Chef Juliette
Fresh Leg of Pork
Jambon frais rôti teaches the quiet discipline of the roast: fierce heat for bronze, gentle heat for an even center, then a proper rest before carving into juicy slices.
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Mousselines de Jambon aux Petits Pois
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 1436, Mousselines de Jambon aux Petits Pois, from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
Silken ham mousselines, glossy petits pois, and Parmesan-rich Sauce Allemande meet beneath a fierce broiler, teaching the precise finish that protects tenderness while giving the classical crown its golden surface.
Main Dishes
French
Dinner Party
Special Occasion
1 hr 30 min
Active Time
30 min cook•2 hr total
Yield4 servings
Mousselines de Jambon aux Petits Pois (ham mousselines with buttered peas) teaches one precise thing: glazing is a flash of fierce heat, not a second cooking. The mousselines arrive beneath an ivory coat of ham-scented Sauce Allemande, their tops just touched with gold, while very small peas shine with enough butter to gather in the centre without swimming.
The original assumed a saucier on staff, a stockpot never off the fire, and a salamander ready the instant the platter reached it. At home, prepare one four-person batch of Mousselines de Jambon Alexandra (No. 1433), hold back a spoonful of its hot sauce for correction, and use a fully heated household broiler. The brigade's simultaneous hands were scaffolding and can go. The gentle poaching, ham-and-truffle decoration, Parmesan-enriched Sauce Allemande, crown arrangement, and rapid glaze are the dish and must stay. Eight mousselines replace the banquet quantity, and the asparagus changes to petits pois exactly as this variation directs. One cook, one stove, one evening.
Have the peas buttered, the broiler fierce, and the serving plates warm before the sauced crown goes beneath the heat. That coordination decides the dish. Linger over the glaze and the mousselines tighten; move smartly and they remain supple beneath their golden surface.
Mousselines de jambon belong to the formal Parisian grand-kitchen repertoire, where finely worked forcemeats were shaped, gently poached, sauced, and glazed for dining-room service. In the numbered canon, Alexandra is the master preparation and aux petits pois is a precise garnish variation: very small peas bound with butter replace the asparagus at the centre, while the ham-and-truffle decoration and Parmesan-enriched Sauce Allemande remain. The form passed naturally to bourgeois dinner tables because its elaborate appearance depends less on spectacle than on disciplined timing at the finish.
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Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
Mousselines de Jambon Alexandra
Quantity
1 home-scale batch (8 pieces) (No. 1433)
prepared as directed for 4 servings, stopping before the final glaze and omitting the asparagus garnish
very small peas
Quantity
1½ cups (355 ml / 220 g)
freshly shelled or frozen, kept frozen until cooking
unsalted butter
Quantity
2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g)
cool and cut into small pieces
fine salt
Quantity
2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g)
for the blanching water
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Mousselines de Jambon Alexandraprepared as directed for 4 servings, stopping before the final glaze and omitting the asparagus garnish | 1 home-scale batch (8 pieces) (No. 1433) |
| very small peasfreshly shelled or frozen, kept frozen until cooking | 1½ cups (355 ml / 220 g) |
| unsalted buttercool and cut into small pieces | 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) |
| fine saltfor the blanching water | 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •12-inch (30 cm) round broiler-safe serving platter
- •1½-quart (1.5-liter) saucepan
- •Fine-mesh strainer
- •Heatproof serving spoon
- •Equipment specified for Mousselines de Jambon Alexandra (No. 1433)
Instructions
- 1
Set the finish
Set an oven rack 4 to 5 inches (10 to 12 cm) below the broiler and heat the broiler on high for a full 10 minutes. Warm four serving plates with hot water, then dry them just before service. Prepare the Mousselines de Jambon Alexandra (No. 1433) according to its own entry, omitting only the asparagus garnish and stopping immediately before the final glaze. Reserve 1 tablespoon of its hot Sauce Allemande for correction, then keep the sauced crown warm only while the peas cook.
- 2
Blanch the petits pois
Bring a saucepan of water to a brisk boil and add the salt. Drop in the petits pois and cook only until tender and brilliant green, 2 to 4 minutes for freshly shelled peas or 45 to 60 seconds after the water returns to a simmer for frozen peas. Taste one. It should yield easily but retain its shape. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the cooking water, then drain the peas thoroughly.
- 3
Cohere with butter
Return the empty saucepan to low heat for a few seconds to dry it, then add the drained petits pois. Remove the pan from the heat and roll in the cool butter a few pieces at a time until every pea gleams and the butter forms a light binding rather than a puddle. If water collects beneath them, return the pan to gentle heat until it evaporates before adding the last butter. If the butter turns oily, add 1 teaspoon of the reserved cooking water and roll the pan off the heat until the gloss returns. Cover and hold beside the stove for no more than 2 minutes.
- 4
Glaze in a flash
Slide the sauced crown beneath the fully heated broiler and watch it without looking away. Glaze for 45 to 75 seconds, just until the ivory sauce develops pale golden freckles and the Parmesan melts into a thin, glossy surface. This is colouring, not cooking. If beads of fat appear at an edge, remove the platter immediately, lift them away with the edge of a spoon, and veil the spot with the reserved hot Sauce Allemande. Ça se rattrape. Return it beneath the broiler for no more than 5 to 10 seconds if the repaired spot still needs colour.
- 5
Fill the crown
Set the glazed platter on a heatproof board and immediately mound the buttered petits pois in the centre of the crown. If the peas have tightened while waiting, roll them briefly with 1 teaspoon of their reserved cooking water before adding them. Wipe the platter rim, carry it straight to the table, and serve two mousselines to each guest with peas and sauce. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Choose true petits pois, the smallest peas you can find. Large mature peas taste starchy beside the delicate mousseline; outside their brief fresh season, frozen petits pois are the honest classical-pantry answer and often the sweeter one.
- •Do not simplify the referenced base into ham purée under cream. The ham-and-truffle lozenges, gentle poach, ham-scented Sauce Allemande, Parmesan, and crown arrangement establish the Alexandra preparation; this entry changes only the central garnish.
- •The broiler must be fully heated before the platter enters. A weak, slowly warming broiler makes you leave the mousselines beneath it too long, and tenderness is lost before colour arrives.
- •Pour a restrained white Burgundy, such as a Mâcon-Villages. Its freshness cuts through the Allemande and Parmesan without bullying the sweet peas or the ham.
Advance Preparation
- •Up to 6 hours ahead, measure the frozen petits pois and return them to the freezer, portion the butter and refrigerate it, and set out the broiler-safe platter, saucepan, and serving plates.
- •Time the Mousselines de Jambon Alexandra (No. 1433) according to its own entry so the sauced crown reaches its pre-glaze stage about 5 minutes before service. The petits pois, final glaze, and assembly belong to the last 10 minutes and should not be completed ahead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 215g)
Calories
465 calories
Total Fat
34 g
Saturated Fat
18 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
14 g
Cholesterol
120 mg
Sodium
1280 mg
Total Carbohydrates
15 g
Dietary Fiber
3 g
Sugars
4 g
Protein
24 g
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