Special Consommés for Suppers

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •8-quart heavy stainless-steel stockpot
• •Flat-ended wooden spoon
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Fine-mesh sieve or chinois
• •Cheesecloth
• •Deep ladle
• •Eight handled consommé cups

Instructions

1. 1

   Choose the perfume

   Choose exactly one variation. Use the chopped celery for Consommé au Céleri, the mild curry powder for Consommé à l’Indienne, or the chopped roast partridge carcass and scraps for Consommé au Fumet de Perdreau. The quantity should look modest because subtlety is the point; combining the perfumes would blur the consommé rather than enrich it.

   Taste the cold stock before proceeding. It should be savory, rounded, and lightly gelatinous from the refrigerator. Clarification removes particles and some flavor along with them, so begin with stock slightly stronger than the consommé you hope to serve.
2. 2

   Build the clarification

   Loosen 5 egg whites with a whisk without beating them into foam. In an 8-quart heavy pot, combine them thoroughly with the minced beef, carrot, leek, onion, tomato, bouquet garni, peppercorns, salt, and your chosen perfume. Work the mixture with a spoon or clean hand until the meat is evenly broken apart, then add the very cold stock gradually while stirring. Keep the sixth egg white refrigerated for rescue.

3. 3

   Raise the raft

   Set the pot over medium-low heat and stir continuously with a flat-ended spoon, scraping the floor so no egg or meat catches. Take 20 to 30 minutes to bring it toward a simmer. When the liquid reaches about 122 to 131°F (50 to 55°C) and grey curds begin gathering across the surface, stop stirring completely. Let the proteins join into a raft, then open a 2-inch hole at one side with the ladle. If a strong bubble tears a small opening, pull the pot from the heat at once and lower the burner; the raft usually closes as the boil subsides. If it breaks apart broadly, do not discard the broth. Strain it, chill it fully, and reclarify with the reserved white as directed below. Ça se rattrape.

4. 4

   Clarify at a tremble

   Return the pot to the lowest heat and keep the liquid beneath the raft at 185 to 194°F (85 to 90°C), with only an occasional bubble passing through the opening. Simmer for 45 to 60 minutes. Every 10 minutes, draw a ladleful of clear broth through the opening and pour it gently over the raft; this washes flavor through the filter without breaking it. Never let the pot boil and never stir again. The finished liquid visible through the opening should be a deep, transparent amber.

5. 5

   Strain without pressure

   Rinse a double layer of cheesecloth in hot water, wring it well, and use it to line a fine sieve over a clean pot. Ladle the consommé slowly from the opening in the raft, stopping before the sediment at the bottom reaches the ladle. Let gravity do the work. Do not pour the whole pot or press the solids, because pressure drives fine particles back into the broth. If the consommé is cloudy after a broken raft, chill it completely, whisk the reserved egg white with 1 cup (240 ml) of the cold broth, combine it with the remainder, and repeat the slow heating and straining, simmering the new raft for 20 minutes.

6. 6

   Tune the consommé

   Lay a strip of clean paper towel briefly across the surface to lift any last beads of fat, then taste. The consommé should taste first of concentrated stock and only afterward of celery, curry, or partridge. If the perfume announces itself too loudly, dilute it with boiling water, ¼ cup (60 ml) at a time, tasting after each addition. Correct the salt only after this adjustment. For cold service, season a shade more brightly because chilling softens both aroma and salt.

7. 7

   Serve it hot

   For hot service, warm the consommé gently to about 180°F (82°C) without boiling it. Heat the handled cups with hot water, dry them, and fill each with 6 to 8 fluid ounces (180 to 240 ml). Serve the consommé absolutely clear and without garnish. That bare cup is not unfinished; it is the finished idea. À table!

8. 8

   Set it cold

   For cold service, chill 2 tablespoons of consommé in a small cup over ice for 10 minutes. It should hold a trembling line when tipped but collapse immediately against the tongue. If it remains fully liquid, bloom 1 teaspoon (3 g) gelatin when the stock almost sets, or the full 2¼ teaspoons (7 g) when it does not set at all, in the cold water for 5 minutes. Dissolve it in 1 cup (240 ml) of hot consommé, stir this gently into the batch, and test again. If the sample becomes rubbery, loosen the batch with boiling water, ¼ cup (60 ml) at a time. Pour into cups, cover, and chill for at least 4 hours. Set them out for 5 to 10 minutes before serving so the jelly softens enough to drink and melts at once in the mouth.

Chef Tips

• •A stock that chills to a tender gel is the proper foundation. If it pours like water from the refrigerator, plan to correct the cold version with a little gelatin; if it bounces when pressed, dilute it before clarification. The target is a tremble, not a rubber mold.
• •The extra lean meat in the raft is deliberate. Supper consommé has no garnish contributing flavor in the cup, so the source formula calls for a slightly heavier clarification than an ordinary dinner consommé.
• •For Consommé à l’Indienne, use a mild, rounded curry powder and measure it. Heat and pungency are not the objective. The spice should sharpen the stock quietly, not turn the cup into curry broth.
• •For Consommé au Fumet de Perdreau, use a well-roasted carcass with browned joints and any clinging meat. The roast character gives the fumet its depth. If partridge is unavailable, make the celery variation rather than disguising another bird under the partridge name.
• •Cool leftover consommé promptly in a shallow container set over ice, then refrigerate it. It keeps for up to 3 days and may be reheated gently without harming its clarity.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare and chill the stock up to 2 days ahead so its fat can be removed completely. A cold foundation is essential because the egg whites and meat must disperse before their proteins begin to set.
• •The consommé can be clarified up to 2 days before the supper. Keep it covered and cold, then warm it gently for hot service without allowing it to boil.
• •For cold service, pour the corrected consommé directly into its cups the day before. Cover the cups so the surface remains pristine, and take them from the refrigerator 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 240g)