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Luxurious soups start with a velvety velouté base
• by By Julia M. Usher • Photo by Steve Adams Studio, food styling by Julia M. Usher
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Just in case the point of my last column wasn’t clear, I’ll say it again: Homemade chicken stock is akin to liquid gold. This doesn’t mean you should keep your reserves under lock and key, only doling them out on special occasions or when good company happens to be in town. In fact, now is the perfect time to share your wealth. With the days routinely nippy and the nights downright cold, there’s ample reason to turn stock into warm and satisfying soups and stews.
While you may be most familiar with tomato and chicken noodle, there is a plethora of soups from which to choose. Generally speaking, soups are categorized by their type of thickener. A bisque, strictly defined, gets its body from the addition of heavy cream or puréed shellfish; a panade from bread crumbs or cubes; and a velouté – the subject of this month’s column – from roux, a 1-to-1 mixture of flour and butter.
When nouvelle cuisine entered the culinary scene in the late ’70s boasting “light” and “delicate” fare, classic French sauces and soups, like velouté, suffered a big hit in popularity. Velouté has hardly redeemed itself among the general public given recent trends favoring Mediterranean and other ethnic cuisines. But I don’t care – I’ve remained a steadfast loyalist over the years.
My fidelity is partly explained by the fact that velouté is composed of nothing more than roux and white stock (a pale stock made from un-roasted chicken or veal or fish bones). As such, it requires only a few inexpensive ingredients that I’m fairly certain to find in my pantry. The bigger draw, though, is its texture. Literally “velvet sauce” in French, velouté has a thick, creamy consistency that is beyond compare – and directly attributable to roux.
Most French cookbooks recommend 1 tablespoon of flour and an equal amount of butter for every cup of stock; however, I prefer a ”creamier” soup base and often increase the roux to 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour and butter for the same amount of stock. Granted, neither formulation is a low-fat proposition, but both are worth the splurge if enjoyed in moderation.
Along with the roux-to-stock ratio, there are a few other things to remember when making this flour-based soup. A classic velouté calls not only for white stock, but also for white roux – a roux that has been cooked a few minutes until it is the color of straw. Even though the cooking time is brief, it shouldn’t be shortchanged, or the flour will impart a starchy, bitter taste to the soup.
Preparing roux is also a task where slow and steady wins the race. Always cook roux over medium heat while stirring regularly. If you apply too much heat, the cellulose surrounding the flour can harden and form a seal that prevents the flour from absorbing stock. When this occurs, the soup may thicken very little or not at all, regardless of the amount of stock you add.
After the stock has been incorporated into the roux, the mixture must boil to reach its full thickness; then you should immediately turn the heat to low. Excessive heat at this stage can also cause problems, although of a slightly different sort. Instead of forming a seal, the flour can hydrolyze, or break apart into simpler starches and sugars while releasing any moisture it had absorbed. While the effect on the flour is different, the result is the same: thin, runny soup.
A final reason for my enthusiasm: Velouté is infinitely and easily adaptable. One way to alter its flavor profile – and to some extent its texture – is to replace a portion of the stock with another liquid. For instance, wine can lend acidity to heighten soup flavor or balance sweetness from other ingredients; milk or heavy cream will further enrich and thicken the blend; and some juices, such as the cider in my Tarragon-Chicken Stew With Apples, Onions and Mushrooms, can be used to complement another key ingredient.
The true texture and flavor gems, however, are the mix-ins that add layers of interest to the sumptuous base. To be on the safe side, separately cook any vegetables, meat or fish before adding them, fully drained, to the soup. Precooking mix-ins, as opposed to cooking them directly in the base, gives you more control over the texture of each component. It also prevents any additional moisture – exuded by these items as they cook – from upsetting the velvety consistency perfected in earlier steps.
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Cheddar, Corn and Bacon Chowder
Yield: 7 to 8 cups
3/4 cup finely chopped celery
3/4 cup peeled and finely chopped carrots
3/4 cup chopped scallions
3 ears fresh corn, shucked
1 lb. Yukon Gold or other all-purpose boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 oz. bacon (about 5 pieces), cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter
3/4 cup peeled and finely chopped yellow onion
6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
2 cups milk, warmed
2 1/4 to 2 3/4 cups chicken stock, warmed
1/2 lb. extra sharp Cheddar cheese, finely grated
1 tsp. ground mustard
Salt, cayenne pepper and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Additional grated Cheddar cheese and chopped scallions for garnish (optional)
• Fill a medium saucepan with 3 cups lightly salted water. Bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and add the celery, carrots and scallions. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and reserve the vegetables.
• Fill a large (6- to 7-quart) stockpot with 4 quarts lightly salted water. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the corn ears and blanch them 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the corn from the water and set it aside to cool.
• While the corn is cooling, bring the water back to a boil, as needed, and add the potatoes. Cook them over medium heat until they are tender, but not mushy, about 7 to 8 minutes. Drain and reserve the potatoes.
• Once the corn has cooled enough to handle comfortably, slice the kernels off with a sharp knife; you should have about 1 1/2 cups.
• Clean the stockpot and place it over medium heat. Add the bacon. When the bacon has rendered a few tablespoons of fat, increase the heat to medium-high and cook the bacon until crispy, stirring as needed to prevent sticking. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Pour off all of the fat.
• Add the butter and return the pan to medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the onion and cook until softened but not browned, about 7 to 10 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and blend in the flour to create a roux. Return the pan to medium heat and cook the roux for 2 to 3 minutes, whisking regularly. Gradually add the milk and stock, whisking constantly to prevent lumps and possible scorching. Stop adding the stock when the soup has reached your ideal consistency.
• Bring the mixture to a boil and allow it to boil just a few minutes, until slightly thickened. Immediately reduce the heat to low and add the cheese, bacon and reserved potatoes and vegetables. Stir gently to combine. Continue to cook, without boiling, until the cheese has melted.
• Add the mustard and season to taste with salt, cayenne pepper and black pepper. Serve immediately with a sprinkling of grated Cheddar and/or chopped scallions.
Tarragon-Chicken Stew with Apples, Onions and Mushrooms
Strictly speaking, this recipe is not a stew since the meat does not actually cook in the broth. However, its robust consistency will give you every reason to believe it is the real McCoy.
Yield: About 8 cups
6 cups chicken stock
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
6 to 8 stems fresh tarragon
2 bay leaves, torn
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
1 1/2 lb. skinned boneless chicken breasts (about 4 breasts)
10 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
1 cup fresh cider, warmed and divided
10 oz. cored Granny Smith apples (about 2 apples), diced into 1/3-inch cubes (about 2 1/2 cups)
2 cups thinly sliced leeks, washed well
4 cups trimmed and quartered small white button mushrooms
6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Calvados apple brandy
1/4 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh tarragon leaves
• Combine the chicken stock, celery, tarragon, bay leaves, garlic and peppercorns in a large (6- to 7-quart) stockpot. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and let the broth simmer 5 to 10 minutes to give the flavors a chance to meld.
• Lightly salt the chicken breasts and add them to the simmering broth, taking care to fully submerge them in the liquid. Cook the breasts, uncovered, turning them occasionally to make sure they cook evenly.
• After about 10 minutes, start checking the chicken for doneness by sticking a knife into the thickest part of each breast. If there is any sign of pinkness, allow the breast to continue cooking. (Total cooking time can vary considerably depending on the size and thickness of the breast.) Once the breasts are cooked through, remove them from the stock and set aside. Strain the vegetables and herbs out of the stock and reserve 2 cups of the liquid. Clean out the pot.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the pot over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup cider and bring to a simmer. Add the apples and cook until they are tender but not mushy, no longer than 5 minutes. Stir regularly to ensure even cooking. Transfer the apples and any liquid to a small bowl and set aside.
• Add another 2 tablespoons butter and melt over medium to medium-high heat. Add the leeks and sauté them about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to cook, stirring regularly, until the mushrooms have exuded all of their moisture, about 8 to 10 more minutes. Meanwhile, chop the reserved chicken into bite-size pieces. Combine the cooked leeks and mushrooms with the reserved apples and clean out the pot again.
• Add the remaining 6 tablespoons butter and melt over medium heat. Remove the pan from the heat and add the flour to create a roux. Return the pan to medium heat and cook the roux for 2 to 3 minutes, whisking regularly. Gradually add the reserved 2 cups stock, the remaining 1/2 cup cider and the Calvados, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Bring the mixture to a boil and allow it to boil just a few minutes, until thickened. Immediately reduce the heat to low.
• Add the chicken pieces along with the cream and the apples, leeks and mushrooms. Stir gently to combine. Cook a few more minutes to heat through and allow the flavors to meld.
• Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Stir in the chopped tarragon and serve immediately as is, or over my favorite: a generous helping of garlic mashed potatoes.
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