Raft

A raft is the spongy cap of ground meat, mirepoix, and beaten egg whites that forms and floats atop a simmering stock during the clarification process used to produce consommé. As the cold clarification mixture — typically ground lean beef or chicken, finely chopped aromatic vegetables, tomato, herbs, and whipped egg whites — is stirred into cold or warm stock and the liquid is brought slowly to a bare simmer, the proteins in the meat and egg whites begin to coagulate. They rise together, binding with the mirepoix and drawing in the suspended fat, collagen particles, and fine debris that make stock cloudy. The result is a single, firm, raft-like mass that sits just below the surface. Heat is kept at the lowest possible simmer — 82–88 °C (180–190 °F) — so the raft does not break apart: if it shatters, trapped particulate re-enters the liquid and the consommé will never clear. A small hole is typically broken in one side of the raft to allow the stock to bubble up gently and filter back through the mat. Once clarification is complete (45–90 minutes), the raft is discarded and the consommé ladled carefully through a fine-mesh strainer lined with damp cheesecloth. A properly formed raft yields a consommé of jewel-like clarity and concentrated flavor.

“She watched the raft slowly knit together at the surface, resisting the urge to stir as the consommé beneath turned from murky amber to a trembling, copper-bright clarity.”

• TechniqueClarification
• TechniqueConsommé
• ConceptMirepoix

1. 1.Escoffier: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery — Auguste Escoffier
2. 2.The Professional Chef, 9th ed. — The Culinary Institute of America
3. 3.On Food and Cooking — Harold McGee
4. 4.Larousse Gastronomique — Prosper Montagné et al.

Confidence: high