Greatest Recipes Ever: Michel Roux Jr’s soufflé Suissesse

Thomasina Miers picks Michel Roux Jr’s soufflé Suissesse as one of her greatest recipes ever

Michel Roux Jr's Soufflé Suissesse
(Image credit: Stock Food)

‘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:

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