Thomasina Miers picks out Michel Roux Jr's signature soufflé dish as one of the world's finest dishes
‘I cooked this recipe with Michel Roux at Le Gavroche when I was in the finals of MasterChef six years ago-it’s one of the restaurant’s most famous dishes. They use a little more double cream than is stated in the recipe and simmer it to reduce it to a silky, rich sauce that is indescribably good.
‘Give it a go, making sure you season the cream well with salt and pepper. Served with a crisp, green salad, this makes a delectable dish in the depths of winter. Give it to friends as a starter if you really want to impress them, or, better still, make one big soufflé for supper with the green salad’ – Thomasina Miers
Soufflé Suissesse recipe
Extract from Michel Roux Jr’s Le Gavroche Cookbook (First published in 2001 by Weidenfeld & Nicholson)
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 45g butter
- 45g plain flour
- 500ml milk
- 5 egg yolks
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper
- 6 egg whites
- 600ml double cream
- 200g Gruyère or Emmental cheese, grated
Method
Heat the oven to 200˚C/400˚F/gas mark 6. Melt the butter in a thick-based saucepan, whisk in the flour and cook, stirring continuously, for about a minute. Whisk in the milk and boil for 3 minutes, whisking all the time to prevent any lumps from forming.
Beat in the yolks and remove from the heat; season with salt and pepper. Cover with a piece of buttered greaseproof paper to prevent a skin from forming. Whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form firm, not stiff, peaks.
Add a third of the egg whites to the yolk mixture and beat with a whisk until evenly mixed, then gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Spoon the mixture into four well-buttered 8cm diameter tartlet moulds and place in the oven for 3 minutes, until the tops begin to turn golden.
Meanwhile, season the cream with a little salt, warm it gently and pour into a gratin dish. Turn the soufflés out into the cream, sprinkle the grated cheese over them, then return them to the oven for 5 minutes.
Serve immediately.
For those who speak French, here is Michel Roux Jr making this dish in a video:
