Mention the word mousse to most people today, and it no longer conjures up the image of a large, antlered animal. Instead, a rich, chocolatey dessert most likely comes to mind.
How many people, I wonder, would think of fish? Yet a fish mousse is only one of many different types of mousse possibilities. The French word mousse translates to froth, foam, suds, lather. In other words: lightness. And fish lends itself beautifully to this treatment.
A fish mousse is essentially pureed fish meat that is seasoned, then lightened with cream, egg whites or gelatin. Then it`s either chilled or baked until set, a process that usually takes less than an hour. Perfect in any season, fish mousses in summer can be prepared ahead and served at room temperature; in colder weather, they make wonderful warm first courses.
An added bonus is that a mousse is one of the most economical ways of serving fish. You might ask your fishmonger for a large fish head (these are often discarded in some markets); you`ll find there is easily enough meat on the head to make a mousse to serve eight. Not only will the cost be negligible, the flavor of the fish will be superior.
The most important element of the mousse is its seasoning. Whatever you use to complement the subtle flavor of the fish-whether garlic and tomatoes or fresh herbs and spices-will largely determine your mousse`s reception and success. Because most fish is so low in fat, and it`s fat that gives proteins their flavor, fish mousses depend on extra flavorings.
Another source of flavoring is the sauce. Traditionally, a green mayonnaise is served with cold fish mousses. With a hot mousse any hot fish sauce might be used-from a white butter sauce (beurre blanc) to such classics as nantua, normande, ravigote, white wine and cardinal.
The following two fish mousses may be used as master recipes from which you might devise your own. Both use a single pound of fish. One is set with eggs by baking; the other is set with gelatin and chilled. Both are served at room temperature.
BAKED FISH MOUSSE
Preparation time: 35 minutes
Cooking time: 25 to 30 minutes
Yield: 8 to 12 servings
1 pound fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound white fish, such as cod, scrod or halibut, chilled
Salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon, total, mixed, ground: cloves, nutmeg, ginger
2 cloves garlic
4 large eggs or 6 whites
5 tablespoons whipping cream
4 tablespoons, total, mixed fresh minced herbs: chives, tarragon, chervil, parsley
Eggless green mayonnaise, see recipe
1. Butter or oil 5-cup loaf pan or ring mold. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Heat a quart of water to simmer.
2. Put tomatoes in large skillet with oil; cook about 10 minutes, add garlic during the last 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in tomato paste. Cool.
3. Puree fish in food processor. Add cooled tomato mixture and seasonings, and process until smooth and blend. Add eggs, cream and 3 tablespoons of the herbs and process again. Taste for seasoning: It should be highly seasoned.
4. Put mixture into loaf pan or ring mold. Put a piece of paper towel in bottom of a large baking pan. Put pan on top. This paper keeps the mold set from sliding. Carefully pour simmering water around ring mold and put baking pan in the oven. The fish mousse is done when it feels springy when pressed lightly, 25 to 30 minutes.
5. Remove and cool to room temperature. When cool, unmold onto a serving platter and pour sauce around. Garnish with the remaining herbs.
CHILLED FISH MOUSSE
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Chilling time: 1 hour
Yield: 8 to 12 servings
1 pound white fish, such as cod, scrod or halibut
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 pound small shrimp, in shell
3 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
3-4 tablespoons fresh green herbs: chives, tarragon, chervil, parsley or green onion tops
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt, pepper
2 packages (envelopes) gelatin
3/4 cup whipping cream
Eggless green mayonnaise, recipe follows
1. Put fish in saucepan with white wine. Add water to cover. Heat to simmer, cook 1 minute, then turn off heat and let rest 5 minutes.
2. Remove fish with slotted spoon. Return liquid to simmer and add shrimp. Simmer 1 minute, then remove shrimp, reserving liquid. Boil cooking liquid until reduced to 1 cup. Cool.
3. Puree fish in food processor with 2 1/2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 3 tablespoons of the herbs and garlic. Season highly with salt and pepper.
4. Put 1 packet of gelatin in a glass measuring cup, pour 1/2 cup of the cool cooking liquid over it, and let stand until softened. Put measuring cup into water in a saucepan and heat water to simmer. Stir gelatin mixture over the heat until completely dissolved. Immediately add dissolved gelatin to the fish and process a few times to distribute evenly.
5. Dissolve the second packet of gelatin in the remaining 1/2 cup of cooking liquid (as described in Step 4). Add remaining 1 tablespoon tomato paste to color it. Set aside.
6. Peel shrimp and reserve 8 to 12 for garnish. Cut remaining shrimp into 5 or 6 small pieces.
7. Pour half of the gelatin-tomato paste mixture into an oiled 5-cup mold; put whole shrimp decoratively in gelatin and refrigerate.
8. Whip cream to soft peaks. Fold into fish mixture. Fold in cutup shrimp. When gelatin-and-shrimp is set, pour fish mixture into ring mold and refrigerate until set. (At least 1 hour.) If you wish to hurry the process, put the mold in a large bowl with ice cubes and water.
9. To unmold, dip mold into hot water for 10 seconds. Invert onto serving platter. Serve with a cold mayonnaise (to which finely chopped parsley, chives, basil or watercress has been added for color) or other sauce, sprinkled with the remaining herbs.
EGGLESS GREEN MAYONNAISE
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 cups
A green mayonnaise is the most typical sauce to serve with cold fish or cold fish mousse. This interesting alternative has fine flavor and almost no cholesterol. The salt may be omitted if you wish.
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
1 cup safflower oil
2 tablespoons cold evaporated milk
1 teaspoon capers, drained
6 sprigs of parsley, washed and dried
12 or more large fresh basil leaves or 1 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1. Process mustard, water and vinegar in a food processer. Drizzle in the oil in a thin stream, alternating each 1/4 cup with drops of cold evaporated milk.
2. When all of the oil and milk have been added, add capers and herbs. Process 8 to 10 seconds. Scrape down sides. Taste and correct seasoning. The sauce may be stored for several days or even a week in the refrigerator. To thin it down at any point, stir in a few drops of lemon juice.
SEPPI RENGGLI`S SOLE MOUSSE IN LEEK LEAVES
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
Seppi Renggli, the chef at New York`s Four Seasons Restaurant, was the first major chef in this country to popularize ”spa cuisine,” a term he apparently invented. This, however, is an example of his delicious
”gourmand” cooking.
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless sole fillets
3-4 very large leeks
Salt, if desired
2 egg yolks
1 cup whipping cream
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
4 drops hot red pepper sauce
Freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons fish broth or diluted bottled clam broth
1 cup white butter sauce, recipe follows
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut sole into 1-inch cubes and chill.
2. Remove leaves from leeks and rinse thoroughly. Select 12 large outer leaves, the larger the better. Drop selected leaves into a pot of boiling water, salted if desired. Simmer 2 minutes and drain in a colander. Run under cold water until well chilled. Drain. Pat dry on clean towels.
3. Put sole in bowl of a food processor or blender. With motor running, add egg yolks; gradually add cream, nutmeg, hot red pepper sauce, salt and pepper to taste.
4. Arrange leek leaves on a flat surface. Neatly trim off the top and bottom of each leek to make a rectangle about 9 inches long.
5. Add a mound of the mousse mixture (about 3 tablespoons) near the base of each leek leaf. Roll up each to enclose the mousse neatly and compactly.
6. Butter a metal baking dish measuring about 14- by 8-inches and arrange the rolls, seam side down, on the dish. Dot the rolls with remaining butter. Poor fish broth over all.
7. Cover closely with foil and heat to boil on top of the stove. Put in the oven and bake 15 minutes. Transfer to a serving dish. Make white butter sauce. Spoon butter sauce over and sprinkle with black pepper. Serve hot.
WHITE BUTTER SAUCE
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Yield: About 1 cup
2 tablespoons each: red wine vinegar, water, finely chopped shallots
1/2 pound butter, at room temperature
1. Heat vinegar and water to boil in a saucepan. Add shallots and cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated.
2. Add butter bit by bit, stirring rapidly with a wire whisk over very low heat. When ready, the sauce should be thickened and creamy. Do not boil.
