No. 2473

Cutlets of Lamb with Aspic

Cotelettes d'Agneau a l'Aspic

Procure twelve cutlets cut from the covered ribs of a spring lamb and nicely pared; lard them with lardons (No. 3, Fig. 52), made of veal udder, truffles and red beef tongue. Line a sautoir with slices of fat pork, place the cutlets over and moisten with white wine mirepoix stock (No. 419); set it on the fire and at first boil push it into the oven. When done drain and cool off under a weight, pare once more so that the lardons can be seen well. Decorate an aspic mold, range the cutlets inside of it in a circle, placing a crouton of tongue between each one, and pour in sufficient jelly to fill the mold to within a quarter from the top; after this has become firm finish filling the mold with jelly and lay it aside on ice for two hours. When prepared to serve unmold the aspic on a dish, having the basin covered with very firm jelly, or on a small, low, decorated socle. Fill the center with a blanquette of lamb sweetbreads prepared with truffles, and surround the whole with chopped jelly and croutons.

← No. 2472 Cutlets of Lambs' Kernels in Bellevue The Cold Service No. 2474 Cutlets of Lambs' Kernels with Mayonnaise →

For the Modern Kitchen

A cold centerpiece from Ranhofer's Delmonico repertoire: small braised rib chops set in clear jelly and unmolded. Nothing about it is difficult, but almost every material term has drifted since 1894.

The hinge: two-stage fillingPour jelly only to within a quarter (the text does not give the unit; a quarter inch is the likely sense) of the top, let it set hard, then top off. The second pour holds the cutlets in place and gives a flat base to unmold onto.
"Covered ribs" of spring lambRanhofer's term for a particular section of the ribs, cut into cutlets and trimmed clean. Twelve single chops means more than one eight-bone rack.
Lardons and veal udderVeal udder (tétine) was used as a larding fat in nineteenth-century professional French kitchens and is not sold now. Pork fatback, blanched and cut into fine strips, does the same work. Truffle and cooked red beef tongue are inserted alongside for the pattern the cut face reveals, which is why the meat is pared a second time after cooling.
Sautoir and "white wine mirepoix stock"A sautoir is a straight-sided shallow pan. No. 419 is Ranhofer's cross-reference to his white wine mirepoix stock; a light veal or lamb stock with a good splash of dry white wine and a small mirepoix stands in.
Oven heat and timeNo temperature is given. Bring to a boil on the stovetop, then braise covered at about 325F. Thin lamb rib chops are done in roughly 20 to 30 minutes; the cutlets are meant to be cooked through, since they are served cold, but longer braising leaves them dry and stringy inside the jelly.
Cooling under a weightPress the drained cutlets flat between two trays with a light weight while they chill. This is what makes them sit level in the mold and slice cleanly.
The jellyAspic here is clarified, well-flavored stock set with gelatin. For a mold that will be unmolded and stand on a dish, work firm: about 2 to 2 1/2 teaspoons of powdered gelatin per cup of stock. "Chopped jelly" is set aspic diced with a knife, and the croutons in the garnish are cut shapes of tongue or firm jelly, not fried bread.
The center and the socleA blanquette of lamb sweetbreads is a white ragout; sweetbreads must be ordered ahead, soaked, blanched and peeled before cooking, and are best prepared the day before. A socle is a low decorative stand, originally carved rice paste or shaped fat; a plain footed plate is the practical modern equivalent.
Timing and holdingTwo hours on ice is a minimum for a mold this size; overnight is safer. Because the dish is served cold and handled after cooking, assemble it in a cold kitchen, keep it refrigerated until serving, and do not leave it out more than a couple of hours.

A Little History

This is No. 2473 of Charles Ranhofer's The Epicurean (1894), the enormous record of his thirty-odd years as chef at Delmonico's in New York, and it belongs to a section of the book — the cold service — that existed largely to be looked at. Larding lean cutlets with contrasting strips of white fat, black truffle and scarlet tongue so that the cut face shows a pattern is a display technique of the classical French kitchen, and setting the results in clear jelly in a decorated mold is the same impulse carried further: the aspic was the buffet showpiece of the period, ranged around cold sideboards at balls and late suppers where nothing could be served hot. The word aspic itself has no settled etymology, though it is often linked to the coiled, ringed look of a molded jelly. Ranhofer's cross-references to a numbered lardon figure and to stock No. 419 show how the book was meant to be used — not as standalone recipes but as a system, assuming a brigade that already had jelly, mirepoix stock and cooked tongue on hand.