Basic Consomme

[jackal10]

Basic Consomme

For every 1 quart (1500 ml) of stock (chicken or brown (beef) stock), you will need 6 oz (200 gm) of boneless and skinless chicken breast and one or two egg whites. (Fat is the enemy of clear consommé, so ensure the stock is well skimmed.)

Trim the chicken breast of any fat or sinew and place it, along with one egg white in a blender. Blend until smooth. A stick blender will also work well, especially when making a large quantity.

Add the stock and blend again.

Put into a saucepan on low heat and simmer gently

After a while the proteins in the chicken and the egg white will start to coagulate, forming a raft, and trapping the remaining fat and the impurities

Leave it to simmer slowly for an hour.

If it looks like it is drying out on top, carefully reach under the raft with a spoon and splash a bit of the liquid up and over it. Do not be tempted to stir – you don’t want to break up the raft.

The slow bubbling will cycle the fluid though the raft, which will act as a natural filter.

After an hour, carefully decant the liquid. Filter it through a sieve lined with a coffee filter or with a double layer of kitchen (paper) towel. Try not to break up the raft too much. However the raft is like a big sponge, so it may need to drain a bit.

Check the seasoning. It will need salt, and maybe a splash of Madeira or sherry. It may also need diluting. Don’t make it too strong, - it’s a soup not a sauce.

Keywords: Soup, eGCI

( RG622 )