Roast Young Grouse – by Anchor and Hope

Ingredients (Serves four)
For the grouse
4 young grouse, wings removed
Salt, pepper
4 sage leaves
Hearts and livers from the grouse
Butter/foie gras
8 rashers of streaky bacon
For the stock
30ml oil
Grouse wings
Giblets
1 large onion
1 stick celery
1 carrot
250ml red wine
Water
Sprig of thyme
1 bay leaf
For the toast
16 small slices of bread
Duck fat
For service
Bread sauce
1-2 bunches watercress

Method Trim the wings from four young grouse, draw and reserve the livers, hearts and giblets. Season birds liberally inside and out and put the livers and hearts back in, with a sage leaf and a knob of butter (or, better still, foie gras) inside each. Loosely tie two rashers of bacon over each, taking care to cover the breasts. Preheat the oven to its maximum.

Brown the wings and the remaining giblets with the diced onion, celery and carrot. Deglaze pan with red wine, cover with water and simmer for half-an-hour with thyme and bay leaf. Strain and reserve.

Meanwhile, fry bread in duck fat. Make bread sauce and pick through watercress.

To cook, place birds at top of oven and leave for six minutes, by which time bacon should be crispy and legs starting to brown. Snip bacon off (and eat as your treat!). Put bird back in oven for another seven minutes until a fine metal skewer, when inserted into the deepest point above the wing, is just warm to the lip when withdrawn.

Remove from the pan and, in a warm place, leave the birds to rest for 10 minutes on top of the toast, so that the blood drips into it.

Put the roasting tray over a flame, add a splash of brandy and the stock, and allow to bubble down to a thin gravy.

To serve, scoop out the liver, heart and foie gras, mash these up and serve on the toast. Stick a bunch of the watercress into the grouse's cavity and put the bird and toast onto a plate with bread sauce. Pour a little of the gravy over each bird.

The Anchor and Hope is on the Cut in Waterloo, London. Tel: 020 7928 9898.