan lightly caramelize the sugar, add the quartered chestnuts and cinnamon stick, then deglaze with apple juice and simmer gently until the liquid evaporates. Add 15 g butter. Grate walnuts and cut the white bread into roughly one-centimeter cubes; brown half in 20 g butter. Dice shallots finely. Clean chanterelles and coarsely chop them. Sauté both in 10 g butter until the liquid evaporates. Cube the poultry liver, heart, and remaining capon entrails and quickly sear everything in the remaining butter. Dice ham into fine cubes.

2. 2.

   Mix all prepared stuffing ingredients loosely, then season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and marjoram. Stuff the capon and secure the opening with wooden skewers or tie it shut. Cross the wings under the back and bind the legs to the body. Rub the capon again on the outside with salt and lay it on its side in a roasting pan.

3. 3.

   Cut the neck into pieces and halve the stomach; add both to the roasting pan and place it in a cold oven. Roast at 200 °C without adding liquid for 30 minutes, then flip the capon over and roast another 30 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 180 °C, lay the capon on its back, and continue roasting.

4. 4.

   Roast for an additional 2–2½ hours. Test doneness by piercing a leg with a fork; if blood still runs out, extend the cooking time. Strain the pan juices and skim off fat.

5. 5.

   Heat 20 g butter in a pan and toss the remaining chestnuts. Wash, dry, and halve cherry tomatoes. Wash and dry parsley. Arrange the capon with chestnuts on a plate, form parsley into a sprig, remove skewers and kitchen twine, insert parsley into the opening, garnish with cherry tomatoes, and serve immediately. Serve sauce separately.