Salade Mignon

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Digital kitchen scale
• •Medium nonreactive mixing bowl and balloon whisk
• •Small cold bowl for the cream
• •Flexible rubber spatula
• •Truffle shaver or very sharp paring knife
• •Four chilled salad plates or one 12-inch (30 cm) oval platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Match and dry

   Weigh the shrimp and cooked artichoke bottoms after draining so you have exactly 12 ounces (340 g) of each. Cut the artichoke bottoms into neat ½-inch (1.25 cm) dice, close to the size of the curled shrimp tails. Spread both on clean towels and blot them thoroughly. Dryness matters because water loosens the mayonnaise and washes away its seasoning. Chill the prepared ingredients while you make the sauce.

   Keep the shrimp whole unless they are unusually large. Salade Mignon depends on the contrast between springy shrimp and tender artichoke, not on reducing both to anonymous little cubes.
2. 2

   Build the mayonnaise

   Set a medium bowl on a folded damp towel. Whisk the egg yolk with 1 teaspoon of the Dijon mustard, the vinegar, 2 teaspoons of the lemon juice, ½ teaspoon of the salt, the white pepper, and the cayenne until smooth. Add the oil a few drops at a time while whisking constantly. Once the emulsion is thick and glossy, pour the remaining oil in a slender thread, never faster than the yolk can accept it. If the mayonnaise loosens into greasy beads, stop adding oil. Ça se rattrape: whisk the reserved teaspoon of mustard with a teaspoon of cold water in a clean bowl, then beat in the broken mayonnaise one teaspoon at a time until it becomes smooth again.

   The yolk and oil should be near the same cool room temperature. A very cold yolk and warm oil resist one another, which asks the whisk to do unnecessary work.
3. 3

   Fold in cream

   In a small cold bowl, whisk the heavy cream only until it holds a soft ribbon, not a firm peak. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the mayonnaise, then fold the cream gently into the remainder. Add the last teaspoon of lemon juice and taste. The sauce should be bright, distinctly salty, and carry a faint warmth from the cayenne. Taste it on one piece each of shrimp and artichoke, then add the remaining salt only if needed. Season firmly. Cream and cold both quiet savour.

4. 4

   Bind the salad

   Combine the shrimp and diced artichoke bottoms in a cold bowl. Fold in three-quarters of the cream mayonnaise, turning carefully so the artichoke dice keep their shape. Add only enough of the remainder to coat everything with a thin ivory gloss; the ingredients should be bound, not buried. Cover and chill for 20 to 30 minutes. If liquid gathers at the bottom, the ingredients were still wet. Lift the salad into a clean bowl with a slotted spoon and fold in the reserved plain mayonnaise. It will hold again.

5. 5

   Compose the border

   Taste the chilled salad once more and correct the salt, pepper, or lemon if the flavour has retreated. Mound it neatly on one chilled serving platter or divide it among four chilled salad plates. Blot a preserved truffle dry if necessary, then shave it paper-thin just before serving. Arrange the slices in a close, slightly overlapping border around the salad, keeping every slice visible. Serve at once, while the shrimp are cold and the truffle is most fragrant. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose small or medium cooked shrimp with a clean sea flavour and resilient texture. Avoid heavily brined shrimp, which bring enough salt to overwhelm the mayonnaise, and pat every tail dry before weighing.
• •Frozen artichoke bottoms or whole bottoms packed in water are the honest preserved choice when fresh ones are impractical. Use bottoms, not marinated hearts with leaves attached, and avoid anything packed in seasoned oil because it changes both texture and flavour.
• •Use a ripe fresh black truffle when the season offers one, or a good whole-preserved truffle in its natural juice. Truffle oil cannot make the border the source requires; the slices contribute texture, aroma, and the dish's unmistakable appearance.
• •Serve Salade Mignon with a dry, mineral white Burgundy or a restrained brut Champagne. Keep the wine cold and the pour modest, since black truffle is easily shouted down.
• •Because the salad contains seafood, cream, and raw-yolk mayonnaise, keep it properly chilled and return leftovers to the cold promptly. Use pasteurized yolk, especially when serving anyone more vulnerable to foodborne illness.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the plain mayonnaise up to 6 hours ahead with a pasteurized yolk, press a piece of parchment directly against its surface, and keep it cold. Fold in the cream no more than 1 hour before binding the salad.
• •Drain, weigh, and dry the shrimp and artichoke bottoms up to 4 hours ahead. Keep them covered in separate cold containers so neither gives moisture to the other.
• •Bind the salad 20 to 30 minutes before serving. Slice and arrange the black truffle at the last moment, since thin slices lose fragrance quickly once exposed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 230g)