{"id":8125,"date":"2009-01-06T18:20:58","date_gmt":"2009-01-06T17:20:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coquinaria.nl\/?p=8125"},"modified":"2019-12-09T20:44:35","modified_gmt":"2019-12-09T19:44:35","slug":"escoffier-fritters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coquinaria.nl\/en\/escoffier-fritters\/","title":{"rendered":"Escoffier’s Salsify Fritters"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Straight to the recipe<\/small><\/a><\/p>\n

\"In<\/a>The picture shows the garden terrace of the Ritz Hotel in Paris, which openend its doors in 1898. This is one of the legendary hotels that were run by C\u00e9sar Ritz (1850-1918) and Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935).<\/p>\n

I have spend many hours searching for a nineteenth-century painting with black salsify, but alas, it seems that never ever has a painter been inspired by this vegetable … But at least you can see the ambiance in which Escoffier’s black salsify fritters could have been eaten.<\/p>\n

Scorzonera and salsify according to Escoffier<\/h3>\n

The recipe for fritters comes from the Guide culinaire<\/em>, published by Escoffier in 1902. The cookbooks contains four recipes for salsify and black salsify (according to him, they are interchangeable):\u00a0\u00e0 la cr\u00e8me<\/em>\u00a0(with cream sauce),\u00a0au gratin<\/em>\u00a0(like the first, but put under the grill with cheese and breadcrumbs),\u00a0frits<\/em>\u00a0(marinated and deep-fried in batter), and\u00a0saut\u00e9s<\/em>\u00a0(fried). Here you’ll find the basic preparation for salsify (cooking in a\u00a0blanc<\/em>), and the recipe for fritters. Typically Escoffier: in the cookbook you have to look at several preparations to collect the entire recipe.<\/p>\n

The original recipes<\/h2>\n

The French text is from the reprint from 1993 of the fourth edition of the\u00a0Guide Culinaire<\/em> (1921). A\u00a0glance at my Dutch translation from the first edition from 1902 showed me that at least the redaction of the recipes for salsify remained the same. Escoffier uses a lot of words, you cal also choose to move on directly to the\u00a0adapted version<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Salsifis (p.770)
\nLes salsifis employ\u00e8s en cuisine sont de deux sortes: le salsifis blanc et le salsifis noir, qui est aussi d\u00e9sign\u00e9 sous le nom de\u00a0<\/em>Scorson\u00e8re.
\nLes m\u00eames pr\u00e9parations conviennent aux deux esp\u00e8ces. Quelle que soit cette pr\u00e9paration, les salsifis doivent \u00eatre d’abord ratiss\u00e9s avec soin, lav\u00e9s, puis cuits dans un Blanc l\u00e9ger.<\/em><\/div>
Salsify
\nThere are two kinds of salsify used in the kitchen: white salsify and black salsify, which is also called\u00a0Scorzonera<\/em>. The same preparations are used for the two kinds. Whatever preparation it is, the salsify must first be carefully peeled, washed, and then cooked in a light Blanc.<\/div>\n
Blanc pour viandes et certaines l\u00e9gumes (p.405)
\nCette pr\u00e9paration n’a par elle-m\u00eame aucune valeur culinaire, elle n’est qu’un facteur de cuisson et a uniquement pour but de conserver blanches les substances qui sont plong\u00e9es dedans.
\nPour quelque substance que ce soit, le Blanc doit \u00eatre port\u00e9 \u00e0 l’\u00e9bullition avant de la recevoir, puis recouvert d’une couche de graisse qui forme\u00a0<\/em>isolant, et s’oppose \u00e0 ce que les substances en cuisson re\u00e7oivent le contact de l’air qui les ferait noircir.
\n<\/em>Pr\u00e9paration: Delayer \u00e0 l’eau froide une forte cuiller\u00e9e de farine par litre d’eau; saler \u00e0 raison de 6 grammes; aciduler de 2 cuiller\u00e9es de vinaigre par litre et faire prendre l’\u00e9bullition. Ajouter un oignon piqu\u00e9 d’un clou de girofle, bouquet garni, l’\u00e9l\u00e9ment \u00e0 cuire et la graisse destin\u00e9e \u00e0 former l’isolant; laquelle peut \u00eatre de la graisse de rognon de boeuf ou de veau, crue, hach\u00e9e finement et, au besoin, pr\u00e9alablement d\u00e9gorg\u00e9e \u00e0 l’eau froide.
\nNota — Lorsque le Blanc est destin\u00e9 \u00e0 une cuisson de l\u00e9gumes, le vinaigre est remplac\u00e9 avantageusement par du jus de citron.<\/em><\/div>
Blanc for meat and certain vegetables
\nThis preparation does not in itself have any culinary value, it is nothing more than a way of cooking and its only purpose is keeping the substances that are plunged in it white.
\nWhatever substance that is, the Blanc must be brought to the boil before it is added, then covered by a layer of fat that isolates, to prevent that the boiling ingredients come into contact with the air, which discolours them.
\nPreparation: add a heaped spoon of flour per litre water to cold water. Salt it with 6 gram. Acidulate with 2 spoons vinegar per litre and bring to the boil. Add an onion, with a clove stuck into it, a bouquet garni, the ingredient that must be cooked, and the fat that will form the isolating layer; that can be suet of beef or calf, raw, chopped finely and, if necessary, first rinsed in cold water.
\nNote — If the Blanc is destined to cook vegetables, the vinegar is best replaced by lemon juice.<\/div>\n
Salsifis frits (p.770)
\nApr\u00e8s les avoir bien \u00e9goutt\u00e9s, les tailler en tron\u00e7ons de 7 \u00e0 8 centim\u00e8tres de long et les mettre dans un plat. Assaissonner de sel et de poivre; ajouter: jus de citron, quelques gouttes d’huile et persil hach\u00e9; laisser mariner pendant 25 \u00e0 30 minutes, en ayant soin de les sauter de temps en temps.
\nEnsuite, bien les \u00e9goutter; les tremper dans une p\u00e2te \u00e0 frire l\u00e9g\u00e8re les mettre dans la friture tr\u00e8s chaude et les \u00e9goutter quand la p\u00e2te est bien s\u00e8che.
\n— Dresser sur une serviette avec persil frit.
\nNota. — La marinade pr\u00e9alable des salsifis est facultative, mais tr\u00e8s recommandable.<\/em><\/div>
Salsify fritters
\nCut them, after draining well, in pieces of 7 to 8 centimetres, and put them on a dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add: lemon juice, a few drops of olive oil and chopped parsley. Marinate for 25 to 30 minutes, while stirring from time to time.
\nThen, drain well. Dip them in a light batter, fry them in very hot deep frying fat and let drain when the batter is dry.
\n— Serve on a napkin with deepfried parsley.
\nNote — The prior marinade is optional, but very recommendable.<\/div>\n
P\u00e2te \u00e0 frire pour L\u00e9gumes\u00a0(Salsifis, C\u00e9leris, Crosnes, etc.)\u00a0(p.81\/82)
\nD\u00e9layer dans une terrine: 125 grammes de farine; une pinc\u00e9e de sel; 2 cuiller\u00e9es de beurre fondu; un oeuf, et la quantit\u00e9 d’eau froide n\u00e9cessaire pour obtenir une p\u00e2te claire.
\nAutant que possible, l’appr\u00eater une heure \u00e0 l’avance.<\/em><\/div>
Beslag om groenten te frituren (salsifis, selderij, crosnes, etc.)
\nVermeng in een kom: 125 gram bloem, een mespuntje zout, 2 lepels gesmolten boter, een ei, en zoveel koud water als nodig is om een licht\/luchtig belag te krijgen.
\nVoor zover mogelijk, een uur van te voren bereiden.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

<\/a>Modern adaptation of the recipes<\/h2>\n

Whatever recipe you want to prepare, the black salsify has to be cleaned and cooked. Escoffier uses a\u00a0blanc<\/em> for cooking the vegetable. This blanc keeps the salsify white. Other cookbooks from the eighteenth and nineteenth century keep it simpler: the salsify is to be cooked in water with some butter (see this recipe<\/a>). And in 1651 La Varenne just says they have to be cooked and prepared like parsnips.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Salsify fritters<\/h3>\n

Escoffier prefers using rendered suet, tallow from beef, or a combination of beef and calf suet, for deepfrying. But he also used lard, combined with other kinds of fat. If you start at the beginning, by rendering suet, the fat has to be grated or chopped finely, and added to a pan with 3\/4 litre water for 5 kilogram suet (1.5 decilitre water for 1 kilo suet). Heat until the water has evaporated and the pieces of fat are reduced to cracklings (about twenty to thirty minutes). Let it cool for a short while, then strain it. This is tallow (here<\/a>\u00a0you have an illustrated guide to rendering tallow). The fritters must be fried\u00a0dans la friture tr\u00e8s chaude<\/em>, in very hot frying fat, which means according to Escoffier at 180 \u00b0C\/355 \u00b0F.
\nIn Belgium and the Netherlands you can buy tallow especially for deep-frying, called\u00a0ossewit<\/em>\u00a0of\u00a0blanc de boeuf<\/em>. I think in England it is called\u00a0shortening<\/em>, but that can also be made of vegetable fat, so look at the ingredients before you buy. But Escoffier himself also mentions vegetable oils, goose fat and even butter as possible mediums for deep frying.
\nFor 4 persons<\/span>; preparation in advance<\/em>\u00a01 hour<\/span><\/span>; preparation<\/em>\u00a015 minutes<\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n

\"Salsify400 gr (black)\u00a0salsify <\/span>,\u00a0cut in pieces of 7 centimetres and precooked in a blanc<\/em>\u00a0(see below<\/a>)
\npepper and salt
\nMarinade<\/em>
\n1 Tbsp lemon juice
\n1 tsp olive oil
\n1 Tbsp chopped\u00a0parsley<\/span>
\nBatter<\/em>
\n125 gr flour
\n2 Tbsp melted\u00a0butter<\/span>
\nsalt to taste
\n1 egg
\n1\u00bd dl water
\nGarnish<\/em>
\na few tufts of parsley
\nAnd<\/em>
\n2 kilo suet or<\/span>\u00a01\u00bd kilo tallow<\/a>\u00a0(beef shortening)<\/p>\n

Preparation in advance<\/h3>\n

If you use suet, you’ll have to render it first (see above). Tallow or shortening just has to be heated.
\nMix all ingredients for the batter, place in refridgerator for an hour.
\nSprinkle the precooked salsify with lemon juice, oil and parsley, marinate for thirty minutes. Then drain well, and pat dry with kitchen towels.<\/p>\n

Preparation<\/h3>\n

Heat the frying fat to 180 \u00b0C\/355 \u00b0F.
\nCover the pieces of salsify in flour if you want, to make sure the batter doesn’t slide off too easily.
\nFry the pieces three or four at the same time in the deep fryer, fry until the crust is brown and crisp. Drain, and keep warm in the oven at 120 \u00b0C\/250 \u00b0F with the door slightly ajar to keep the fritters crispy.
\nIf all the vegetables are fried, dip a few tufts of parsley for a few seconds in the hot fat. The parsley will remain bright green and wonderfully crisp.<\/p>\n

To serve<\/h3>\n

Just as Japanese like to serve tempura on rice paper to absorb fat, in Europe deep fried dishes used to be served on linen napkins, like\u00a0croquettes<\/a>. So, if you want to serve in style, cover each individual plate with a folded napkin, and place on each napkin some salsify or scorzonera fritters, decorated with deep-fried parsley.
\nTo me, this dish is an hors d’oeuvre, but it could be a side dish in the rich classical French cuisine.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Preparing (black) salsify or scorzonera according to\u00a0Escoffier – Using a\u00a0blanc<\/em><\/h3>\n

Cooking in a\u00a0blanc<\/em>\u00a0is used not only for vegetables, but also meat that must be as white as possible, like chicken breast.<\/p>\n

\"Cooked400 gr (4 cups) black salsify or scorzonera, cleaned and cut to size (see this recipe)
\nfor every litre (quart) water<\/em>
\n1 Tbsp flour
\n1 tsp salt
\n2 Tbsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice
\n1 white onion pricked with one clove
\nbouquet garni<\/a>\u00a0(parsley, thyme, bay leaf)
\n3 Tbsp suet of beef or calf<\/p>\n

Preparation in advance<\/h3>\n

Chop or grate the suet.
\nPlace a bowl with water nearby to put the salsify or scorzonera in as soon as it is peeled, to prevent discolouring. According to Escofier, the salsify or scorzonera has to boiled before cutting it in pieces, but if you do that first, you’ll need a smaller pan and less water.<\/p>\n

Preparation<\/h3>\n

Bring water, flour, salt and vinegar or lemon juice to the boil. Add the onion with the clove, bouquet garni and root vegetables, and the finely chopped suet. Let cook for ten to fifteen minutes, and drain well.
\nTake care NOT to pour the cooking liquid in the sink, because the suet will congeal when it has cooled, and clog the drain.<\/p>\n

Ingredients<\/h2>\n

All descriptions of ingredients<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a>Bouquet garni<\/h4>\n

A bundle of aromatic herbs, that is added to stock or stew. They are removed before serving the dish. The usual combination is parsley, thyme and bayleaf, but other herbs can also be used, like rosemary, sage or chervil. The term\u00a0bouquet<\/em>\u00a0(without the\u00a0garni<\/em>) is already used by Fran\u00e7ois La Varenne in 1651 in his\u00a0stock recipe<\/a>\u00a0(Le Cuisinier Fran\u00e7ois, II<\/em>), but except for cloves he doesn’t specify the herbs. However, in the second edition he mentions parsley, chives and thyme. Pierre de Lune (Le cuisinier<\/em>) also uses the bouquet in 1656, but he calls it a\u00a0paquet<\/em>, consisting of thyme, chervil, parsley and clove, and a piece of lard when the dish was to be served on a meat day.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Tallow<\/h4>\n

This is rendered suet. You can buy it at supermarkets as beef shortening (the picture shows the Belgian\/Dutch commercial tallow for deepfrying), but you can also make it yourself (see\u00a0here<\/a>). Because fat congeals when it cools, you must filter it after each use when it is still liquid. Keep the fat in a cool place. By the way, if you prefer vegetable oil for deepfrying: that also has to be filtered before storing away. It may be clear that tallow is not to be used for vegetarians. If you use different kinds of fat for deepfrying (as I do), store them all with labels on which you note how often and when it was used.
\nFat that congeals at lower temperatures (animal and vegetable) is less and less used in the Netherlands, probably because of the extra work it entails. And tallow, being an animal fat, is of course regarded as highly suspicious, because of the scare forbad fat<\/em>. However … if you only use tallow occiasionally, nothing is wrong with it.
\nIf you mix tallow with birdseed, it is ideal winterfood for birds.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Bibliography<\/h2>\n

The editions below were used by me. Links refer to available editions.<\/p>\n