Clear Soups

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •8-quart heavy-bottomed stockpot
• •3-quart saucepan
• •Fine-mesh strainer
• •Unbleached muslin or double-layer cheesecloth
• •Flat wooden spoon
• •Ladle
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Chill and defat

   Begin with stock that is refrigerator-cold and firm enough for every trace of surface fat to be lifted away. Fat can slip through the clarification and leave bright beads on the finished consommé, so take your time here. Taste the stock cold: it should already be deeply savory but slightly under-salted, since the clarification and final reduction will concentrate it. Dampen a double layer of muslin or cheesecloth and arrange it inside a fine strainer over a clean saucepan, ready for later.

   Clarification can polish a powerful stock, but it cannot manufacture flavor. If the cold stock tastes weak, reduce it before chilling and clarifying.
2. 2

   Mix the cold raft

   Put the ground beef, onion, minced carrot, celery, tomato paste, bouquet garni, and peppercorns into an 8-quart heavy pot. Beat the five egg whites only until fluid, not frothy, and work them thoroughly into the meat and vegetables. Add about one-third of the cold stock and mix until loose, then stir in the remainder. This cold mixture is the clarification raft: as its proteins coagulate, they will rise together while collecting the particles that make stock cloudy.

3. 3

   Raise the raft

   Set the pot over medium-low heat and stir continuously with a flat wooden spoon, sweeping the floor and corners so the meat cannot catch. As the liquid warms, pale curds will gather and begin rising into a single cap. The instant that cap forms, stop stirring. Make one opening about 2 inches wide near the side with the back of a ladle, then lower the heat. If the pot boils or the raft tears and the liquid clouds, take it off the heat at once. Ça se rattrape: rest it for 10 minutes, ladle the liquid through damp muslin without pressing, cool it below 110°F (43°C), whisk the two reserved egg whites with 1 cup (240 ml / 240 g) of the cooled broth, and repeat the gentle rise in a clean pot.

4. 4

   Hold a bare simmer

   Keep the consommé at the faintest tremble, about 185°F to 190°F (85°C to 88°C), for 50 to 60 minutes. A rolling boil will tear the raft apart, so adjust the burner whenever the chimney becomes lively. Every 15 minutes, dip clear liquid from the chimney and trickle it gently over the top of the raft without piercing it. The meat reinforces the stock while the egg whites hold its impurities. Patience, not agitation.

5. 5

   Strain without pressure

   Remove the pot from the heat and let it stand undisturbed for 10 minutes. Ladle the consommé slowly through the prepared damp muslin, drawing from the chimney and leaving the raft and bottom sediment behind. Never press or squeeze the cloth; that forces the captured particles straight back into the soup. If a few droplets of fat remain, touch a clean sheet of absorbent kitchen paper briefly to the surface and lift it away. Reduce the strained consommé at a quiet simmer until you have about 2 quarts and the flavor is concentrated, then season carefully with salt.

6. 6

   Prepare the julienne

   Bring the measured water to a simmer with about 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g) of the salt. Add the carrot julienne and cook for 2 minutes, then add the leek and continue for 1 minute, just until both are tender but still distinct. Drain them thoroughly. Cooking the garnish separately keeps its starch, stray vegetable fibers, and strong leek aroma out of the clarified broth.

7. 7

   Finish and serve

   Warm 6 to 8 shallow soup plates. Bring the consommé back to the barest simmer and taste once more for salt. Divide the carrot and leek julienne among the plates, ladle the brilliant broth around it, and finish with a few chervil leaves. The garnish should appear suspended, never piled, and every spoonful should remain more consommé than vegetable. Serve immediately. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Cold stock and a slow rise are non-negotiable. If the egg proteins seize before they have gathered the suspended particles, they cook into scraps instead of forming a useful raft.
• •Use very lean meat. Fat rises independently of the raft and leaves an oily sparkle where the consommé should show a clean, glasslike surface.
• •For poultry or game consommé, replace the beef gram for gram with lean flesh matching the stock. Fish and shellfish follow the same grammar, but their clarification needs only about 25 to 30 minutes at a bare tremble before prolonged cooking begins to dull the broth.
• •The garnish names the soup's character, but restraint is the rule. Fine vegetables, a few poached dumplings, or small pieces of the meat that made the broth can belong; a crowded bowl cannot.
• •Serve this before a rich dinner, when the palate is still alert enough to notice its depth and clarity. A dry Champagne makes a splendid companion, though the consommé needs no ornament beyond its garnish.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the stock up to two days ahead and chill it thoroughly. The cold rest brings the fat into a firm cap that lifts away cleanly before clarification.
• •The consommé can be clarified one day ahead. Cool it rapidly in a shallow container, cover, and refrigerate; remove any settled fat while cold, then reheat gently without a hard boil.
• •Cut the carrot and leek julienne several hours ahead and keep them covered in the cold under a barely damp towel. Blanch them shortly before serving so their colors remain bright.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 250g)