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6 tablespoons/85 milliliters beer

1 1⁄2 teaspoons/10 milliliters Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon/8 grams caraway seeds, toasted and crushed (see Note page 52)

3 ounces/85 milliliters malt vinegar

2 tablespoons/30 milliliters cup honey

1⁄2 teaspoon/5 grams kosher salt

3 large egg yolks

1⁄2 teaspoon/5 grams sugar

1. Combine all the ingredients in a metal bowl or the top of a double boiler. Cook over simmering water, whipping continuously but gently, until thickened. Do not whisk too vigorously, or it will become frothy. Remove from the heat.

2. Refrigerate, covered, until chilled.

Yield: About 1 cup/250 milliliters

BASIC VINAIGRETTE

A straightforward vinaigrette is an essential element of any cook’s repertoire. The variations are endless, but the ratio is the same: three parts oil to one part vinegar (lemon and lime juices are more acidic and require four parts oil). The rest is seasoning. This recipe stays true to the classical tradition with shallot and Dijon mustard for the seasonings (the mustard also helps to maintain the emulsification), but this is a matter of taste. Minced garlic is excellent in a vinaigrette—a simple lemon juice, garlic, and black pepper vinaigrette, for example. Vary the type of the oil, if you wish. The vinegar can be red wine, white wine, champagne, or sherry. Balsamic vinegar can also be a great component of a vinaigrette, but because of its intense sweetness, use it as a seasoning element rather than a main ingredient. Or use another form of acid: strained fresh citrus juices or verjus (the juice of unripened wine grapes), perhaps. You can also vary your vinaigrette according to what it’s dressing. If you’re serving a beet and walnut salad, for instance, you might use one part walnut oil and two parts canola oil. For a duck confit salad, some of the confit jelly (see pages 256–257) can be substituted for some of the salt and oil. For a black bean salad, try lime juice and cumin with a neutral oil.

Fresh herbs are excellent in almost any vinaigrette, but they should be added at the last minute or the acid may turn them black.

Vinaigrette technique is simple and again, in part a matter of preference. The vinegar, salt, and shallots should be combined first so that the salt dissolves completely (it’s less evenly distributed when added to fat or oil), and so that the flavor of the shallots softens and is evenly distributed. But how you mix the vinaigrette is up to you. It can be done in a blender (though in that case it can become so thick that you may have to transfer the vinaigrette to a bowl and finish whisking by hand), a food processor, or in a bowl with a whisk; you can even throw it all into a jar and shake it. The result, of course, differs—simply shaken, it will quickly separate. No matter which method you use, the vinaigrette should be emulsified to the consistency of a pourable mayonnaise. If it’s soupy, it will eventually separate. (This alters the way it coats the greens but not the way it tastes.)

The uses of a vinaigrette are countless. Some chefs consider it to be a “mother sauce” because of the range of variations possible with the basic formula. With only small variations in seasonings, oils, and acidity levels, a vinaigrette can be excellent with almost any food—meat, fish, chicken, vegetables, legumes, potatoes, what you will.

In fact, a vinaigrette is probably the most important and powerful sauce available to any cook, and also the easiest to make. But use good-quality vinegars and oils. That will make all the difference.

1⁄2 cup/125 milliliters vinegar (red wine, white wine, sherry or champagne)

1 tablespoon/18 grams minced shallots washed under cold running water

1⁄4 teaspoon/2 grams kosher salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons/30 milliliters Dijon mustard

1 1⁄2 cups/375 milliliters oil (vegetable, canola, grapeseed, corn, olive)

1. Combine the vinegar, shallots, salt, pepper and mustard in a medium bowl. Whisk in the oil, drop by drop at first, then in a thin,