Ox-tail Soup

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6- to 8-quart heavy stockpot
• •Large heavy roasting pan
• •2-quart saucepan for holding the tail sections
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Rinsed muslin or plain linen straining cloth
• •Fat separator
• •Large heatproof measuring jug
• •Slotted spoon

Instructions

1. 1

   Brown Tails and Bones

   Heat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Pat the ox-tail and bones dry, spread them in a single layer in a heavy roasting pan, and roast for 35 to 45 minutes, turning once, until every broad surface is deep mahogany. Brown means brown, not black. If one edge catches, move the sound pieces to a clean part of the pan and leave the burnt deposit behind; no clarification can remove scorched bitterness.

   Crowding traps moisture and gives grey meat. Use two pans if necessary, because the browning is part of the broth's foundation, not decorative colour added at the end.
2. 2

   Colour the Roundels

   Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a 6- to 8-quart stockpot over medium heat. Add the carrot and onion roundels and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, turning occasionally, until their edges are richly browned. Add the bouquet garni, roasted ox-tail, and bones. Pour about 1 cup of the measured water into the hot roasting pan, scrape up every sound brown deposit, and add that fond to the pot. Pour in the remaining water and the Brown Veal Stock (No. 9). The prescribed liquid should fit closely around the solids; do not drown them with extra water.

3. 3

   Simmer at a Tremble

   Bring the pot slowly toward a boil, skimming away the grey foam as it gathers. The moment the surface begins to roll, lower the heat and hold it at the barest tremble for 4½ to 5 hours, uncovered or with the lid slightly ajar. Skim occasionally but do not stir the bones through the broth. The ox-tail is ready when a fork enters the meat easily but the large sections remain intact. If the pot boils hard and clouds, lower the heat at once; the clarification can repair that cloudiness later. Ça se rattrape. What it cannot repair is a scorched pot floor.

4. 4

   Strain and Defat

   Strain the contents through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl. Retrieve 8 to 10 of the largest, best-shaped tail sections with a slotted spoon and discard the exhausted bones, vegetables, bouquet garni, and small tail tips. Let the broth settle for 10 minutes, then pass it through a fat separator and skim until no beads of grease remain. Measure it and reduce gently, if necessary, until it reaches 2 quarts. If it has slipped slightly below that mark, restore only to 2 quarts with hot water. Reserve about 1 cup of the defatted broth over the tail sections in a small covered saucepan and keep them barely warm, never simmering. Cool the remaining broth in an ice bath until lukewarm.

5. 5

   Build the Clarification

   In a clean stockpot, work the minced lean beef, diced leek white, and egg white together until evenly mixed. Add the cooled, completely defatted broth and set the pot over medium heat. Stir constantly from the bottom as it warms so the egg does not catch. When the first slow boil arrives and the beef rises into a raft, stop stirring immediately, lower the heat, and open a small chimney through the raft with the handle of a spoon. Simmer at the faintest movement for 1 hour. If the raft cracks, lower the heat and leave it undisturbed for 5 minutes so it can settle again; a second careful straining will rescue any escaped particles.

6. 6

   Cut the Brunoise

   While the broth clarifies, cut the small carrot in brunoise, a fine, even dice. Put it in a small saucepan with the ½ cup water, 1 teaspoon butter, sugar, and a small pinch of the measured salt. Cover and cook gently for 8 to 12 minutes, until tender but still neatly shaped. Uncover for the final minute so the remaining liquid reduces to a light buttery glaze. If the pan dries before the carrot is tender, add one spoonful of water and continue gently.

7. 7

   Strain to Brilliance

   Rinse a square of muslin or a plain linen cloth thoroughly, dampen it with hot water, and wring it well. Line a fine sieve over a clean saucepan. Ladle the broth slowly through the chimney in the raft, then lift the remaining liquid away without pressing or squeezing the solids. Discard the clarification mixture. The broth should be clear, deep amber, and free of grease. If a few particles escaped, pass it once more through fresh double-layered damp cloth; patience, not pressure, restores the brilliance.

8. 8

   Assemble the Tureen

   Drain the warm tail sections well and arrange them in a heated soup tureen with the glazed carrot brunoise. Bring the clarified broth just below a simmer, season with the remaining salt as needed, and add the port or sherry off the heat if using. For the optional thickened version, first mix the arrowroot with ¼ cup of cooled clarified broth, whisk the smooth slurry into the remaining broth, and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, just until it lightly coats a spoon. Pour the finished broth over the tail sections and carrot. Serve at once. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask the butcher to separate the tail through its joints so each section contains a vertebra. Cutting blindly through the bone leaves splinters for the cloth to catch and roughens the handsome sections meant for the tureen.
• •Choose knuckle or joint bones rich in cartilage, not a tray composed entirely of marrow bones. Marrow brings grease; joints bring the gelatin that gives the finished broth its quiet body.
• •The broth must be completely defatted before clarification. Egg white can gather fine particles, but floating grease slips through the raft and dulls the surface. Chilling overnight makes this easiest because the fat lifts away in one firm sheet.
• •Port makes the broth rounder and gently sweet; dry sherry gives a firmer, nuttier finish. Both belong to the English character of the soup, and both are optional. Add either after the final heating so its perfume remains.
• •The source also permits a thickened potage. Its proportion is one-third ounce of arrowroot for every quart of broth, which becomes 19 g for this two-quart batch. The clear version remains the more revealing lesson.

Advance Preparation

• •Brown Veal Stock (No. 9) is a finished preparation in its own right. Make or thaw it before beginning this recipe; its method stays in its own entry.
• •For the calmest service, complete the five-hour simmer and first straining a day ahead. Cool the broth promptly, chill it, and lift off the hardened fat. Refrigerate the tail sections separately under a little broth, then clarify and finish the soup on the day it is served.
• •The clarified broth and tail sections may be refrigerated separately for up to three days. Cool both within two hours, then reheat the broth gently and warm the tail sections without boiling so they remain intact.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 240g)