Egg Balls II
1 "hard-boiled" egg Few grains cayenne 1/8 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon heavy cream 1/4 teaspoon finely chopped parsley Rub yolk through a sieve, add white finely chopped, and remaining ingredients. Add raw egg yolk to make mixture of right consistency to handle. Shape in small balls, and poach in boiling water or stock.
A soup garnish rather than a dish: small forcemeat balls of hard-boiled egg bound with raw yolk, dropped into simmering stock at the last moment. The quantities given make a garnish for two or three bowls.
- Poach, don't boilPoach gently -- the recipe says boiling water or stock, but a bare simmer is kinder to the balls, which can break up before the raw-yolk binder sets. Slide them in and give them a few minutes, until firm to the touch.
- The binder is the hingeAdd the raw yolk a little at a time. The mixture should just hold a shape when pressed in the palm; one small yolk is often more than a single egg's worth of filling needs, and too much makes a paste that slumps in the pot.
- Sieving the cooked yolkPush it through a fine sieve with the back of a spoon rather than mashing it. Lumps of yolk are where the balls tend to split.
- Size"Small balls" here means pea to marble size, no larger than will fit on a soup spoon with a little broth. Wet or lightly floured hands stop the mixture sticking.
- Heavy creamModern heavy cream at 36 percent fat is the right substitution; a teaspoon is enough to loosen the yolk without thinning it.
- Cooking liquidPoaching in stock rather than water leaves the stock faintly cloudy, so poach in a small pan of salted water alongside if you want a clear consommé, then transfer the balls to the bowls.
- TimingMake and poach these just before serving. Held in hot liquid they go dense and rubbery within ten minutes or so.