Jockey Club Eggs

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •10-inch (25 cm) seasoned omelet pan or nonstick skillet
• •Small heavy saucepan
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •3¼-inch (8 cm) plain or fluted round cutter
• •Large warm oval serving platter
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Set the service

   Warm a large oval platter and four plates in a 200°F (95°C) oven. Set the toast rounds, trimmed kidney, diced truffle, eggs, butter, warm platter, and round cutter within reach. Arrange the empty toast rounds once on the platter to judge the crown, then return them to the board. This rehearsal is brigade scaffolding reduced to thirty useful seconds: once the eggs enter the pan, you should make no decisions.

   Keep the platter warm, not hot. Fierce heat melts the foie gras into oil before the dish reaches the table.
2. 2

   Purée the foie gras

   Press the room-temperature foie gras through a fine-mesh sieve with the back of a spoon, then work it with a small spatula until perfectly smooth and spreadable. Cover and keep it at cool room temperature. If it remains crumbly, warm the spoon under hot water, dry it, and work the purée again. If it turns oily, chill it for five minutes and stir until it comes back together. Ça se rattrape.

3. 3

   Concentrate the demi-glace

   Bring the veal demi-glace to a lively simmer in a small saucepan and reduce it to about ½ cup (120 ml), or until it reaches nappe, meaning it coats the back of a spoon in a dense, glossy film. Do not season until it has reduced. If it becomes sticky or salty, whisk in water one teaspoon at a time until the gloss returns; if it runs from the spoon like broth, reduce it further. Hold it over the gentlest heat.

4. 4

   Brown the toast

   Melt 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) butter in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add the pain de mie rounds and brown them lightly on both sides, pressing once so each surface meets the butter. They should be crisp enough to support the egg but not hard under the knife. Transfer them to the warm platter in a crown, leaving a generous open space at the center.

5. 5

   Sauté the kidney

   Pat the kidney dice very dry and season them with a little salt and pepper. Heat 1½ tablespoons (22 ml / 21 g) butter in the skillet over medium-high heat until its foam subsides, then add the kidney in one uncrowded layer. Sauté, cooking quickly in hot butter, until well browned and cooked through, about 3 to 4 minutes; the largest pieces should reach 160°F (71°C). If the kidney releases liquid and begins to gray, lift it out, boil away the liquid, add a dab of the reserved butter, and return the dice for a quick browning. Fold in the truffle, remove the skillet from the heat, and add enough hot demi-glace to bind everything in a dense glaze without drowning it. Cover loosely and keep beside the stove.

6. 6

   Cook and trim eggs

   Melt the remaining 1½ tablespoons (22 ml / 21 g) butter in a clean omelet pan over medium-low heat. Cook the eggs two at a time so the whites retain their shape, spooning a little hot butter over the unset white while leaving the yolk untouched. The whites should set tenderly without crisp edges, and the yolks should remain fluid. Tilt the pan gently and slide each pair onto a warm plate. Center the 3¼-inch (8 cm) cutter over each yolk and press straight down to trim the white into a neat round. If a white tears, tuck the loose edge beneath it on the toast, where the purée will conceal the repair. If a yolk breaks and runs, cook a replacement; this crown depends on intact eggs.

7. 7

   Build the crown

   Slide one trimmed egg onto each toast round. Season lightly, then mask every egg with an even layer of foie gras purée, spreading it gently to the trimmed edge without pressing on the yolk. Spoon the glazed calf kidney and truffle into the center of the crown, adding just enough demi-glace to make the garnish gleam and hold together. Carry the platter directly to the table. Nothing improves while it waits. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Order the calf kidney from a butcher and ask for it whole, not sliced. Calf kidney is finer and milder than lamb kidney, which changes the center of the dish more than its smaller size suggests.
• •Choose a cooked foie gras terrine or bloc with foie gras as the principal ingredient, not a loose liver mousse. The purée must taste cleanly of foie gras and hold as a soft mask over the egg.
• •Fresh black truffle has the fullest perfume, but a whole preserved black truffle is the classical pantry's honest answer outside its season. Drain it, blot it, and dice it. Truffle-flavored oil cannot provide the texture or restrained aroma this garnish requires.
• •Use low-salt, ready-to-use veal demi-glace rather than a concentrated paste unless you know its strength. Reduction intensifies salt as ruthlessly as flavor, so taste only after the sauce reaches nappe.
• •Serve Œufs Jockey Club as a rich first course, not beside sweet breakfast dishes. A dry Champagne or a broad white Burgundy has enough freshness to meet the foie gras and enough body for the kidney.

Advance Preparation

• •Reduce the demi-glace up to two days ahead, cool it promptly, cover, and refrigerate. Reheat it gently before cooking the kidney, loosening it with a teaspoon of water if it has set too firmly.
• •Press the foie gras through the sieve up to six hours ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. Bring it out about thirty minutes before assembly so it becomes spreadable without melting.
• •Trim and dice the kidney up to four hours ahead. Keep it covered and cold on absorbent paper, then pat it dry again immediately before sautéing.
• •Cut the bread and map the crown earlier in the day, but brown the toast, cook the kidney, and pan-cook the eggs only at service. The finished platter does not hold or reheat well.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 205g)