![Ballotine de volailles au riesling (Au Dauphin, Strasbourg)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Ballotine_de_volailles_au_riesling_%28Au_Dauphin%2C_Strasbourg%29.jpg)
A ballotine (from French ''balle'', 'package') is traditionally a de-boned thigh and/or leg part of the chicken, duck or other poultry stuffed with
forcemeat
Forcemeat (derived from the French ''farcir'', "to stuff") is a uniform mixture of lean meat with fat made by grinding or sieving the ingredients. The result may either be smooth or coarse. Forcemeats are used in the production of numerous item ...
and other ingredients.
It is tied to hold its shape and sometimes stitched up with a trussing needle. A ballotine is cooked by
roasting,
braising
Braising (from the French word ''braiser'') is a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is first browned at a high temperature, then simmered in a covered pot in cooking liquid (such as wine, broth, coco ...
or
poaching
Poaching has been defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights.
Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set a ...
. A ballotine is often shaped like a sausage or re-formed to look like the leg, often with a cleaned piece of bone left in the end.
In today's commercial kitchens a ballotine is often made from other parts of poultry like the leg meat, and may be made using many types of meat other than poultry. Although ballotines are related to
galantine
In French cuisine, galantine () is a dish of boned stuffed meat, most commonly poultry or fish, that is usually poached and served cold, often coated with aspic. Galantines are often stuffed with forcemeat, and pressed into a cylindrical sha ...
s, they are distinctive by being single-serving items classified as
entrée
An entrée (, ; ) in modern French table service and that of much of the English-speaking world (apart from the United States and parts of Canada) is a dish served before the main course of a meal. Outside North America, it is generally synonym ...
s as opposed to relevés.
[''Le Répertoire De La Cuisine'', Standard Edition, L. Saulnier] They are also served hot or cold,
whereas a galantine will be served cold.
See also
*
Turducken
Turducken is a dish consisting of a deboned chicken stuffed into a deboned duck, further stuffed into a deboned turkey. Outside of the United States and Canada, it is known as a three-bird roast. Gooducken is an English variant, replacing turkey ...
*
List of duck dishes
*
List of stuffed dishes
This is a list of stuffed dishes, comprising dishes and foods that are prepared with various fillings and stuffings. Some dishes are not actually stuffed; the added ingredients are simply spread atop the base food, as one cannot truly stuff an oy ...
References
{{Chicken dishes, state=collapsed
Chicken dishes
Duck dishes
Poultry dishes
Stuffed dishes