Guinea Fowl

Guinea fowl baked with thirty cloves of garlic

“It is not really an exaggeration to say that the peace and happiness begins…where garlic is used in cooking” Marcel Boulestin

Before you go “Thirty cloves of garlic – sure I’ll have peace ‘cause there’ll be no one who’ll want to share my happiness!” – just remember after simmering for 1¼ hours the flavour mellows and loses its pungency. And okay raw garlic is not the best thing before a big night, particularly if Count Dracula’s your date – but when cooked it’s sublime. Try rubbing salt or lemon juice on your hands before washing with soap and eat a little parsley, that’ll get rid of the garlic smell – if you must.

Now we’ve got that pout the way – lets get started. For this recipe you’ll need a large lidded flameproof casserole dish – about 4.5 litres. I use an inedible huff paste made from flour and water to make sure that all the juices and fragrances stay sealed in. It only takes a sec but if you can’t be bothered, use foil instead – just know it’s not the biscuit.

First up dry the guinea fowl as much as possible with kitchen paper and season with salt and pepper. Next, melt the butter and oil in the casserole, then keeping the heat fairly high, brown the guinea on all sides. This is a bit awkward, but all you do is hold the guinea by its legs and protecting your hands with a cloth, turn it in different positions until it’s a good golden colour all over. After that, remove the fowl from the casserole add the garlic and rosemary sprigs, toss these around in the juices then replace the bird and sprinkle with the chopped rosemary. Now pour the wine all around and let it gently come to a simmer.

Meanwhile, place the flour in a bowl and add 150 ml of cold water – just enough to make a soft but not sticky dough – then on a lightly floured surface, divide the dough into 4 and roll each piece into a cylinder about 24 cm long. Now stick these along the rim of the casserole – it doesn’t matter what they look like. Place the casserole lid carefully on top, press down gently and make sure that it’s sealed all around. Otherwise place a double sheet of foil over the casserole before putting on the lid. Shove the pot in the oven and cook for 1 hour exactly, then remove the lid and let the guinea fowl continue to cook for another 10 minutes or so, to crisp up the skin a bit. Remove from the casserole and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Arrange the pieces on a serving dish. Squash the garlic cloves with the flat side of a heavy knife to release all the creamy pulp and pile this and the cooking juices next to the bird.

Serve with mashed potatoes and as you eat, dip the pieces of guinea fowl into the aromatic sauce – garlic is after all the discerning man’s ketchup – that’s why I use it in everything!

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 x 1.8 kg guinea fowl
30 cloves garlic, unpeeled (3-4 heads)
10 g butter
1 dessertspoon olive oil
6 small sprigs fresh rosemary
1 heaped tablespoon rosemary leaves, bruised and chopped
275 ml white wine
Salt and freshly milled black pepper

For the huff paste:
225 g plain flour, plus a little extra for dusting

Method:
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6 or 200°C.