Classic Soufflé 舒芙蕾

Bonjour~ What are we experimenting today? Soufflé? Sounds intimidating, isn’t it? Even the most experienced chef can break out in a sweat when making the soufflé. The main elements for making a soufflé is pretty basic, egg whites and egg yolks. Making a soufflé requires the right amount of whipping and folding of egg whites to work. If we can whip up the egg whites(usually called meringue) beautifully, we will make soufflé as good as the french chef. It definitely take some practice, but Believe in yourself!

Soufflé comes from the word souffler, a french verb means to blow up or puff up. The earliest mention of the soufflé is attributed to French master cook Vincent de la Chapelle, circa the early eighteenth century. The characteristic or texture of Souffle is airy, light, and puff. It indeed takes a great deal of skill to master. My first attempt to experiment the soufflé early this year was unsuccessful, the soufflé did not rise up as high as i expected, i assume that i either overmixed the meringue with the custard or the egg whites wasn’t whipped up. Folding meringue with the custard is unlike mixing the pancake batter, gentle is the key.

Without further ado, let’s all put on our lab coat and start the experiment:

Classic Soufflé 舒芙蕾

Prep Time: 1 Hour Cook Time: 12~15 minutes Serving: 4

Ingredients Custard Milk/牛奶 150 ml Heavy cream/鲜奶油 100 ml Egg yolks/蛋黄 3 Sugar/砂糖 22 g flour/面粉 25 g Meringue Egg whites/蛋白 3 Sugar/砂糖 44 g Coating ramekins Butter/黄油 7 g Sugar/砂糖 4 tsp Dusting No need to measure, you feel it!

Instructions: 1. Preheat the oven to 385 °F/200 °C Coating Ramekins 2.Brush the ramekins with butter, using upward strokes. Put 1 tsp sugar in each ramekin and rotate the ramekin to dust the insides with sugar. Remove excess sugar from the ramekin, chill in the refrigerator and set it aside. Note that he coarse ingredient gives the soufflé traction and help it rise higher.

Making the Custard 3. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar together, sift the flour into the egg mixture and mix well 4. Heat the milk and heavy cream in a small saucepan until its almost boiling, then add a splash of hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, whisk well until its smooth, gradually add in the rest of the milk mixture, mix well 5. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan, over a medium-low heat, whisk the mixture constantly for 3~4 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and smooth, keep whisking during the process to avoid overcook. 6.When the custard has thickened, immediately transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and cool to room temperature, Set it aside and let it cool completely. Making the Meringue 7. Use a hand mixer to whisk the egg whites in a bowl for 2~3 minutes until bubbles start to form, start adding sugar gradually a spoonful at a time. Once you add all the sugar, increase the speed to high and whisk to make a firm, glossy meringue for about 3-4 minutes.

8. Whisk 1/3 of the meringue into the custard and mix until its homogenous. Carefully fold in the rest of the meringue by using a rubber spatula, do not overmix, the best way is to push the egg whites gently down and pull the heavier custard up in a sort of S shape. 9. Pour the souffle mixture into 4 ramekins, tap them on a flat surface to level the mixture and run the thumb around the edge. Place the ramekins on a baking tray and bake for 12~15 minutes until well risen and slightly golden on top. Dust it with powder sugar, serve immediately.

～The beauty of Souffle collapse within minutes, Cherish your hard work and enjoy～ ～舒芙蕾的美丽瞬间即逝～