Consommé Sévigné

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6 to 8-quart heavy stockpot
• •Fine-mesh sieve and double-layer cheesecloth
• •Mini food processor
• •Fine drum sieve or sturdy fine-mesh sieve for the forcemeat
• •12-inch lidded skillet and parchment paper
• •Two measuring teaspoons
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •3-quart soup tureen

Instructions

1. 1

   Raise the clarification raft

   Reserve 2 teaspoons of the egg white for the quenelles. Combine the remaining egg whites, ground chicken, onion, carrot, celery, and 10 cups of the cold stock in a 6 to 8-quart heavy pot. Stir thoroughly while everything is cold, then set the pot over medium-low heat. Scrape the bottom continuously with a flat wooden spoon as the mixture warms, about 15 to 20 minutes, until the proteins gather into a thick raft at the surface. Stop stirring immediately. Open a small chimney through the centre of the raft and hold the liquid at 185 to 194°F (85 to 90°C) for 45 minutes, ladling a little broth through the chimney occasionally. It must tremble, never roll. If it boils and breaks the raft, lift the pot from the heat and leave it untouched for 10 minutes. Do not whisk the debris back into the broth; let it settle and strain gently through doubled damp cheesecloth. Ça se rattrape.

   The broth clarifies because the egg white and chicken proteins rise slowly and trap impurities. A hard boil tears that net apart, which is why heat control matters more than any number of filters.
2. 2

   Strain without pressing

   Line a fine sieve with two layers of cheesecloth rinsed in cold water and wrung out. Set it over a clean pot, then ladle the consommé through gradually, leaving the final muddy cup beneath the raft behind. Let gravity work and never press the solids, because pressing returns their cloudiness to the broth. Skim away any surface fat with the edge of a paper towel. You should have about 8 cups; if there is slightly more, simmer it gently in the clean pot until the measure is right. Season cautiously with salt and white pepper, then keep the consommé very warm below a simmer.

3. 3

   Braise the lettuces

   Lower the lettuce hearts into a wide pot of well-salted boiling water for 1 minute, then transfer them to cold water. Drain and press each heart gently between your palms to remove excess water without crushing its shape. Melt the butter in a wide lidded skillet, arrange the lettuces snugly in one layer, and add the reserved cup of chicken stock with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a small pinch of white pepper. Cover the surface with a round of parchment, put on the lid, and braise at a bare simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until the thickest ribs yield easily but the hearts remain intact. If a heart loosens, fold its leaves back around the core and finish it seam-side down. Keep the lettuces warm in a spoonful of their braising liquor.

4. 4

   Make the farce mousseline

   Chill the processor bowl and blade before beginning. Process the diced chicken breast with the reserved 2 teaspoons of egg white, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and a small pinch of white pepper until smooth and sticky. Press the paste through a fine sieve into a cold bowl; this brief sieve work gives the quenelles their delicate texture, so it is part of the dish, not discarded brigade ceremony. Beat in 3 tablespoons of the cold cream, one spoonful at a time, keeping the bowl over ice. Poach a teaspoonful in barely simmering water and taste it. If it is firm or rubbery, beat in the final tablespoon of cream. If it spreads or frays, add no more cream and chill the farce mousseline for 15 minutes before testing again.

   Cold keeps the chicken proteins firm enough to hold the cream. If the bowl loses its chill, stop and return it to the refrigerator; pushing ahead produces greasy, fragile quenelles.
5. 5

   Mould and poach

   Heat a wide pan of lightly salted water to 180 to 185°F (82 to 85°C). Dip two measuring teaspoons in the water, scoop up the farce mousseline with one, and pass it between the spoons to form a small oval. This is the home equivalent of the source's coffee-spoon moulding. Shape exactly 20 quenelles and poach them in batches for 4 to 5 minutes, turning once, until they feel lightly springy and reach 165°F (74°C) at the centre. The water must not boil. If the first quenelle frays, lower the heat and chill the mixture again; the first one is your test, not your verdict. Lift the quenelles onto a clean towel and cover loosely.

6. 6

   Ready the garniture

   Blanch fresh peas for 1 to 2 minutes, or frozen peas for 30 seconds, in the quenelle poaching water, then drain them. Lift the braised lettuce hearts from their liquor and cut them crosswise into small, tidy sections, trimming away any loose or ragged leaves. Handle them gently so the sections remain recognizable rather than dissolving into the broth.

7. 7

   Fill the tureen

   Warm a 3-quart soup tureen with hot water, then dry it. Arrange the 20 quenelles, the trimmed sections of braised lettuce, and the 2 tablespoons of peas in the tureen. Bring the clarified consommé to one clean boil, skim its surface if necessary, and pour it immediately over the garniture in the sequence given by the source. Scatter the chervil pluches over the broth and serve at once, while its surface still carries a fine shimmer. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Begin with stock that sets softly when cold. Gelatin gives the consommé body after clarification, while a thin boxed broth may become clear yet remain watery. If your stock lacks body, reduce it gently before measuring the 10 cups for the raft.
• •Use a pale chicken stock rather than a deeply roasted one. Consommé Sévigné should be amber-gold, not mahogany, and its delicate lettuce, peas, and chervil must remain audible in the bowl.
• •The test quenelle is part of the method. It tells you whether the farce mousseline needs more cream, more chilling, or another pinch of salt before twenty small mistakes reach the water.
• •Frozen petits pois are the honest choice outside their brief season. They are picked sweet and stay green; thawed, tired fresh peas contribute neither virtue.
• •Chervil pluches are the source's final seasoning, not a reflex sprinkle of parsley. Buy chervil close to the day of service, wrap it in a barely damp towel, and keep it cold.

Advance Preparation

• •Clarify the consommé up to 2 days ahead. Cool it promptly in shallow containers, cover, and refrigerate; lift off any set fat before reheating it gently.
• •The quenelles may be poached 1 day ahead and chilled in a covered container with a few spoonfuls of consommé to keep their surfaces supple.
• •Braise the lettuce hearts earlier on the day of service and refrigerate them in their braising liquor. Reheat them gently before cutting the sections.
• •Do not assemble the tureen in advance. The boiling consommé goes over the warm garniture only when everyone is ready to sit, or the quenelles swell and the peas lose their brightness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 250g)