Snipe, Roast
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Truss the snipe like other birds for roasting, leaving the head on and skinning it.
Pass the long beak through the legs and body instead of using a skewer.
Brush the snipe with warm fat and tie a slice of bacon over each breast.
Place toast under the snipe to catch drippings.
Roast and serve
Baste frequently and roast for about 15 minutes, or less if you prefer it underdone.
Serve on the toast, garnished with watercress, and pour gravy into a sauceboat.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Snipe
- The main protein; its lean meat is what the roasting must keep from drying out.
- Bacon
- Fat that renders over the breast, adding savoury flavour and moisture as it cooks.
- Fat for basting
- Carries heat to the surface, promoting browning and helping keep the bird moist.
The step that matters
Baste frequently and watch the roasting time. Snipe is a small, lean bird, so overcooking dries the meat quickly. Frequent basting with fat keeps the surface moist and helps it brown evenly while the timing is checked.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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