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Boiled hens

Erken's 1914 recipe for boiled hens: two hens are boiled tender in 2 liters of water with a bouquet garni, mace, pepper, salt and root vegetables. The sauce is made from 90 g butter and 60 g flour thinned with the strained stock, and thickened with 2 dl whipped cream just before serving. The hens are cut up and placed in the middle of the platter with the cut-up roots around and sauce over. Can also be served in tomato, oyster or horseradish sauce.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 284 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

The recipe appears in the «Poultry and game» chapter of Henriette Schønberg Erken's «Stor kokebok» (1914). Boiled hens with a white sauce made from their own stock was a classic everyday and party dish, where the stock from the birds became the base for the sauce and the root vegetables were served around.

How to make it

  1. 1

    Prepare the hens

    Clean the hens in the usual way and place them in a pot together with the bouquet garni, pepper, salt, mace and the roots – carrot and parsley root, or just celeriac.

  2. 2

    Boil tender

    Pour over 2 liters of boiling water and let it cook over low heat until the hens are tender.

  3. 3

    Make the sauce

    Stir together butter and flour, thin with the strained stock from the hens to a suitably thick sauce and let it simmer through. Season with salt and pepper.

  4. 4

    Finish the sauce

    Stir in the whipped cream just before plating; the sauce must not boil after that.

  5. 5

    Plating

    Cut the hens up neatly and place them high in the middle of the platter. Arrange the neatly cut roots around and pour the sauce over.

  6. 6

    Variation

    Boiled hens can also be served in tomato sauce, oyster sauce or horseradish sauce.

Changes from the original

Measures are converted to modern Norwegian units (deciliter, gram, liter). «Yellow and white roots» is interpreted as carrot and parsley root, «suppevisk» as a bouquet garni. The amounts are otherwise kept as they stand.

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Time machine – what changed?

Pick two editions and see what Henriette Schønberg Erken added, removed or changed between them.

From19141949Modernised
To19141949Modernised
1949 (proofread, p. 316) → Modernised~76% of the text changedremovedadded
2 høns stk høner (rengjort). 1 stk suppevisk (urtebukett) (persille, timian og lignende). 1 knivsodd muskatplomme muskatblomme. 90 gr. smør g smør. 60 gr. hvetemel g hvetemel. 2 del. dl fløte (vispet). pepper (etter smak). salt (etter smak). 2 l. l kokende vann grønnsaker. Hønsene rengjøres vann. grønnsaker (gulrot og persillerot, eventuelt bare sellerirot). Rengjør hønene på vanlig måte, legges måte og legg dem i en gryte sammen med suppevisken, pepper, salt, gule muskatblomme og hvite røtter eller sellerirøtter alene, påhelles det røttene – gulrot og persillerot, eventuelt bare sellerirot.. Hell over 2 liter kokende vann, koker vann og la det koke over svak varme, inntil de varme til hønene er møre. Smør møre.. Rør sammen smør og mel røres sammen, spes mel, spe med den silte kraft kraften fra hønsene hønene til en passe jevn saus; saus og la den småkoke igjennom. Smak til med salt og pepper.. Rør inn den vispede fløte has i fløten like før anretningen. Hønsene skjæres anretningen; sausen må da ikke koke mer.. Skjær hønene pent op opp og legges høit legg dem høyt midt på fatet, fatet. Legg de pent opskårne røtter legges omkring, oppskårne røttene rundt og hell sausen helles over. over.. Kokte høns serveres høner kan også serveres i tomatsaus, østerssaus, løksaus østerssaus eller pepperrotsaus.

Note on Modernised

Mål er omregnet til moderne norske enheter (desiliter, gram, liter). «Gule og hvite røtter» er tolket som gulrot og persillerot, «suppevisk» som en urtebukett. Ellers er mengdene beholdt slik de står.

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Frequently asked questions

How long must the hens boil?
Count on around 2–2.5 hours in all (the recipe is set to 150 minutes). The hens are boiled in 2 liters of boiling water over low heat until tender – old hens need longer than young ones.
How is the sauce made?
90 g butter and 60 g wheat flour are stirred together and thinned with the strained stock from the hens to a suitably thick sauce. 2 dl whipped cream is stirred in right before plating, and the sauce is seasoned with salt, pepper and a pinch of mace.
Which vegetables are used, and how is the dish served?
The hens are boiled with a bouquet garni and yellow and white roots, or celeriac alone. The hens are cut up neatly and placed high in the middle of the platter, the cut-up roots are arranged around, and the sauce is poured over.
Are there other sauces for boiled hen?
Yes, Schønberg Erken (Stor kokebok 1914, p. 284) mentions that boiled hens are also served in tomato sauce, oyster sauce or horseradish sauce.

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