Partridge is paired with cabbage and white beans in this hearty Spanish stew recipe.
100g/3½oz dried white beans, such as alubia planchada, soaked overnight
cured ham bone (optional)
4 oven-ready partridges
2 tbsp olive oil
100g/3½oz cooking chorizo sausage, skinned, coarsely chopped
1 x 600g /1lb 5oz Savoy cabbage
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 fresh bay leaves
100g/3½oz thinly sliced serrano ham, cut across into strips
100ml/3½fl oz red wine
100ml/3½fl oz chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Drain the beans and put them into a pan with 800ml/1½ pints cold water. Add the ham bone, if using, bring to the boil, cover and leave to simmer very gently for two hours, stirring the beans every now and then, and seasoning with one teaspoon of salt towards the end. Discard the bone, re-cover and set aside. (This can be done in advance.)
Preheat the oven to 230C/450F/Gas 8. S
Season the cavities of the partridges with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large flameproof roasting tin. Add the chopped chorizo and fry gently for 2-3 minutes. Lift the chorizo out onto a plate with a slotted spoon, leaving behind the oil. Add the partridge to the tin and turn them over a few times in the chorizo-flavoured oil, then season all over. Turn breast-side up, transfer to the oven and roast for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and roast for 10 minutes more. Meanwhile, remove the outer leaves from the cabbage and quarter, core and shred the rest.
Remove the partridge from the oven and lift them onto a plate. Cover tightly with foil, turn off the oven and slide them back inside to keep warm, leaving the door ajar. Place the roasting tin directly over a medium heat, add the garlic, onion and bay leaves and fry gently for 5-6 minutes. Add the ham and fried chorizo and cook gently for 2-3 minutes, then add the cabbage and seasoning and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes until it just begins to wilt. Add the red wine and chicken stock and cook for 10 minutes, turning the mixture over regularly, until the cabbage is just tender. Meanwhile, gently reheat the beans.
When the cabbage is tender, using a slotted spoon, remove the white beans from any remaining liquid and add them to the cabbage.
Stir together and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Lift the partridge onto warmed serving plates and spoon some of the cabbage and beans alongside.
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