Steamed leeks with gribiche sauce
Recently, I was looking for something different to accompany my steamed veg, so I flipped open Auguste Escoffier's Le Guide Culinaire. I set my sights on sauce gribiche, a zesty and refreshing sauce. Never heard of sauce gribiche? Try it out! It will surely become a classic in your kitchen, too.
Who is Auguste Escoffier?
Auguste Escoffier is the father of classical gastronomy. Born in 1846, he was first and foremost a French chef. He gained world fame when he headed the kitchens at the Hotel Savoy and later at the Hotel Carlton in London. He wrote several books, including in 1902 Le Guide Culinaire which is still the bible of all Western chefs. Did you know that he created the dessert peach Melba in honor of the famous singer Nellie Melba?
Gribiche?
Gribiche is the Norman word for bad woman, a peculiar name for a sauce. A possible explanation can be found in the origin and preparation of the sauce.
Origin of gribiche sauce
The origin of gribiche sauce lies in hollandaise sauce, one of the basic sauces of French gastronomy. The technique consists of beating egg yolks and transforming them into an emulsion by adding fat, in this case melted butter. You do this au bain-marie. For gribiche sauce, you also start with egg yolks and fat, but the first major difference is that gribiche sauce is a cold preparation. Second, the egg yolks you start with are not raw as in hollandaise and mayonnaise but are hard-boiled.
The possible analogy to the naughty, disobedient woman lies in the eggs. It is very unusual to start your sauce with boiled egg yolks and it makes the preparation challenging.
What's in a gribiche sauce?
Over time, gribiche sauce has been interpreted by chefs in different ways. The basis of the sauce remains the combination of hard-boiled egg yolks, mustard, oil, fresh herbs, capers and hard-boiled egg whites. As I mentioned earlier, the preparation of gribiche sauce is very similar to that of mayonnaise, with the big difference that in gribiche sauce you start from hard-boiled egg yolks.
My twist on gribiche sauce
I really like old-style Dijon mustard and always add it to my sauce. I never strictly stick to a recipe and often add other elements. For more acidity, I chop small gherkins and even a shallot and stir it into the sauce. Sometimes I add grated lemon peel. Be sure to buy untreated or organically grown lemons for this. Escoffier uses the classic fine herbs chervil, parsley and tarragon. I sometimes turn to chives and even wild garlic.
Do you think this looks like a tartar sauce? Somehow it does, but the fundamental difference is that for tartar sauce you start with mayonnaise.
Gribiche, a versatile sauce
Gribiche sauce is a very versatile sauce. It brings extra flavor to all kinds of steamed or raw vegetables such as asparagus, fennel, broccoli, lettuce, cucumber, kohlrabi and radishes. Gribiche is also a refreshing sauce to accompany cold cuts and prepared meat dishes such as roast beef, pork tenderloin or a veal cutlet. Finally, gribiche sauce also tastes great with all kinds of fish like salmon, cod, red snapper, swordfish and even roast mackerel. Try the sauce also with seafood or on your favorite sandwiches.
Recipe: steamed leeks with gribiche sauce
Ingredients for the sauce:
- 2 eggs, hard-boiled and peeled
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon old-style Dijon mustard
- 125 ml salad oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar
- 2 tablespoons of capers
- 5 small gherkins
- 1 small shallot
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoons chopped chervil
- 2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
The vegetable:
- 6 young leek stalks
-
Preparing the leeks:
First, remove the dark green part of the leeks. Save the dark leaves for another use such as soup. Wash the leeks thoroughly so there are no traces of dirt.
Then steam the leeks until tender. This should not take more than 20 minutes. Make sure the leeks are fully cooked but not limp.
Arrange the leeks on a serving platter
-
Prepare the gribiche sauce:
Halve the eggs and remove the firm yolk from the cooked egg white. You then mash the egg yolks with a fork and cut the egg white into fine pieces. Keep both parts separate. Next, rinse the capers and finely chop the gherkins and shallot.
Take a mixing bowl and stir the egg yolks with the mustard. Add a pinch of salt and give it a few turns of the pepper mill. Now add the oil and lemon juice in a thin stream to the egg yolks while continuing to beat with a whisk or hand mixer.
Stir the capers, gherkins, shallot, chopped egg whites and fresh herbs into the sauce. Check the seasoning.
![SG Prei Gribiche saus 1135]()
-
Serving:
Spoon a bit of the gribiche sauce over the steamed leeks and serve the rest of the sauce separately with the dish.
![SG Prei Gribiche saus 0298]()
