Consommé à la Madrilène

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6-quart heavy stainless-steel stockpot or saucepan
• •Flat wooden spoon
• •Fine-mesh chinois or sieve
• •Clean muslin or flour-sack cloth
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Large bowl for an ice bath
• •Chilled consommé cups

Instructions

1. 1

   Chill the foundation

   Begin with the stock at refrigerator temperature and completely free of surface fat. Lift off any hardened fat, then pass the stock through a fine sieve and measure it only after any reduction or degreasing. Nine cups of stock take precisely 9 ounces of raw tomato and 2¼ ounces of capsicum, preserving the classical proportion of 4 ounces and 1 ounce respectively for every quart. The extra starting cup allows for the liquid held by the raft, leaving about 2 quarts for the table.

2. 2

   Build the clarification

   Loosen 4 egg whites with a fork until fluid but not foamy. Mix them thoroughly with the cold ground beef, tomato, and capsicum, then work in 1 cup of the measured stock to loosen the mixture. Put this clarification into a heavy 6-quart pot and stir in the remaining stock. Everything must be cold when it meets the heat, because the slowly tightening proteins need time to gather the particles that would otherwise cloud the consommé. It will look alarming. It is exactly right.

3. 3

   Raise the raft

   Set the pot over medium-low heat and stir steadily along the bottom with a flat wooden spoon so the clarification cannot catch. As the liquid approaches a simmer, the beef and egg white will rise into a solid raft. Stop stirring the instant that raft forms, open a small chimney through its center with the spoon handle, and lower the heat. Hold the liquid at a bare tremble, about 185 to 190°F (85 to 88°C), for 35 to 40 minutes. Let the broth circulate through the chimney, but never permit a hard boil. If the raft breaks apart, cut the heat and leave the pot untouched for 10 minutes. Ça se rattrape: strain gently, chill the cloudy broth completely, whisk the 2 reserved whites with 1 cup of it, return that mixture to the rest, and repeat the slow clarification.

   A rough-looking raft can still clarify beautifully. Hard boiling or stirring after it forms is the true warning.
4. 4

   Strain without pressure

   Take the pot off the heat and let it stand for 10 minutes. Line a fine sieve or chinois with clean muslin rinsed in cold water, then ladle the consommé through the chimney and into the cloth. When the liquid runs low, tip the pot very gently and stop before the raft or bottom sediment reaches the sieve. Never press the solids. Pressure squeezes every captured particle back into the broth and undoes the work.

5. 5

   Season and chill

   Taste the consommé while it is warm and add the salt gradually until the tomato, sweet capsicum, and beef taste distinct but balanced. Set the bowl in a larger bowl filled with equal parts ice and water, then stir gently every few minutes until the consommé falls below 70°F (21°C). Refrigerate until it reaches 40°F (4°C), cover, and continue chilling for at least 6 hours or overnight. Lift away any final speck of fat from the cold surface and taste again, because cold quiets seasoning; add a small pinch of salt if the broth has gone flat.

6. 6

   Serve bracingly cold

   Chill the consommé cups for 30 minutes. If the Madrilène remains liquid, pour it directly into the cold cups. If the stock's natural gelatin gives it a soft set, do not warm it; loosen it gently with a cold whisk into a clear, trembling gel and spoon it in. Serve immediately, without garnish, as cold as the kitchen allows. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Use a deeply flavored homemade or butcher-made beef stock, or a beef-and-veal stock if you have it. If the stock tastes thin, reduce it before measuring the 9 cups, then chill and degrease it completely; cold service exposes every weakness in the foundation.
• •Raw tomato means raw here. Canned tomatoes are excellent in many pots, but they have already been cooked and change the fresh fragrance this formula asks for. Choose ripe plum or cherry tomatoes when larger tomatoes are pale and woolly.
• •Capsicum here means sweet red bell pepper, not a hot chile. Weigh it after removing the stem, seeds, and white ribs, because the source's one-to-four ratio against tomato is deliberate.
• •Do not press the raft, however much liquid it seems to hold. That last spoonful costs more clarity than it gives in yield, and clarity is the point of the whole exercise.

Advance Preparation

• •Make or obtain the stock in advance, chill it thoroughly, and remove every trace of hardened fat before clarification. Prepared stock keeps for 3 days under refrigeration or may be frozen until needed.
• •The finished Madrilène is better made a day before the dinner. Keep it covered and very cold, then remove any final fat and correct the seasoning shortly before serving.
• •Chill the serving cups for at least 30 minutes. The consommé should go from refrigerator to cup to table without waiting.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 240g)