Cold Eggs Argenteuil

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Medium saucepan
• •Wide saucepan for vegetables
• •Large bowl for an ice bath
• •Small food processor or immersion blender
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Wire rack set over a rimmed tray
• •1-inch (2.5 cm) round cutter
• •Oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the gelée blanche

   Sprinkle the gelatin evenly over the cold water and leave it for 5 minutes to swell. Warm 1½ cups (360 ml) of the chicken stock until it barely quivers, then take it off the heat and stir in the bloomed gelatin until every grain disappears. Do not boil it, which clouds the gelée blanche, the pale aspic that gives the finished eggs their clear gloss. Strain it through a fine sieve, reserve ½ cup (120 ml) for the chaud-froid, and pour the remainder into a shallow container. Refrigerate until firmly set, about 2 hours.

   If gelatin strands remain, warm the mixture gently and strain it again. Boiling won't mend them; patient heat will.
2. 2

   Cook the eggs mollets

   Bring a saucepan of water to a full boil and lower in the eggs carefully. Cook for 7 minutes, keeping the water at a steady but civilized boil, then transfer them directly to ice water for 10 minutes. Peel from the broad end under cool water, working beneath the membrane so the whites remain smooth. Cut the thinnest possible slice from each base, only enough to let the egg stand without exposing the yolk. Blot thoroughly and refrigerate uncovered on a towel-lined tray for at least 30 minutes. A wet egg rejects its coating, so dry means dry.

   Eggs that have rested several days peel more cleanly than eggs straight from the hen. The shell releases, and your pulse remains where it belongs.
3. 3

   Prepare asparagus and potatoes

   Bring a wide pan of well-salted water to a boil. Blanch the asparagus tops until vividly green and just tender, 2 to 4 minutes depending on thickness, then move them into ice water. Drain and dry them well. Select enough of the tenderest tops to make ½ cup (120 ml / about 120 g) of purée, process them until fine, and press the purée through a sieve. If the blades refuse to catch, add a teaspoon of the remaining stock, no more. Keep the other tops whole for the salad. In fresh simmering water, cook the potatoes in their skins until a fine skewer enters with slight resistance, 18 to 25 minutes. Drain, cool, and refrigerate them whole.

4. 4

   Build the chaud-froid

   Melt the butter over gentle heat, stir in the flour, and cook this roux blanc, or white roux, for 90 seconds without allowing it to color. Whisk in the remaining 1 cup (240 ml) chicken stock a little at a time, then simmer for 5 minutes, whisking into the corners. Add the cream and simmer gently until the sauce is smooth and reduced to 1 cup (240 ml). Whisk in the reserved ½ cup (120 ml) liquid gelée blanche, warming it first if it has set. You now have 1½ cups (360 ml) of white chaud-froid. Whisk in the measured ½ cup (120 ml) asparagus purée, a good third of the sauce's volume, exactly preserving the source ratio. Season with salt and white pepper, then cool over ice, stirring, until it falls from the spoon in a broad ribbon at about 70°F (21°C). If it sets too firmly, warm the bowl briefly over barely warm water; if it runs like cream, chill it a little longer. Ça se rattrape.

   The roux must stay pale. Its work is body, not browning, because the asparagus should remain the sauce's only color.
5. 5

   Cut the potato rounds

   Peel the chilled potatoes and cut them across into slices about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick. Stamp each slice with a plain 1-inch (2.5 cm) round cutter, the honest home equivalent of the original fancy-cutter. Keep the rounds covered and cold. Season them lightly with salt, but leave them otherwise plain; their clean, cool starch is the quiet border between the asparagus salad and the glazed eggs.

6. 6

   Coat the eggs

   Set the eggs upright on their trimmed bases on a wire rack over a rimmed tray. Spoon the thickened asparagus chaud-froid over each crown in one decisive pass, letting it flow down every side without touching the surface. Chill for 12 minutes, patch any bare spots with another spoonful, and chill again until fully set, about 20 minutes. If the sauce slides off and puddles below, either the egg is damp or the chaud-froid is too warm. Collect the sauce, chill it to ribbon consistency, blot and rechill the egg, then coat again. Never apologize at your own table; correct the temperature and carry on.

7. 7

   Glaze with aspic

   Scoop the set gelée blanche into a small saucepan and melt it over the lowest heat. Cool it over ice until it remains liquid but feels distinctly cool, about 65°F (18°C). Spoon a very thin coat over each chilled egg and return the tray to the refrigerator for 5 minutes. Repeat 3 or 4 times, keeping every layer fine, until the eggs shine under a clear, even gloss. If a warm coat begins melting the green chaud-froid, stop at once, chill the eggs, and cool the gelée further. If the gelée sets in the pan, warm it just until fluid. The repeated glazing is not brigade scaffolding; it is the dish.

8. 8

   Arrange the platter

   Whisk the vinegar with a pinch each of salt and white pepper, then whisk in the oil. Toss the reserved asparagus tops lightly in this vinaigrette and mound them in the center of a chilled oval platter. Surround the salad with overlapping potato rounds, then arrange the upright glazed eggs evenly around the outside. Chill the finished platter for 20 minutes so every element settles, then serve it cool and gleaming. À table!

Chef Tips

• •This dish earns fresh asparagus. Frozen tips can make a respectable purée, but they won't give the central salad its firm sweetness; outside the season, choose Œufs en gelée and wait for good spears before making Argenteuil.
• •Use the palest, cleanest chicken stock you have. A dark roasted stock turns the gelée amber and muddies the asparagus color, while an aggressively salted carton becomes harsher when chilled.
• •The coating bowl, eggs, rack, and platter all need room in the refrigerator. Clear one shelf before you begin, because balancing eight glazed eggs on top of the mustard jars is not classical technique.
• •Serve with a dry, brisk white wine such as Sancerre or Menetou-Salon. Asparagus rewards acidity and restraint more than oak or sweetness.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the gelée blanche and cook the potatoes up to 1 day ahead. Refrigerate both tightly covered, keeping the potatoes whole until cutting so their surfaces don't dry.
• •The eggs may be boiled, peeled, trimmed, and dried up to 1 day ahead. Keep them refrigerated in a covered container once their surfaces are fully dry.
• •Coat and glaze the eggs up to 12 hours before serving. Refrigerate them uncovered until the final aspic layer sets, then cover without letting wrapping touch their glossy surfaces.
• •Arrange the potato rounds and eggs up to 2 hours ahead, but dress and add the asparagus salad shortly before serving. Keep the platter refrigerated and return leftovers to the cold within 2 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 600g)