2000s Recipes + Menus

Squab à l’Orange with Crystallized Tamarind

Serves6 (main course) or 12 (first course)
  • Active Time:20 min
  • Start to Finish:30 min
ADAPTED FROM ASIAN FLAVORS OF JEAN-GEORGES, COPYRIGHT © 2007 BY JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN, PUBLISHED BY BROADWAY BOOKS, A DIVISION OF RANDOM HOUSE INC.
February 2008
Watch chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten talk about the philosophy behind the creative flavor pairings in his signature dish.

For broth

  • 1 cup Japanese rice vinegar (not seasoned)
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup Shaoxing rice wine or medium-dry Sherry
  • 1/3 cup coarsely chopped peeled ginger
  • 2 tablespoons star anise pieces
  • 2 1/3 cups fresh orange juice
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 tablespoons Lapsang Souchong tea leaves

For squab

  • 5 black peppercorns
  • 3 white peppercorns
  • 3 whole star anise (or 1 1/2 tsp pieces)
  • 1 (1-inch) piece of cinnamon stick
  • 1 clove
  • 6 (1-lb) boneless squabs, wing tips discarded and squabs halved lengthwise
  • 3/4 stick unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-Tbsp pieces

  • Equipment:

    an electric coffee/spice grinder

  • Garnish:

    flaky sea salt; slices of peeled Asian pear, cut into diamonds; slivers of crystallized tamarind; sprigs of baby cress

Make broth:

  • Blend together vinegar, soy sauce, rice wine, ginger, and star anise in a blender until smooth. Transfer to a heavy medium saucepan and bring to a boil with juice and sugar, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in tea. Let steep, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, discarding solids.

Make squab:

  • Preheat broiler. Line a large (17- by 12-inch) 4-sided sheet pan with foil. Finely grind spices with 1/2 teaspoon salt in grinder.
  • Pat squab dry, then sprinkle each half all over with 1/2 teaspoon spice mixture. Arrange, skin side up, in sheet pan and place 1/2 tablespoon butter under each half. Broil 2 inches from heat until just cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 1 minute.
  • Cut each squab half into 3 pieces and arrange in shallow bowls. Ladle some of broth around squab (you will have some broth left over), then drizzle some of buttery pan juices over squab.
Keywords
jean-georges vongerichten,
asian,
poultry,
orange,
fruit

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