Read Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery Course Online
Authors: Gordon Ramsay
Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery Course (34 page)
A classic vinaigrette is made with 3–4 parts olive oil to 1 part white wine vinegar, but that is only the starting point. You can change the oil – sesame, hazelnut, rapeseed; change the vinegar – red wine, balsamic, sherry, lemon juice; change the flavourings – shallots, red pepper, mustard, honey, lemongrass, garlic. There really is no end. Sometimes I find using all olive oil too heavy. It becomes cloying and almost sticks to the roof of your mouth. When you have some beautiful young salad leaves the last thing you want to do is kill them with a heavy vinaigrette, so I usually substitute a third of the olive oil with some sunflower or groundnut oil to let it down a bit. I’ll even sometimes add 2 or 3 tablespoons of iced water, which is a really nice way of lightening the vinaigrette still further and means a salad will stay fresh longer.
HOLLANDAISE SAUCE
Hollandaise is best known for that breakfast classic of Eggs Benedict, but is also great with cold trout or salmon, and steamed vegetables. Like vinaigrette, you can steer it in plenty of different directions by adding different citrus flavours – grapefruit or lemon, for example – or different herbs (see the recipe for Asparagus with Lemon and Tarragon Hollandaise,
see here
). With mint it makes a particularly good accompaniment to barbecued lamb.
For a traditional hollandaise, you whisk egg yolks with a splash of water and white wine vinegar in a bowl set over a pan of boiling water. Once it is pale and creamy and forms ribbons, you remove it from the heat and whisk in large quantities of clarified butter (where the milk solids and fat have been separated by gentle heating). The key is to keep the sauce warm until you serve it as once it cools, it will solidify and is very difficult to make creamy again.
In truth, very few chefs still make hollandaise in this way, but use olive oil instead of butter to make a kind of cooked mayonnaise. This results in a much more practical and stable sauce and it’s also less cloying. I like to let it down further with lemon juice or water at the end.
CUSTARD
Making a proper egg custard is one of the things that really marks out a competent home cook. It’s worth perfecting as it is the base for so many things, from ice-cream to crème patissière, and the difference between home-made and instant is like night and day. Making your own also allows you to flavour it as you want by infusing the milk with mint, lemongrass, basil, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, cinnamon, star anise… you name it. (Also see the recipe for Lemongrass Custard Cups
here
.)
There are three golden rules here. First, when you bring your milk and cream to the boil, make sure you take it off the heat the moment it starts to bubble. Even another 30 seconds will completely change the consistency and stop the custard thickening. Second, don’t add the sugar to the egg yolks until the last second before you are ready to whisk in the milk, otherwise the sugar will dissolve into the egg and lose the strength that you need to make the custard thicken as you heat it.
The third, and most important, rule is not to allow the egg mixture to boil. If it does, you’ll end up with a pan of sweet scrambled eggs. Most cookbooks will advise you to thicken your custard in a bain-marie, a bowl set over a pan of boiling water. The idea is that the indirect heat makes it less likely to boil. The trouble is, you’ll be there for 20 minutes waiting for it to thicken, and can easily get distracted at the key moment. I think the quicker you cook it, the safer it is. That means in a saucepan over direct heat, stirring constantly and making sure you really get into the corners of the pan to keep all the custard moving and avoiding any hotspots. If you keep it moving, it will always thicken before it overheats, so provided you take it off the heat as soon as it starts to coat the back of your spoon and you immediately decant the custard through a sieve into another bowl standing by, you’ll have a perfectly smooth, thickened custard.
BASIC SKILLS
Macaroni and cauliflower bake with three cheeses
Roasted red onion vinaigrette with green bean salad
Fritto misto with garlic and saffron mayonnaise
ST CLEMENT’S
SOUFFLÉS
SERVES 4
Soufflés have a reputation for being difficult to pull off, but they really aren’t so long as you fold the egg whites carefully into the base so they retain their air, and you have your oven at the right temperature. My other trick is to apply a double layer of softened butter to the ramekins in upward strokes to help them rise evenly. If you get the soufflé mixture to the right consistency, it will hold in the fridge for up to 1 ½ hours, so you can make it in advance and cook it just when you need to.
150ml milk
100ml double cream
100g caster sugar
3 large egg yolks
15g plain flour
10g cornflour
40g unsalted softened butter, for brushing
40g plain chocolate, finely grated
4 large egg whites
Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
Zest and juice of 1 orange
Icing sugar, for dusting
1
. Begin by making the soufflé base. Pour the milk and cream into a pan. Bring to scalding point (just below boiling), then remove from the heat. Place half the sugar in a bowl, add the egg yolks and whisk until pale and thick. Sift in the flours and whisk again. Gradually add the scalded milk, whisking as you go.
2
. Pour the mixture back into the pan and place over a low heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon for about 5 minutes until it thickens to a smooth, velvety consistency. Leave to cool to room temperature.
3
. Brush four 250ml soufflé moulds or ramekins with the softened butter, applied in upward vertical strokes. If your moulds have a rim, make sure the butter covers this as well. Chill for a few minutes, then repeat with a second layer of butter. Sprinkle some of the grated chocolate into each mould, shaking it around to cover the inside completely. Tip out any excess and chill the moulds until needed.
4
. Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6.
5
. Put the egg whites in a bowl and whisk until they hold stiff peaks. Add a few drops of lemon juice to stabilise and whisk again. Gradually add the remaining sugar, a spoonful at a time, whisking constantly until you have a very thick and glossy mixture.
6
. Whisk the lemon and orange zest into the soufflé base. Mix the lemon and orange juice together, measure out 120ml, then whisk it in as well. Whisk a third of the egg white mixture into the soufflé base to loosen it. Carefully fold in the rest of the egg whites with a large metal spoon until evenly distributed. Fill each mould to the top and tap each one once on the work surface to get rid of any air bubbles.
7
. Smooth the surface with a small palette knife. Run the tip of your finger around the inside edge of the moulds to separate the mixture from the dish, then place on a baking sheet. Bake in the middle of the oven for 15–20 minutes or until risen with a slight wobble in the middle. Dust with icing sugar and serve straight away.
NOODLE SOUP
WITH POACHED EGG
SERVES 2
In Asia they often finish off noodle or rice dishes with eggs, be they cooked in a wok or, as here, in a broth. This a great dish for practising your egg poaching skills (
see here
) as it doesn’t matter if they break into strands.
2 tbsp light/white miso paste, to taste
2cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
3 dried shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated then sliced
Soy sauce, to taste
100g Portobello mushrooms
200g fresh noodles, e.g. udon
75g baby spinach leaves
2 eggs
2 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped, to garnish
1
. Pour 750ml water into a saucepan and bring to a simmer over a medium heat. Add the miso paste, ginger, sliced shiitake mushrooms and a dash of soy sauce and simmer gently for 5 minutes to flavour.
2
. Finely slice the Portobello mushrooms. Divide them equally, along with the noodles and spinach, between 2 warm serving bowls. Pour over a ladleful of stock to wilt the spinach, and keep warm.
3
. Break the eggs into individual ramekins or mugs and drop one at a time into the gently simmering stock. Poach for 2–3 minutes (it doesn’t matter if they break up slightly).
4
. Spoon the eggs into the serving bowls with a slotted spoon and pour the stock around them, dividing the shiitake mushrooms equally between the bowls.
5
. Serve garnished with spring onions and with extra soy on the side to flavour as necessary.
MACARONI AND
CAULIFLOWER BAKE WITH
THREE CHEESES
SERVES 4
This is my twist on the classic American ‘mac ‘n’ cheese’, using a trio of English cheeses. Mature Cheddar adds a tangy depth of flavour to the base, while the crumbly Lancashire and Cheshire cheeses melt into a smooth and creamy sauce (a good opportunity to practise your roux technique,
see here
).
300g cauliflower florets
300g dried macaroni
60g butter, plus a few extra knobs
4 tbsp plain flour
2 tsp English mustard powder
600ml whole milk
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Sea salt, to taste
100g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
100g Lancashire cheese, crumbled
100g Cheshire cheese, crumbled
3 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
1 tbsp thyme leaves
1
. Bring a large pan of well-salted water to the boil. Add the cauliflower and cook for 4–5 minutes until tender. Remove with a slotted spoon and refresh in a bowl of ice-cold water to prevent it from cooking any further. Drain well.
2
. Tip the macaroni into the boiling salted water and cook until al dente, according to packet instructions. Drain, refresh under cold, running water and drain again. Mix the macaroni, cauliflower and a few knobs of butter together in a large bowl.
3
. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6. Heat the 60g butter in a pan, and stir in the flour and mustard powder to make a roux. Gradually add the milk, beating continuously with a balloon whisk until the mixture is smooth. Slowly bring to the boil over a low heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture thickens. Season well with cayenne pepper and sea salt to taste.
4
. Mix the three cheeses together and stir half into the white sauce. Mix well until the cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth again. Add the macaroni and cauliflower to the sauce and mix well to coat. Spread the mixture into a large, wide gratin dish.
5
. Combine the remaining cheeses with the breadcrumbs and thyme leaves. Sprinkle over the top of the macaroni and cauliflower mixture. Bake for about 15–20 minutes until the topping is golden and crisp. Serve immediately.
PRAWN AND
FETA OMELETTE
SERVES 2
When you fill an omelette with so many good things, it makes no sense to fold it and hide them away. Just finish it off under the grill and slip it from pan to plate.
Olive oil, for frying
1 ripe tomato, diced
1 spring onion, trimmed and chopped
8 cooked king prawns, peeled and deveined (
see here
)
Pinch of dried chilli flakes, to taste
4 eggs, beaten
1 tsp chopped fresh oregano or pinch of dried oregano
50g feta cheese, crumbled
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1
. Preheat the grill to medium.
2
. In a small frying pan, heat a dash of oil and add the tomato and spring onion. Season and cook over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes or until the tomatoes are starting to break down. Add the prawns and chilli flakes, mix well to coat in the tomatoes and cook for 1 minute to warm through.