Consommé and Clarification with Egg
Whites One of the most remarkable soups is
consommé, an intensely flavored, amber-
colored, clear liquid with a distinct but
delicate body. (The name comes from the
French for “to consume,” “to use up,” and
referred to the medieval practice of cooking
the meat broth down until it reached the right
consistency.) It is made by preparing a basic
stock mainly from meat, not flavor-poor
bones or skin, and then clarifying it while
simultaneously extracting a second batch of
meat and vegetables. It’s a kind of double
stock made expressly for soup; as much as a
pound/0.5 kg of meat may go into producing
one serving.
The clarification of consommé is
accomplished by stirring finely chopped meat
and vegetables into the cold stock along with
several lightly whisked egg whites. The
mixture is then brought slowly to the simmer,
and kept there for around an hour. As the
barry
(Barry)
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