Consommé D’Orsay

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •5 to 6-quart heavy pot
• •Fine sieve and clean muslin or lint-free towel
• •Food processor with chilled bowl and blade
• •Two demitasse spoons
• •12-inch shallow skillet
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •3-quart soup tureen

Instructions

1. 1

   Build the cold raft

   Separate three eggs, placing each yolk in its own lightly oiled cup, covered and chilled. Reserve the whites separately. In a 5 to 6-quart heavy pot, loosen two of those whites with a whisk, then mix in the ground chicken, onion, carrot, leek, thyme, bay leaf, and peppercorns. Pour in the very cold stock and stir thoroughly. Everything must begin cold so the proteins can gather impurities as they rise; dropping a raft into hot stock only scatters it.

2. 2

   Clarify the consommé

   Set the pot over medium-low heat and stir slowly along the bottom until the liquid approaches a simmer and the raft begins rising, about 15 to 20 minutes. Stop stirring once the raft forms. Cut a small chimney through its center with a spoon, lower the heat, and hold the consommé at the barest tremble for 45 minutes, occasionally ladling liquid through the chimney. A hard boil breaks the raft and clouds the broth.

3. 3

   Strain without pressing

   Ladle the consommé carefully through the chimney and into a fine sieve lined with damp muslin or a clean lint-free towel. Let gravity do the work. Never press the raft, because pressure drives every trapped particle back into the broth. Measure 4 cups (960 ml / 960 g), reducing gently if there is more or adding only enough hot water to replace a small shortage. Season lightly, remembering that the final boiling concentrates salt. If the broth clouds, chill it, whisk one reserved egg white with 1 cup of the liquid, stir it back into the rest, and raise it slowly to another 20-minute raft. Ça se rattrape.

4. 4

   Make the pigeon forcemeat

   Chill the food-processor bowl and blade for 15 minutes. Process the diced pigeon with 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml / 3 g) salt and the white pepper until the meat becomes fine and tacky. Add one reserved egg white and process until absorbed. With the machine running, add the cream gradually, holding back 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 15 g), and stop as soon as the forcemeat is smooth and softly firm. Warm forcemeat turns grainy because its emulsion breaks. If that begins, stop, chill the bowl for 10 minutes, then pulse in the reserved cold cream. Cooking well is not cooking fancy, but temperature matters.

5. 5

   Test and shape quenelles

   Bring a wide pan of lightly salted water to 180 to 185°F (82 to 85°C), where the surface barely moves. Poach a teaspoonful of forcemeat until its center reaches 165°F (74°C), then taste it. Add a little salt if needed. Using two wet demitasse spoons, shape fifteen small egg-like quenelles, smoothing the forcemeat back and forth between the spoons. The first may look untidy. The third will understand what you want.

   If the test quenelle feels rubbery, fold a teaspoon of cold cream into the mixture. If it slumps or frays before setting, chill the forcemeat for 15 minutes and lower the poaching water below a simmer.
6. 6

   Poach the quenelles

   Lower the fifteen quenelles into the barely moving water in batches, leaving them room to swell. Poach for 6 to 8 minutes, turning once, until they feel resilient and reach 165°F (74°C) at the center. Lift them with a slotted spoon and drain on a clean towel. If their surfaces roughen, the water is boiling too hard; lower the heat at once and the remaining quenelles will stay smooth.

7. 7

   Cook the pigeon fillets

   Pat the remaining three pigeon fillets dry and season them with 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml / 3 g) salt. Melt the butter in a small heavy skillet over medium heat until its foam subsides, then cook the fillets gently, turning and basting with the butter, until their centers reach 160°F (71°C). Rest them for 5 minutes so they carry to 165°F (74°C). Cut them julienne-fashion, meaning into fine match-shaped rods, across the grain. Keep the rods distinct rather than shredding the meat.

8. 8

   Blanch the asparagus

   Drop the asparagus heads into a small pan of well-salted boiling water for 30 to 45 seconds, just until their green brightens and the cut end becomes tender. Cool them promptly in cold water, then drain and blot them dry. The source asks for one tablespoonful, not a green thicket; asparagus is a precise accent here.

9. 9

   Barely poach yolks

   Fill a broad skillet with 1 1/2 inches of water and bring it to 170 to 175°F (77 to 80°C), with no active bubbling. Separate seven more eggs, keeping each yolk in its own small cup and reserving the whites for another use. Slide three yolks at a time into the water from a spoon, spoon a little water over their tops, and poach for 45 to 60 seconds. The outside should acquire only a fine tender veil while the center remains fluid. Transfer them to clean water held near 135°F (57°C) and keep them there no longer than 5 minutes. If one breaks, lift out the fragments before they cloud the water and use one of the two spare eggs. Ça se rattrape.

   Pasteurized shell eggs preserve the deliberately soft center while making this course suitable for a wider dinner table. If serving someone especially vulnerable to undercooked egg, omit the yolk from that portion or cook it until fully set.
10. 10

    Warm each element

    Fill the soup tureen with hot water and leave it for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, warm the quenelles and pigeon julienne gently in 1/2 cup (120 ml / 120 g) of the consommé, never letting them boil. Lift them out, pass their warming liquid through a fine sieve into the remaining consommé, and add the asparagus for only a few seconds. Bring the full measure of consommé to a clean boil and taste once more for salt. This separate warming protects the clarity; it is not brigade fuss but the grammar of the dish.

11. 11

    Fill the tureen

    Empty and dry the warmed tureen. Arrange the fifteen quenelles, ten barely poached yolks, pigeon julienne, and asparagus heads inside, distributing the yolks so each serving receives one. Pour the boiling consommé down the side of the tureen rather than directly onto the fragile yolks. Carry it straight to the table and ladle gently. Waiting hardens the yolks and dulls the consommé, so everyone should already be seated. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Farmed pigeon is commonly sold as squab. It is the young bird wanted here, tender enough for the fine julienne and mild enough not to bully the chicken consommé. Ask the butcher to remove the skin and any pin bones.
• •Begin with cold chicken stock that gels softly and tastes distinctly of chicken. A thin boxed broth can be made clear, but clarification cannot give it the body it never had. Technique first, always, but the foundation must exist.
• •If you already have 4 cups (960 ml / 960 g) of very clear finished chicken consommé, use it and omit the raft ingredients and clarification steps. That is an honest economy of prior work, not a change to the dish.
• •Julienne-fashion means match-shaped rods. Chill the cooked pigeon briefly if it feels too soft to cut cleanly, then use a sharp slicing knife and work across the grain.
• •Serve with a dry Champagne or a restrained white Burgundy. The wine should refresh between spoonfuls without covering the delicacy of pigeon, egg yolk, and asparagus.

Advance Preparation

• •Clarify the consommé up to two days ahead, cool it quickly, cover, and refrigerate. Remove any trace of surface fat before reheating.
• •The quenelles may be poached one day ahead and chilled in a covered container. Rewarm them gently in a little consommé, never in boiling liquid.
• •Cook and julienne the pigeon fillets one day ahead. Keep them covered and chilled, then warm them with the quenelles shortly before service.
• •Blanch the asparagus heads several hours ahead and keep them cold and dry. Poach the yolks only at the last moment; their barely set texture does not survive holding or reheating.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 190g)