Basic Professional French Cooking
On www.melaniff.com since 2016
Introduction to Basic Techniques
Session 3
1.Fonds - Stocks
Definition:
Stocks are aromatic liquids used to moisten various culinary preparations. They are made by a process of cooking bones, trimmings and vegetables in water until the liquid has absorbed their flavor. The resulting stocks are used to make the Mother, or basic, sauces, and in a multitude of dishes.
Auguste Escoffier said “Les fonds sont pour la cuisine, ce que les fondations sont pour la maison” (Stocks are to cooking what foundations are to a house).
Importance in Preparation:
The saucier responsible for making the restaurant’s sauces must carefully ensure the quality of all ingredients and balance the seasonings. The flavor of the stock will affect every sauce it dish it becomes part of, so it must be carefully, delicately seasoned. Stocks should be subtle, never overwhelming. They should not be salted during cooking, as the will undergo reductions for many dishes which would concentrate the salt too much.
A stock must slowly simmer, uncovered. It must never boil or it will become cloudy. To achieve the clearest stock possible, the surface should be carefully skimmed and defatted frequently during cooking. Do not stir up the bottom during cooking, as this may cloud the stock. At the end of the cooking, the stock should be carefully poured off and strained. A properly prepared finished stock will be limpid and clear.
2.Basic Stocks
A.Brown Stocks (Fond Bruns)
A stock is called brown when the principal elements have been browned in the oven or on a stove. This yields a darker colored stock with more intense flavor. Brown stocks can be made with veal bones (fond de veau brun or fond brun), beef bones (braisière), game bones (fond de gibier) or chicken bones (fond de volaille brun), plus carrots, onions, tomato, garlic and bouquet garni. The amount of vegetables in the mirepoix should be approximately 1/10 the weight of the bones, and they should be added to the roasting pan shortly before the bones are brown but don’t burn.
Bouquet garni - A sashay of herbs and spices in a cheese cloth in a stock.
Faggot - Two celery sticks filled with a bouquet garni.
B.White or Blond Stocks (Fonds Blancs)
A stock is white or blond when the principal elements have been blanched - place in cold water and brought quickly to a boil, then immediately drained to eliminate excess blood. Vegetables may be seated (sautéed with no coloration). White stocks can be made with veal bones (fond de veau blanc or fond blanc), chicken bones (fond de volatile), and fish bones (fumer de poisson), plus carrots, onions, leek, celery and a bouquet garni, (note: fish bones are not blanched before making a fumet)
3.Emulsified Sauces
An emulsion is the stable or permanent dispersal of microscopic droplets of two non-mixable liquids, such as oil and water, via an emulsifying agent.
Experiment:
-Beat oit and water together vigorously with a wire whisk or electric mixer. The two liquids will separate into microscopic droplets and mix together temporarily, but as soon as you stop beating they will immediately separate and resume their original layers. As emulsifying agent is required to obtain a stable, lasting mixture.
In the kitchen, the egg yolk is the most common emulsifying agent. Egg yolks have two properties:
Lipophilic - affinity to fats
Hydrophilic - affinity to water.
This enables them to bind together oil and water in a stable mixture. Generally one egg yolk is capable of binding up to 150 - 175 ml oil.
A.Warm Emulsified Sauces
Warm emulsified sauces involve whipping the egg yolks and flavoring elements over a hot water bath until they are thick and airy. This is referred to as a ‘sabayon’. Clarified butter is poured in in a steady stream and the sauce is stirred until smooth. Different flavorings can be added, either directly (as with the lemon juice is the Hollandaise) or in a reduction (as with the shallots and peppercorns in the Béarnaise).
Emulsified sauces are fairly delicate, and can break of curdle if not prepared of held properly.
Reasons for Failure
1.Sabayon (cooked egg yolk base)
-Insufficiently cooked
-Overcooked; heat too high
2.Clarified Butter
-Incorporated to quickly
-Liquid too hot
3.Sauce curdles
-Excess heat makes the butter separate from the yolks. 120 F / 65 C is the ideal temperature for making and holding emulsified sauces. They cannot go above the temperature without problems.
Restabilization Procedure
If the sauce breaks, it is often possible to reblend it (curdling is irreversible):
1.Beat a few drops of water into the turned sauces. Start working in the corner of the saucepan, using a small wire whisk, and gradually incorporate the entire sauce.
2.Add drops of cold water if the sauce turned because ir was too hot, or cool the bottom of the pan by dipping it into and ice-bath if it looks like it is about to turn.
3.Add drops of warm water if the sauce turned because it was too cold.
4.Make another sabayon and reincorporate the melted butter.
The two basic warm emulsified sauces are Hollandaise and Béarnaise. Both use the same technique, but Béarnaise involves a reduction in which aromatic elements (shallots, peppercorns and tarragon) are cooked down in white wine and wine vinegar until only a small amount of intensely flavored liquid remains. This is added to the sabayon and the solids are later strained out.
There are many variations on these two sauces:
Hollandaise - Egg yolks, water, clarified butter, lemon juice and cayenne pepper
Mousseline - 2/3 Hollandaise + 1/3 whipped cream
Warm asparagus and artichoke hearts, poach turbot, pigs’ feet
Moutarde - Hollandaise + Dijon mustard
Same use as mousseline
Maltaise - Hollandaise + orange juice, blanched orange zest
Fish mousses, poached turbot
Mikado - Hollandaise + mandarine orange juice, blanched mandarine zest
Corn, poached fish
Béarnaise - Reduction of white wine, vinegar, shallots, peppercorns and tarragon; egg yolks, clarified butter, salt, tarragon and chervil
Foyot or Valois - Béarnaise and meat glaze
Grilled fish
Choron - Béarnaise and tomato coulis
Grilled steaks
Paloise - Tarragon in Béarnaise replaced with fresh mint
Lamb brochettes, shrimp brochettes
Tyrolienne - Butter in Béarnaise replaced with cooking oil
Grilled meats
B.Cold Emulsified Sauces
Mayonnaise is a basic cold emulsified sauce. It involves combining egg yolks with mustard, vinegar or lemon juice, salt and white pepper, and then slowly whisking in oil until the sauce thickens. All ingredients should be at the same temperature to help the yolks absorb the oil.
Mayonnaise should be used right away or chilled rapidly, since the uncooked egg yolk can be easily contaminated.
Variations:
Verte - Mayonnaise + chlorophyl (natural green coloring extracted from herbs, spinach, etc.
Cold fish, shellfish, cold meats
Tartare - Mayonnaise + capers, minced cornichons, chervil, tarragon, parsley and scallion )chopped onion or hard cooked egg optional)
Fried fish, cold meats, cold poultry
Chantilly - 2/3 Mayonnaise + 1/3 whipped cream
Cold asparagus, cold artichokes
Andalouse - Mayonnaise + tomato coulis, diced peppers
Hard boiled eggs, vegetables
RECIPES