Soufflé de Jambon Carmen

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •2-quart (1.9-litre) straight-sided soufflé dish
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Medium heavy saucepan
• •Balloon whisk or electric hand mixer
• •Broad flexible spatula
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare oven and dish

   Set a rack in the lower-middle of the oven and heat it to 400°F (200°C). Use 1 tablespoon of the butter to coat the bottom and sides of a 2-quart (1.9-litre) straight-sided soufflé dish, brushing upward along the walls. Chill the dish while you work. Finely chop the ham and separate the eggs now; once the whites are folded, the soufflé must go straight into the oven.

   The dish should be no more than three-quarters full before baking. A smaller vessel leaves the mixture nowhere to climb, while a broad shallow dish gives a low, dry soufflé.
2. 2

   Reduce the Carmen purée

   Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the pressed tomatoes and chopped capsicum, then cook for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring, until the vegetables soften and their loose juices disappear. Rub everything through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing firmly, and return the smooth purée to the clean pan. Reduce over medium-low heat until only about 1/4 cup (60 ml / 65 g) remains and a spatula drawn across the bottom leaves a clean trail for several seconds. This reduction is the dish. If the purée is still loose, don't continue and hope for the best. Ça se rattrape: return it to the heat and reduce until it sits in a mound rather than flowing.

   If the purée catches, move the unburned portion to a clean pan without scraping the scorched bottom. Taste it before continuing; bitterness cannot be hidden inside the eggs.
3. 3

   Build the panade

   Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the flour and cook the roux for 2 minutes without letting it colour. Add the milk a little at a time, whisking each addition smooth before the next, then cook for 3 to 4 minutes until the béchamel becomes a very thick panade that pulls cleanly from the pan. If lumps appear, take the pan off the heat and whisk firmly before adding more milk. Season with the white pepper and half the salt.

4. 4

   Finish the ham base

   Remove the panade from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes. Stir in the reduced Carmen purée and the finely chopped ham until the colour is even and no heavy pockets remain. Beat in the yolks one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. The base should be thick, rosy, and warm rather than hot. Taste before the yolks go in and add the remaining salt only if the ham needs it.

5. 5

   Whisk the whites

   Reserve 1 tablespoon of the unwhipped egg whites in a small cup. Whisk the rest in a spotless bowl until they form glossy medium-stiff peaks, upright at the base with tips that bend slightly. Stop before they turn dry or granular. If they begin to look grainy, whisk in the reserved white by hand until the foam becomes supple again. Ça se rattrape, but only while some moisture remains.

6. 6

   Fold without crushing

   Stir one-quarter of the whipped whites firmly into the ham base to lighten it. Add half the remaining whites and fold with a broad spatula, cutting down through the centre, sweeping along the bottom, and turning the mixture over itself. Fold in the last whites just until no large white streaks remain. A few fine streaks are safer than a perfectly uniform mixture beaten flat.

7. 7

   Fill and finish

   Spoon the mixture into the chilled dish and smooth the surface lightly. Run a clean thumb around the inside rim to make a shallow channel, helping the centre rise cleanly. Scatter the fine red pepper julienne lightly over the surface, exactly as the Carmen finish requires. Do not press it into the mixture.

8. 8

   Bake and serve

   Bake for 12 minutes, then reduce the oven to 375°F (190°C) without opening the door. Continue for 18 to 23 minutes, until the soufflé stands well above the rim, its crown is rose-gold with fine fissures, and the centre reaches at least 160°F (71°C) while retaining a slight tremble. Bring it directly to the table. If it settles on the journey, never apologize at your own table; the flavour and tenderness remain. Serve from the dish at once. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose a plain cooked ham such as jambon de Paris, preferably cut from one piece. Honey glaze, heavy smoke, or sweet curing fights the tomato and capsicum; this soufflé wants savoury pork, not perfume.
• •Good canned tomatoes are the honest choice when fresh ones are watery or out of season. Drain and press them before measuring, then reduce them hard. Wet tomato is the chief enemy of the rise.
• •Finely chop the ham with a knife or use very short food-processor pulses. Large pieces drag through the foam, while ham worked into paste makes the middle dense.
• •At a dinner party, seat everyone before the soufflé is ready. Serve it with a sharply dressed green salad and a light Beaujolais or dry Chenin Blanc. The guests wait for the soufflé, not the reverse.

Advance Preparation

• •The tomato and capsicum purée can be cooked, sieved, and reduced up to 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate it, then let it lose its chill before adding it to the panade.
• •The panade can be combined with the ham and Carmen purée up to 4 hours ahead, covered directly on its surface, and refrigerated. Let it stand for 20 minutes before beating in the yolks.
• •Whisk and fold the egg whites only when the oven is hot and the guests are nearly seated. The completed mixture cannot wait without surrendering its rise.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 230g)