Chicken saute with wild mushrooms and white wine

Ingredients

1.5kg/3lb 5oz whole chicken
2 tbsp vegetable oil
salt
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
50g/1¾oz fresh wild mushrooms (such as blewits, morels, ceps and pieds de mouton), trimmed and chopped
100g/3½oz button mushrooms, sliced
200ml/7¼fl oz dry white wine
500ml/17½fl oz chicken stock
100ml/3½fl oz double cream
4 fresh watercress sprigs

Method

1. Pull the bird's legs away from the body and cut through the skin between the leg and body. Working on one side at a time, bend the legs outwards to break the joint, then cut through the flesh under the joint.
2. Hold the drumstick in one hand so that you can see the natural curve between it and the thigh. Cut firmly through the point where the two bones meet to give one thigh and one drumstick portion. Repeat with the other leg.
3. Cut the bird along the breast bone to loosen the meat then cut through completely with your knife or shears. Turn the bird over and cut the ribs and backbone away in one piece.
4. Cut the breast area, with wings still attached, in half to give two large breast portions. About three-quarters of the way along each breast, cut at an angle to give two wing portions with some breast attached. Finally, trim all the chicken pieces.
5. Heat the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan. Season the chicken pieces with salt and carefully lay them skin-side down in the pan. Cook over a medium heat until the skin is golden-brown, then turn them over and brown the other side.
6. Reduce the heat and add the shallots, garlic and all the mushrooms. Cover and cook gently, turning the chicken often for about 15 minutes.
7. Remove the lid and prick the legs with a skewer or fork to check whether they are done. If the juices that run out from the chicken are clear, it is cooked; if blood appears then more cooking is required.
8. When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the pan to a plate and keep it warm. Tip off any excess fat from the pan and return it to the heat. Pour in the white wine to deglaze the pan, scraping up any sediment with a wooden spoon. Bring to the boil and reduce the liquid by half.
9. Add the chicken stock and return the pan to the boil, skimming off any froth that forms on the surface of the sauce.
10. Strain the sauce through a fine sieve into a clean pan, reserving the mushrooms and shallots. Continue boiling to reduce and concentrate the flavour. Sprinkle the mushrooms and shallots over the chicken.
11. When the sauce has reduced by half, add the cream, bring back to the boil and cook for two minutes. Taste and season with a little salt, if needed.
12. To serve, place the chicken, mushrooms and shallots back in the sauce and bring to the boil to heat through. Divide the chicken among four serving plates, giving each diner a piece of dark meat and a piece of white. Spoon over the sauce and mushrooms, then garnish with a sprig of watercress.