Vegetable Chicken Aspic

Ingredients

• 1 whole soup chicken
• 1 Carrot
• 1 onion
• 150 g celeriac
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp juniper berries
• 5 sheets white gelatin
• 2 red bell peppers
• 50 g young spinach
• sherry
• Salt
• a pinch of sugar
• pepper (ground)
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar

Instructions

1. 1.

   Wash the chicken and place it in a tall pot. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam that forms. Peel, trim, and roughly chop the onion, carrot, and celeriac. Add them to the pot along with the bay leaf and juniper berries and simmer on low heat for about 2½ hours, adding more water if necessary. Remove the chicken and let it cool. Strain the broth through a sieve, skim off the fat, and reduce to about 500 ml.

2. 2.

   Separate the meat from the bones, remove the skin, and either shred or cut into strips.

3. 3.

   Soak the gelatin in cold water. Wash, halve, and trim the bell peppers; grill them until the skins blister, then cover with a damp cloth to cool. Peel off the skins and cut the flesh into small pieces. Wash and, if needed, tear the spinach into smaller bits.

4. 4.

   Let the broth cool slightly, stir in the drained gelatin until dissolved. Season with sherry, salt, sugar, pepper, and vinegar. Cool until the liquid begins to set slowly.

5. 5.

   Combine the prepared vegetables with the chicken meat and pour into a mold lined with plastic wrap. Pour the seasoned broth over the mixture so that all ingredients are covered and the mold is filled to the brim. Add more gelatin‑infused broth if needed or use slightly less. Cover and refrigerate overnight (at least 4 hours) until firm.

6. 6.

   Before serving, unmold the aspic and cut into pieces. Serve garnished with spinach and chervil as desired.