Ingredients
Ortolan and beccafico
Other Names:Bruant ortolan (French), escribano cinéreo (Spanish), ortolan bunting.
General Description:The ortolan (Emberiza hortulana) and beccafico (silvia hortensis) are tiny migratory songbirds that are eaten bones, innards, and all. The ortolan has been considered since early times to be the finest and most delicate of birds to eat. A symbol of culinary luxury, ortolans are quite rare. They are considered the ultimate connoisseur’s bird in France, where they are protected by laws that forbid hunting, selling, or eating them. Even so, in the Landes region of Gascony, where the birds migrate each year on their way to North Africa, ortolans are eaten with gusto.
The birds must be taken alive; once captured they are fed millet, grapes, and figs, a technique apparently taken from the decadent cooks of imperial Rome who called the same (or similar) birds, beccafico, or “fig-pecker.” When they’ve reached four times their normal size, they’re usually drowned in a snifter of Armagnac. Ortolans are usually roasted on spits or in a hot oven, cooked mainly in their own fat.
Traditionally, the diner’s head and face are covered by a large white napkin tent over the dish to capture the full aroma of this succulent, exquisitely flavored bird. The entire bird, served so hot that you must cool it on your tongue while inhaling rapidly through your mouth, is eaten at once. It is said that part of the reason for the cloth is to hide oneself from God while eating this rare delicacy.
Characteristics:The bird’s special diet and a drowning in Armagnac give it its characteristic exquisite flavor.
How to Choose:Ortolans are rarely if ever found in the United States. If you’re lucky enough to find them on a restaurant menu, don’t miss the opportunity to have them.
Amount to Buy:These small birds weigh no more than 1 1/4 ounces each. One bird is served per portion.
Preparation:
- Season birds as desired. Tie the birds into a compact shape with butcher’s string.
- Roast whole in a small earthenware dish for 5 to 7 minutes at 450°F, basting with melted butter.
Flavor Affinities:Armagnac, bacon, breadcrumbs, butter, ham, lemons, mushrooms, oranges.
from Quirk Books: www.quirkbooks.com
