Pan-Seared Squab

Called “the bird of royalty” squab has been popular among members of the French nobility as far back as the Middle Ages and enjoyed in cuisines as far back as ancient Egypt. Because of the delicate nature of the dish and because it is relatively difficult to find high-quality products such as Pelleh Squab in global markets squab has remained a status symbol in modern cooking.

There is an interesting old Yerushalmi wedding minhag including this prized dish. After the chuppah some chassanim and kallos break their fast in the yichud room on two squabs tied together with a red ribbon.

Squab is beloved for its rich meaty flavor. Similar in taste to duck squabs contain all dark meat and a majority of the meat is concentrated in the breast with very minimal meat on the thighs and legs. Their flavor is richer and gamier than other types of poultry and they pair well with bold flavors like dried fruits balsamic vinegar or wines that pair with beef or lamb like Bordeaux.

Cooking squab is similar to cooking beef in that it is best cooked rare to medium rare. But because it has relatively fatty skin like duck it’s important to render or melt that fat by starting the bird over low heat and slowly increasing it. Starting to cook a squab in a hot pan will cook the meat before the fat has a chance to melt resulting in chewy meat. Also like duck squab is best served at medium rare not well done like poultry is conventionally cooked in the United States.