Gravy "foam"

[Martin Baadsgaard]

I am playing around with 1-upping a danish classic called "tarteletter", which is basically a flaky pastry shell filled with roux-thickened chicken "gravy" (fat skimmed off), chunks of chicken and white asparagus.

 

I am making the shell by hand, cooking chicken pieces by sous vide etc. but one thing I personally am not too keen of is the gravy "texture".

 

So I was thinking of a way to maybe aerate it.

Doesn't have to be all modernist-siphon-foam-like, just lightened.

 

I thought about stabilizing cream with xanthan gum,

enriching it with a bit of the chicken fat,

whipping it,

thicken the gelatin-rich stock with a bit of corn starch.

Fold it together while hot with chunks of chicken and asparagus.

 

These projects are several days long and can't happen so often, so before I just leap into it and make some dumb mistake, I am just looking for feedback on my intended method or suggestions on how else to go about it.

 

Thanks!

Edited January 20, 2015 by Martin Baadsgaard (log)

[pbear]

Frankly, I'd recommend an old school solution instead: thicken the sauce with beaten egg (basically, a savory creme anglaise).  Lovely texture that I think would be perfect here.  Some like to do egg custards sous vide, but I prefer a bain marie.  Notably, once ready, the sauce can be used to warm the chicken and asparagus.

[Martin Baadsgaard]

So you're suggesting beating whole eggs, yolks or whites?

I like your idea, but afaik, whole eggs or yolks would need sugar to "ribbon"..

 

Maybe I'm misunderstnading you here?

[Baron d'Apcher]

^Temper the eggs, as you would for a custard.

 

Alternatively, you could thicken the gravy by cooking it with rice (5% by weight of the gravy), onions and butter -rather than a roux- and puréeing it smooth.  The cooked rice will give the gravy a silky consistency.  "Aerated" gravy is not really gravy.

[Martin Baadsgaard]

Actually thinking about it it isn't even gravy. It's veloute

It sounds like an interesting technique with the rice, but not quite the thing I'm looking for. I'll remember it though, thanks

[pbear]

I generally use whole eggs, but feel free to experiment with the other two.  Frappe eggs with liquid using an immersion blender.  (I find this eliminates the need to strain the sauce later.)  For liquid, you could use stock, milk, cream and/or sour cream.  Here, I'd use whatever the traditional recipe calls for, reducing slightly to account for liquid added by the eggs.  Add seasonings.  Cook over a bain marie, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 175ºF/80ºC.  How thick the sauce gets will depend on the proportion of egg to liquid; one for each 200 ml would be a good place to start.  If the sauce curdles, smooth out with an immersion blender.  Add chicken and asparagus; warm through without exceeding temp at which chicken was cooked.

 

Hope that helps.  It's a neat little trick, worth learning even if you end up not using it in this application.

Edited January 21, 2015 by pbear (log)

[Martin Baadsgaard]

pbear and Baron d'Apcher, thanks for the suggestions, I learned a few things I will be playing around with.

I ended up trying thickening with egg, but otherwise trying my own method. Folded in chicken and asparagus, and at 64C I folded in whipped cream.

Gave a nice airy fatty mouthfeel, though still a little too thin.

[nickrey]

Try lecithin. Add a small amount to the gravy (check on the Internet for quantities) and then hit it with a stick blender. Voila, instant gravy foam.