Mise-en-place

Ventrêche: Crouillère-Chavot wraps his boudin in a fine layer of ventrêche (mild-cure, air-dried streaky bacon lightly coated in pepper).

Put the required piece of bacon in the freezer till it's almost frozen. Machine-slice it on the thinnest possible setting, roughly the thickness of Parma ham, allowing about six rashers per boudin (the number can vary according to the size of the bacon side). Lay the rashers on sheets of non-stick parchment and chill.

Chicken mousseline: Blend 1kg chicken breast (without any sinew) in a mixer with one heaped tsp salt and about one level tsp white pepper. Blend again with four egg whites. Chill. Combine one litre chilled double cream with half a litre crème fleurette. Add to the purée and blend again. Crouillère-Chavot's recipe contains 50% more cream than most mousseline recipes, but is used for spreading rather than quenelles. There is no need to pass this through a tamis.