Ideas for a cold, stock-based sauce or dressing

[Fat Guy]

So we're having this pot-luck dinner tomorrow night in New York. By the way it's not too late to come -- I'm making enough brisket to invite twenty additional people under the umbrella of my dish, so feel free to PM Suzanne F for directions. Truly, no need to bring anything.

Anyway . . . I'm making this seven-pound brisket, which didn't even fit in my largest casserole or roasting pan, so it's actually braising in two pieces as we speak. And it's doing so in a heavily concentrated, spoon-coating veal stock (really a demi-glace, almost) laced with sherry. Which means, when the brisket is done cooking, there will be all this stock-mixed-with-brisket-juices remaining, which I can strain, refrigerate overnight, defat, and do something with.

But what? The brisket will be served cold. The primary condiment will be a horseradish-cream (sour cream, that is) dressing. But as for the stock-sauce, I'm stumped. Were I serving it hot, I'd have a number of ideas for enriching the sauce with herbs or whatever. But something like that will be nasty if served cold. Forgive my ignorance of the classical repertoire, but are there any stock-based sauces or dressings that are intended for room-temperature service as dressings for cold meat?

[Suzanne F]

I generally ignore the classic repertoire, unless somebody asks a question about it.

But you could strain the juices and use them to make the whole thing into a brisket en gelée by adding a little gelatin (unflavored Ko-Jel, of course) to the re-warmed, defatted liquid, pouring it over the meat, and rechilling. Like my mother used to do, without the extra gelatin and without knowing she was making classic French dish, if you know what I mean. Or just reduce it a little, and we can heat it up for a temperature contrast of warm jus on cold meat.

Well, it's only a suggestion.

[Jason Perlow]

What about a fresh tomato juice-beef court boullion?

BTW if you like for tomorrow, I can bing you some of my fresh wasabi paste for the dressing... Its really good on beef mixed with mayo and a little bit of Maille mustard.

[Fat Guy]

What about a fresh tomato juice-beef court boullion?

WTF is that?

BTW if you like for tomorrow, I can bing you some of my fresh wasabi paste for the dressing... Its really good on beef mixed with mayo and a little bit of Maille mustard.

Sounds good. If you pre-mix it, you'll save trouble on the NY end.

[Fat Guy]

Or just reduce it a little, and we can heat it up for a temperature contrast of warm jus on cold meat.

Believe me, this stuff don't need no reducing. But you're right, I'll probably just bring a small container of it and we can serve it warm. Unless someone comes up with a better idea.

[Jason Perlow]

What about a fresh tomato juice-beef court boullion?

WTF is that?

BTW if you like for tomorrow, I can bing you some of my fresh wasabi paste for the dressing... Its really good on beef mixed with mayo and a little bit of Maille mustard.

Sounds good. If you pre-mix it, you'll save trouble on the NY end.

Well, I've seen clearish-type sauces made from strained tomato juice mixed with beef bouillon or clarified beef stock.

I just made you some dressing, about a half a pintfull, maybe a little bit more -- used a tube and a quarter of the RealWasabi.com stuff along with mayo and Maille mustard. Tastes yummolicious.

[jackal10]

Delicious on its own. Full of meaty Unami.

I guess it doesn't need any more gelatine, seasoning, soy, sherry, port etc. Clarify it. Let it set hard.

Cut it into cubes or lozenges. Serve with the brisket.

You could foam it.

You can make a sort of salad dressing emulsion, but that uses a more dilute stock. Stock, EVOO ( two of oil to one of stock), mustard plus what you want: honey, garlic, soy, seasoning, capers etc. Shake well

[Dave the Cook]

If you don't mind another mayo, I've got a suggestion based on a recipe in Cooking the Nouvelle Cuisine in America. Given that you've used sherry in the braising liquid, it might go nicely:

For approximately one cup:

1/4 C defatted veal-sherry reduction

1 T soy sauce

2 star anise, or 1/4 t five-spice powder

1 garlic clove, minced

1 T brown sugar

2 T rice wine vinegar

1 egg yolk

pinch salt

1 t prepared mustard

3/4 C neutral vegetable oil, plus 3 T sesame oil

dash pepper sauce

1. Combine the reduction, soy sauce, star anise, garlic, brown sugar, and vinegar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat and simmer for one minute. Remove from heat and allow to steep for another minute. Remove the star anise (if you're substituting five-spice powder, add it now). Set liquid aside.

2. Make a mayonnaise, starting with the egg yolk and salt to get an emulion going, then adding the mustard, then the combined oils in the usual manner. Add a few drops of the reserved liquid from time to time as you make the mayonnaise.

3. Whisk in the rest of reserved liquid and pepper sauce. Adjust seasonings.

4. Cover and refrigerate.

Note: I'm not sure about the mustard, taste-wise. I left it in because it's in the original recipe, but I'm pretty sure it's only there to help the emulsion, which, IMO, doesn't need it. So if the mustard seems a little weird to you, too, leave it out and make the mayo in a food processor, using a whole egg to start, as in the next recipe.

Edited July 12, 2003 by Dave the Cook (log)

[Dave the Cook]

Looky, here's another one.

This is based on Prudhomme's Beef Mayonnise in Louisiana Kitchen. I've modified it to 1) account for your braising liquid; 2) bring out the spices a little more.

Another Fat Guy's Beef Mayo

1/4 C defatted veal-sherry reduction (he specifies 2 C stock reduced to 1/4 C, so adjust accordingly)

2 T neutral oil

3 T finely minced onion

3 T finely minced celery

2 t minced garlic

1 bay leaf

1 t ground black pepper

1 t dry mustard

1/2 t cayenne

1/2 t chopped fresh thyme

1 t brown sugar

1 t salt

1 egg

2 C neutral oil

1. Heat 2 T oil over high heat until it shimmers. Saute the pepper, mustard and cayenne for about a minute, stirring constantly to prevent burning. (You do want the veggies to caramelize, though.)

2. Add the onions and celery and saute for another minute, then add the garlic, stirring, until the aroma blooms, about 20 seconds.

3. Reduce heat to medium low. Add the sugar and salt. Saute another two minutes.

4. Remove from heat and stir in the thyme. Allow to cool ten minutes, then remove the bay leaf.

5. Whiz the egg in a blender or food processor for about 30 seconds. Add the vegetable mixture and puree for about 15 seconds.

6. Add 2/3 of the oil in a steady stream, then add the stock in the same way. Finish with the rest of the oil; continue about 30 seconds after the oil is gone, scraping bowl down frequently.

Note: there's not much acid in this recipe, so either adjust the seasonings with white wine/rice vinegar or lemon juice; or keep it under refrigeration until it's time to serve it, and put it back in the refrigerator it as soon as you're done.

[Rachel Perlow]

You could foam it.

Cool! Do you have the equipment for this?

[Fat Guy]

I do, but I can assure everybody that a cold espuma of veal stock will taste just like cold veal stock.

[Jinmyo]

That would be pretty creepy.

[Jaymes]

I say take some vodka and the fixin's and turn it into a lively pre-meal libation...

Like a Bullshot, or add tomato juice and make a:

Sitting Bull

- 1 1/4 oz Vodka

- 2 oz V-8

- 2 oz Beef Broth

To Taste:

- Celery Salt

- Tobasco

- A-1 Steak Sauce

- Worchestershire Sauce

- Pepper (fresh ground)

Edited July 12, 2003 by Jaymes (log)

[Fat Guy]

The yolks are in the freezer . . .

[Dave the Cook]

Well, this will confuse the hell out of everybody, since I edited the recipe to eliminate the frozen yolks.

I'll put it back, because it's a great technique, and I'd like it to get it in the archive (assuming it tastes good, of course).

Which one are you making, FG? Or both?

[Fat Guy]

I'll start with the first one and see where it takes me . . .

[Dave the Cook]

See recipes above.

The emulsifying power in a single egg yolk in its raw state is substantial. But it can be further enhanced by freezing the yolk first. A cup of mayonnaise can be made easily with as little as 1/4 of a frozen yolk, though it will be on the thin side; this is not because you use less yolk, but because, regardless of the amount of yolk used, the quantities of water (or water-based liquid, such as lemon juice or vinegar) and oil do not change.

The repercussions from this are quite interesting, but perhaps better left for another thread, so I'll just put the basic quantities and technique here. If there's interest, I'll start another thread or find one to add it on to.

I'm going to use whole yolks here, because the mayo base for the recipes above needs to be thick to accomodate an added 1/4 to 1/3 cup liquid. This should result in a good body for the finished sauce. And the addded liquid, if it's thoroughly whisked in, will stabilize the sauce.

Using Frozen Yolks to Make Mayonnaise

adapted from The Curious Cook by Harold McGee

1. For each cup of mayonnaise, freeze one of the following combinations:

1 whole yolk for four hours

1 whole yolk whisked with 1T lemon juice (not vinegar) for eight hours

1 whole yolk whisked with 1T water for 24 hours

2. Have ready:

pinch salt

7/8 C oil, not more than 30% unrefined (e.g., EVOO) oil

1 - 2 T water or other water-based liquid, or a combination

3. Allow the yolk to thaw.

4. Put the yolk in a bowl and add salt. Beat lightly.

5. Add oil 1/4 t at a time. Once the emulsion thickens, you can add larger quantities. If the mayo gets really thick and looks like it's sweating oil, whisk in a few drops of water.

6. If, by the time you've incorporated all the oil, you still have more than a tablespoon of water left, whisk in enough additional water to make about 1-1/2 T total.

Note: use of more than 30% unrefined oil will result in an unstable mayo -- you'll have just a few hours before it breaks.

The second mayo recipe, above, calls for two cups of oil. A single frozen yolk will easily accomodate this, and make a good medium-weight mayonnaise.

[jackal10]

You could foam it.

Cool! Do you have the equipment for this?

Is that so bad?

Its just an alternative format of carrier, like the mayo.

You can add flavourings - port, mustard, bitter orange (think cumberland sauce) before foaming

[Fat Guy]

For approximately one cup:

1/4 C defatted veal-sherry reduction

1 T soy sauce

2 star anise, or 1/4 t five-spice powder

1 garlic clove, minced

1 T brown sugar

2 T rice wine vinegar

1 egg yolk

pinch salt

1 t prepared mustard

3/4 C neutral vegetable oil, plus 3 T sesame oil

dash pepper sauce

Note I made many times this quantity, but to convert it to Dave's more sensible (I made enough for 40 people, probably) proportions, here's how I implemented the concept:

1/4 C defatted veal-sherry reduction

1 T soy sauce

1 T crystalized ginger, ground [REPLACES: 2 star anise, or 1/4 t five-spice powder]

1 garlic clove, minced

[OMITTED: 1 T brown sugar]

2 T "white balsamic" vinegar [REPLACES: 2 T rice wine vinegar]

1 egg yolk

pinch salt

[ADD: 1/2 t fresh ground white pepper]

[OMITTED: 1 t prepared mustard]

3/4 C neutral vegetable oil, plus 3 T EVOO [REPLACES: plus 3 T sesame oil]

dash pepper sauce

Very good use of the product. Thanks, Dave.

[Dave the Cook]

My pleasure.

I'm glad it worked out -- but I think you should have left the brown sugar in, maybe in a reduced amount, given that you subbed the sesame oil. Brown sugar has a great way of supporting other brown ingredients -- soya, sesame oil, beef, for example -- without contributing overt sweetness. Just my observation.

Let me guess: your pantry is bereft of Asian ingedients because in New York you can get decent Chinese food just by dialing a phone?

[Fat Guy]

No I have all that stuff. I was just thinking about what it was to accompany, and I thought I'd rather have a more savory dressing for cold brisket. Had I been serving it with pork, or even with warm brisket, I'd have been more inclined to keep it a little sweeter and more Asian.

[Dave the Cook]

OK, going from that direction, I can follow your modifications more easily, and see how you changed the character of the sauce.

But . . . then I might have left the mustard in.

[Fat Guy]

I probably should have. Tasting the finished product, it definitely could have handled a shot of mustard. But I had been hesitant to include it at the beginning, and I wasn't sure it would incorporate properly if added at the end.

[Dave the Cook]

Just for the record, you could have stirred in just about anything in reasonable quantity and it would have been fine. You could even have whisked in some melted beef fat. Mayonnaise is very stable.

[Fat Guy]

Good to know.