Soufflé de Pommes de Terre

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1½-quart (1.4-liter) straight-sided ceramic soufflé dish or six 6-ounce (175 ml) porcelain ramekins
• •Potato ricer or fine food mill
• •Handheld electric mixer or balloon whisk
• •Large flexible spatula
• •Medium saucepan

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare dish and oven

   Set a rack in the lower third of the oven and heat it to 400°F (200°C). Brush the softened butter generously over the bottom and straight up the sides of a 1½-quart (1.4-liter) soufflé dish, leaving no dry patches, then chill the dish while you prepare the base. The source also allows small porcelain cases; six buttered 6-ounce (175 ml) ramekins make the honest home equivalent.

   Butter is the only coating called for here. Breadcrumbs, cheese, and spices would make pleasant variations, but they belong to another recipe.
2. 2

   Cook and dry potatoes

   Put the potatoes in a saucepan, cover them with cold water, and add 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 18 g) of the salt. Bring slowly to a simmer and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until a knife passes through the centre of a piece without resistance. Drain thoroughly, return the potatoes to the dry pan, and shake them over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes, until their surfaces look floury and no moisture remains on the pan floor. Water makes a heavy soufflé, so this drying is part of the dish, not brigade scaffolding.

3. 3

   Make cream-rich purée

   Pass the hot potatoes through a ricer or food mill into the warm pan. Fold in the warm cream and the remaining ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 3 g) salt until the purée is smooth, then measure 2 level cups (475 ml / about 500 g); reserve any small excess for another meal. Let the purée cool for 3 to 5 minutes, until warm rather than scorching, then beat in the raw yolks one at a time. If the purée is cold and stiff, warm it gently before adding the yolks. If it is piping hot, wait, because heat strong enough to catch the yolks will leave yellow specks throughout the base.

   Use a ricer or food mill, not a food processor. Fast blades release too much potato starch and turn a fine purée into glue.
4. 4

   Beat whites stiff

   Put the egg whites in a perfectly clean, dry bowl. Beat at medium speed until foamy, then at medium-high speed until they form stiff, glossy peaks that stand upright when the beaters lift. Stop there. Whites beaten until dry and cottony break into lumps instead of folding smoothly, so watch the texture rather than the clock. If the edges only begin to look grainy, stop the machine and whisk slowly by hand for a few turns until the foam looks cohesive again.

5. 5

   Fold without crushing

   Add one-third of the whites to the potato base. Cut down through the centre with a flexible spatula, sweep across the bottom, and lift the heavier purée over the whites while turning the bowl. Fold in the remaining whites in two additions, stopping as soon as no broad white pockets remain. A few fine streaks are safer than another ten turns. Never stir the whites, because stirring crushes the air the soufflé needs. If the mixture has visibly lost volume, divide it among the buttered porcelain cases instead of the large dish; the smaller cases ask the weakened foam to climb a shorter distance. Ça se rattrape.

6. 6

   Fill and bake

   Spoon the mixture into the chilled dish, filling it no more than three-quarters full, and level the surface lightly without pressing. Run a clean fingertip around the inside rim to leave a narrow channel between the mixture and the dish. Set it in the oven immediately and bake without opening the door for 20 minutes. Continue for 5 to 10 minutes, until the crown stands well above the rim, the top is deeply golden, and the centre has only a gentle tremble. If the middle rolls like liquid when the dish moves, return it to the oven for 3 minutes and check again. Individual cases will usually need 16 to 20 minutes.

7. 7

   Carry it directly

   Bring the Soufflé de Pommes de Terre to the table the moment it leaves the oven. A slight settling is natural, but waiting turns its proud crown into ordinary mashed potato with eggs. Break through the bronzed top with a serving spoon and give each guest some crust and some tender centre. One cook, one stove, one evening. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose a floury potato such as a russet. Waxy red potatoes hold their shape beautifully in a salad, but here that same structure produces a dense, stubborn purée.
• •Room-temperature whites reach their full volume more readily. The bowl and beaters must be completely free of yolk or grease, because even a small trace of fat weakens the foam.
• •The source permits one large soufflé saucepan or small porcelain cases. Use the large dish for a dramatic dinner-table arrival and individual cases when timing service for several guests; the cases bake faster and lose less height between oven and plate.
• •Serve beside roast chicken, veal, or a simply cooked fillet of fish. A dry white Burgundy has enough freshness for the eggs and cream without trampling the delicate potato.

Advance Preparation

• •Butter the soufflé dish up to one day ahead, cover it, and keep it chilled. A cold, thoroughly buttered dish is ready the instant the mixture is folded.
• •The potatoes may be boiled, dried, and riced up to 2 hours before baking. Keep them covered at room temperature, then warm them gently with the cream before adding the yolks.
• •Once the whites meet the potato base, the soufflé cannot wait. Fold only when the oven is fully heated and the rest of dinner is ready for the table.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 155g)