Description
The Volailles de la Champagne PGI include poultry, turkeys and capons coming from slow-raising rustic breeds.
Production Area
The production area of Volailles de la Champagne PGI is located in the departments of Marne, Aisne, Ardennes and some neighbouring regions.
Production Method
Volailles de la Champagne PGI poultry receive a natural diet consisting of vegetables and minerals, rich of cereals. The animals are raised in the open air. The poultry is butchered with an age close to sexual maturity, which is different for every breed.
Appearance and Flavour
Volailles de la Champagne PGI are of higher quality and their fowl is tender and free from excess of fat.
History
Volailles de la Champagne PGI have a historic reputation. Its fame is linked to the creation and development of Les Eleveurs de la Champagne enterprises, already since 1959, and above all to the development of maize cultivations in the region. The very good quality of these fowls is confirmed by different bibliographic notes on poultry marketing in the Champagne area.
Gastronomy
Volailles de la Champagne PGI can be conserved for a few days in their original package, stored in the coldest compartment of the refrigerator. The fowl can be cooked in different ways depending on the cut chosen. Volailles de la Champagne PGI are used to prepare a lot of dishes, from the simplest ones to the most elaborated. It can be cooked whole or in slices, stuffed or not, roasted in oven of fried with sesame seeds. It can be seasoned with aromatic herbs or spices, in white sauce with milk cream, tomato sauce or cooked with aromatic wines from the area, in addition to olive oil or butter, the favoured seasoning of the French gastronomy.
Marketing
The Volailles de la Champagne PGI includes different types of products, depending on the specific varieties of poultry of the denomination which are individually written on the package. Amongst these, there are dinde fermière, chapon fermier (aussi blanc), poularde blanche fermière (farm turkey, farm capon - also white, farm white pullet). It is marketed fresh or frozen, whole with or without head or in slices packed in trays with protected atmosphere which guarantee a longer conservation and keep its organoleptic features.
Distinctive Features
The diet consists above all of cereals and breeding in the open are, which are the fundamentals of the high appreciation of Volailles de la Champagne PGI.
