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Roast Capercaillie (cock and hen)

Erken's recipe for roast capercaillie (cock or hen) from Stor kokebok 1914: the bird is plucked, larded or covered with pork fat, browned in butter and roasted 2½–3 hours while basted with boiling water and finally with cream. The sauce is made from the pan juices with cream, water, salt, redcurrant jelly and cold butter. Serves 8.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 324 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

Capercaillie cock and hen were among the most prestigious game dishes in Norwegian bourgeois cuisine. Erken counts the breast with the legs as the roasting cut, while the wings, neck, gizzard and back are boiled for game soup – a typically thrifty use of the whole bird. Redcurrant jelly in the sauce is a classic French-inspired touch for dark game fowl.

How to make it

  1. 1

    Clean the bird

    Pluck the capercaillie, singe it, clean, wash and dry it well. The wings, neck, gizzard and back can be boiled for game soup.

  2. 2

    Lard or cover

    Lard the bird with thin strips of pork fat, or cover it with slices of pork fat. Truss it.

  3. 3

    Brown

    Brown the bird in the butter in a roomy pot, breast side down first, until it is nicely browned all around.

  4. 4

    Roast and baste

    Baste with the boiling water little by little so the bird does not scorch. Now and then drop a teaspoon of butter into the pot. Roast a cock for 2½–3 hours, a hen 1½–2 hours.

  5. 5

    Baste with cream

    After about 1½ hours, when the bird is nearly done, begin basting it with cream.

  6. 6

    Sauce

    Take out the bird and keep it warm. Whisk 1 dl thick cream into the butter in the pot, add 1 dl boiling water and whisk well along the sides and bottom to gather all the bird juices. Salt to taste and reduce the sauce to the right thickness.

  7. 7

    Finish and serve

    Stir in 1 tsp redcurrant jelly and 1 tsp cold butter just before serving. Serve the bird at once, preferably with fried potatoes and boiled apples filled with redcurrant jelly.

Changes from the original

Measurements converted to modern units (deciliters/grams), "pork fat" specified as fresh, unsalted sliced pork fatback/bacon. The method is divided into numbered steps and the language of the steps modernized; the quantities are retained.

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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. 358) → Modernised~95% of the text changedremovedadded
Rugdene steker ca. ½—¾ time. Rugdene klø­ves i to langs efter brystbenet, anrettes på varmt fat og om­gis med små buketter 1 stk tiur (eller røy; av karse og rugdebrød. Skyen får et opkok, jevnes tiuren stekes vanligvis bryst med koldt lår). 200 g smør. 100 g flesk (i tynne skiver til spekking eller dekking). 5 dl fløte (til dryping og saus). 2,5 dl vann (kokende). salt (etter smak). 1 ts ripsgelé (til sausen). 1 ts kaldt smør (til sausen). Rib tiuren, svi den, rens, vask og serveres særskilt. Til rugdebrødene hakkes innmaten fin, blandes med det skrapede flesk. Løken tørk den godt. Vinger, hals, krås og per­sillen trekker rygg kan kokes til fuglesuppe.. Spekk fuglen med tynne fleskestrimler, eller dekk den med fleskeskiver. Bind den opp.. Brun fuglen i smøret i en romslig gryte, med brystet ned først, til den er pent brun rundt omkring.. Spe på det varmede, men kokende vannet litt etter litt, så fuglen ikke helt smeltede smør, heri røres den hakkede inn­mat, rødvinen, eggeplommene, salt, pepper brenner seg. Stikk av og muskat efter smak. Alt settes til en teskje smør i vannbad og damper under omrøren gryten. Stek en tiur i 5 mi­nutten. Brødet skjæres 2½–3 timer, en røy 1½–2 timer.. Etter omkring 1½ time, når fuglen nesten er stekt, begynner du å dryppe den med fløte.. Ta fuglen opp og hold den varm. Visp 1 dl tykk fløte inn i skiver, utstikkes smøret i halvmåneform gryten, tilsett 1 dl kokende vann og besmøres visp godt langs kanter og bunn for å få med rugdeinnmaten. Steker i 5 minutter i varm ovn all fuglekraft. Salt etter smak og må serveres straks. kok sausen inn til passe tykkelse.. Rør inn 1 ts ripsgelé og 1 ts kaldt smør rett før servering. Server fuglen straks, gjerne med stekte poteter og kokte epler fylt med ripsgelé.

Note on Modernised

Mål omregnet til moderne enheter (desiliter/gram), «flesk» angitt som fersk, usaltet svineflesk/bacon i skiver. Fremgangsmåten er delt i nummererte trinn og språket i trinnene modernisert; mengdene er beholdt.

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Frequently asked questions

How long must the cock and hen be roasted?
A cock needs 2½–3 hours of roasting, a hen 1½–2 hours. The recipe has a total time of about 3.5 hours.
Which parts of the capercaillie are used for the roast?
As a rule only the breast with the legs is roasted. The wings, neck, gizzard and back are boiled for game soup.
How do you keep the meat from drying out?
The bird is larded or covered with slices of pork fat (100 g), browned in butter breast down, and basted with boiling water little by little. After about 1½ hours you begin basting with cream (½ l).
How many does one capercaillie feed?
One capercaillie cock is enough for 8 people, according to Schønberg Erken's Stor kokebok from 1914 (p. 324).

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