Homard à la Russe

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large stockpot with lid
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Wire rack set over a chilled tray
• •Pastry brush or small spoon for glazing
• •4 dariole-moulds or 120 ml straight-sided ramekins
• •2.5 cm plain or fluted round cutter
• •Oval chilled serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the cold station

   Chill two trays, a wire rack, and the serving platter. Liquefy the very clear fish aspic from Another Method of Preparing Aspics de Filets de Soles (No. 916) over a gentle water bath until it flows like light syrup, keeping it below 32°C. Pour 100 ml into a small flat dish to form a layer about 4 mm thick and refrigerate it for the roundels. Keep the remainder fluid over barely warm water. If it begins to set around the bowl, warm it for a few seconds and stir; never boil it.

   Set aside measured portions of aspic before starting: 60 ml for the chaud-froid, 45 ml for the salad, about 105 ml for the moulds, and the remainder for glazing.
2. 2

   Poach the lobster

   Put the water, wine, ¼ cup of the salt, onion, sliced carrot, and bouquet garni in a stockpot. Boil for 15 minutes to make a court-bouillon, an aromatic poaching liquor. Quiet the lobster in the freezer for 20 minutes, dispatch it swiftly through the head with a heavy knife, and lower it into the boiling liquor. Cover until the liquid returns to a simmer, then cook gently for 15 to 17 minutes, until the thickest part of the tail reaches 63°C and the meat is opaque. Drain for 10 minutes, chill briefly over ice without soaking it, then refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. 3

   Extract and portion meat

   Detach the tail and claws without crushing the carapace, because the shell returns to the platter. Cut through the thin underside of the tail shell and ease the meat out whole. Crack the claws carefully and remove their meat with the knuckles. Slice the tail crosswise into eight even medallions about 8 mm thick; dice the claw and knuckle meat into 6 mm pieces for the Salade Russe. Reserve cooked coral if present, discard the tomalley, and keep every portion cold and covered.

4. 4

   Build the chaud-froid

   Melt the butter over gentle heat, stir in the flour, and cook this white roux for 2 minutes without letting it colour. Whisk in the fish stock a little at a time, then simmer for 6 minutes until the velouté is smooth and coats the back of a spoon. Add the cream and reduce gently until pale ivory and full-bodied. Off the heat, whisk in 60 ml of fluid aspic, the lemon juice, white pepper, and a small pinch of the remaining salt. Pass the chaud-froid through a fine sieve, then stir it over ice until cool but still fluid. If it becomes lumpy or too firm, warm the bowl for a few seconds and whisk in a teaspoon of fish stock.

5. 5

   Glaze the tail slices

   Dry the chilled lobster medallions thoroughly and arrange them on the cold rack. Spoon over a thin coat of chaud-froid and refrigerate for 5 to 7 minutes, until firm. Repeat twice, building an even white covering without burying the shape of the lobster. Place a speck of sieved coral and two chervil leaves on each slice, then brush with a thin layer of fluid aspic. Chill and repeat the aspic coating two more times for a clear sheen. If a coat slips, the slice or sauce was too warm. Lift away the loose layer, chill both, and begin again thinly. Ça se rattrape.

6. 6

   Make the Salade Russe

   Cook the diced potatoes and carrot separately in salted water until tender but still sharply shaped, about 6 to 8 minutes. Blanch the green beans for 3 minutes and the peas for 1 minute. Drain every vegetable well, spread them on a towel-lined tray, and chill completely; trapped water loosens the mayonnaise and prevents the moulds from setting. Fold the vegetables with the cornichons, diced lobster, mayonnaise, and 45 ml of fluid aspic. Taste cold and correct the salt. The mixture should hold a mound from the spoon.

7. 7

   Clothe the dariole-moulds

   Set four dariole-moulds, small baba moulds or 120 ml straight-sided ramekins, over ice. Spoon a little aspic into each and rotate until the inside wears a thin, even coating, following the mould-clothing method in Another Method of Preparing Aspics de Filets de Soles (No. 916). Let it set, fix one truffle slice to the bottom with a drop of aspic, and add another thin coat. Pack in the Salade Russe without air pockets, level the tops, and seal each with a spoonful of aspic. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. For the source's optional alternate service, fill four prepared Barquettes (No. 314) shortly before serving instead of moulding the salad.

   The moulds are properly set when the salad no longer shifts as you tilt one. Give them more cold if they move; unmoulding cannot improve a loose centre.
8. 8

   Prepare eggs and aspic

   While the salads set, lower the eggs into simmering water and cook for 10 minutes. Chill, peel, and cut each horizontally one-third of its height above the rounded base. Trim the slightest sliver from the bottom so each cup stands upright, then remove the yolk carefully. Keep the egg cups covered and cold. Cut the set sheet of aspic into 2.5 cm roundels with a plain or fluted cutter and place a small piece of truffle on each. Fill the eggs with caviar in small pyramids no more than 30 minutes before serving.

9. 9

   Unmould and assemble

   Arrange the dry lettuce leaves as a low cushion on the chilled platter and reassemble the lobster shell on top. Graduate the glazed tail medallions from large to small along its back. Dip each dariole-mould in hot water for 2 seconds, dry the outside, and invert it beside the lobster; if one clings, give it one more second in the water rather than pulling at the salad. Alternate the four moulded salads with the four upright caviar eggs. Border the platter with the clear aspic roundels and their truffle pieces. Keep the platter cold until it goes to the table, then serve within 30 minutes. À table!

Chef Tips

• •The fish stock must be pale, clean, and unsalted. A dark roasted stock muddies the white chaud-froid, while a salty one becomes harsh as the velouté reduces.
• •Current shellfish safety guidance is the reason this version omits tomalley, the lobster's creamy digestive organ, even though the source passes it through the sauce. Cooking does not reliably remove contaminants concentrated there. The cooked coral is roe, and it may be used when present.
• •Coral cannot be promised when buying a lobster. If yours has none, leave the red decoration off rather than colouring the sauce; a chervil leaf beneath clear aspic is quite enough.
• •Use true sturgeon caviar in a modest quantity and add it at the last moment. Its salinity is part of the composition, not a decoration to be scattered across the entire platter.
• •Serve with dry Champagne or a mineral Chablis. The wine needs enough acidity for the mayonnaise and cream, but no heavy oak to flatten the cold lobster.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare the very clear fish aspic from Another Method of Preparing Aspics de Filets de Soles (No. 916) up to 2 days ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. Liquefy it gently when needed.
• •The lobster may be poached, extracted, and refrigerated up to 1 day ahead. Keep the sliced tail and diced claw meat in separate covered containers below 4°C.
• •The moulded Salade Russe and glazed lobster slices can be finished up to 6 hours before serving. Assemble the platter no more than 2 hours ahead, and fill the eggs with caviar during the final 30 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 490g)