Galantine and Ballotine Methods: What is the Differences

What is Galantine Cooking Method?

Galantine is an elaborate cooking technique that dates back to 17th century France. It is the process of separating the bones of a whole chicken initially, then combining the meat with minced beef, truffles or lard and other ingredients, and wrapping it into a greasy mixture obtained by grinding, sieving or mashing a “forcemeat” or lean meat-rich ingredients.

As a result, it is the process of filling the opened chicken with a combination of its skin and inner filling material and cooking it in such a way that it is not wrapped properly. In the meantime, a different fatty meat can be added to the outer surface, veal bacon or bacon can be wrapped, and then boiled in a rich stock with jelly and cooked. The main idea here is actually very similar to the way the food is preserved in meat jelly or confi.

As a matter of fact, galantines were often served cold, accompanied by cold gelatinized broth and side dishes such as truffles, pistachios, and bacon. Galantines were originally made specifically from chicken. (If you speak Spanish, you can see that the word “Gallina” means chicken and the words come from the same root.) However, this technique then began to be applied to other poultry and game birds such as turkeys, partridges, pheasants, pigeons, and so on.

Galantines are a classic example of traditional foods such as sausages, patties, terrine, and many other smoked, processed, pickled or otherwise preserved foods. Indeed, once cooled, a galantine can be stored for several days in a cool room. In fact, it would not be wrong to say that galantine is a type of sausage. Both are basically a bunch of chopped, seasoned, and compress packaged and then cooked foods.

The same can be said of Haggis, a Scottish dish. Unlike galantine wrapped in chicken skin, haggis is also prepared in a casing made from sheep’s stomach, but we can say that it is a different type of sausage that does not fit every palate. But technically, they have similarities to gallatine in this regard.

What is Ballotine Cooking Method?

Balotins are a galantine that is served hot rather than cold. Again, after removing the chicken or its derivatives from their bones and combining the meat with additional ingredients, the chicken is wrapped with meat and skin, wrapped in cheesecloth or rope, and served by frying and cooking.

Baking can be frying, as well as creating layers by applying a liquid brush to the surface while frying in the oven to create a rich crunch and flavor. Ballotines can be served with a light sauce like veloute or supreme, or a dark sauce like Espagnole. Small piece ballotine can also be prepared using only the leg instead of the whole chicken and can be served as a single portion.

Balotins can also be prepared from other meats such as lamb or veal; In this case, the bones are removed and then the meat is rolled and folded by opening and filling it with different foods, unlike poultry, it is cooked with rope instead of skin.

Technically, both techniques should not be distinguished from each other. The techniques can be used separately or can be used together. First, it is made of galantine and after cooking in liquid,