Berlin aspic

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 5 morels, dried
• 600 g chicken breasts with bones
• 400 g roast veal (veal breast) with bone
• 1 onion(s)
• 1 pack of soup vegetables, frozen
• 4 peppercorns
• 4 cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 100 g mushrooms
• 100 g carrot(s)
• 100 g asparagus tips
• 100 g leek
• 1 tbsp oil (sunflower oil)
• 100 ml wine, white, dry
• pepper
• 1 lemon(s), (unpeeled), grated zest and juice
• 1 pinch(s) of sugar
• 6 sheets of white gelatin

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 2 hours

My tip for quick cooking: Instead of a loaf pan, I use ramekins available at household stores. The aspic then only needs to chill for 3-4 hours, not overnight. Do not line the ramekins with cling film. The finished aspic can be easily loosened from the edges with a knife. Briefly dip the ramekins in hot water and then tip the contents out onto plates. I serve it with herb crème fraîche. Cook the meat: Soak the morels in 100ml of warm water for about 15 minutes. Rinse the chicken and veal breast and place in a large pot with about 2 liters of water. Peel and roughly dice the onions. Add them along with the frozen soup vegetables, peppercorns, cloves, bay leaf, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil once and skim off the foam. Let the meat simmer in the stock over low heat for about 1 hour. Info: The resulting “foam” is coagulated protein from the meat that floats to the top. It makes the broth gray and cloudy, so always skim it off with a slotted spoon. Chop the vegetables and morels: While the meat is cooking, clean, wash, and very finely dice the mushrooms, carrots, asparagus, and leeks. Fry them in batches in hot oil for 2-3 minutes. Remove the morels from the soaking water, rinse thoroughly, and finely dice. Pour the water through a coffee filter, collecting the water. Tip: Do not discard the morel water; it retains the mushrooms’ delicate aroma. Dried morels are often gritty. Straining through the filter will remove any sand from the morel water. Dice the meat. Remove the meat from the broth, remove any bones and skin, and, once cooled, dice very finely. Pour the broth through a sieve lined with kitchen paper. Take out 600 ml of broth. Add the wine and morel water, simmer for 10 minutes, and season generously with salt, pepper, a little lemon zest and juice, and sugar. Tip: Before dicing the meat, let it cool completely first—the cubes will hold their shape better this way. Prepare the gelatin: Soak the gelatin in cold water for about 10 minutes. Then squeeze the leaves well and dissolve them in the warm broth while stirring. Fold in the vegetables, mushrooms, and meat cubes. Note: Do not add the gelatin to boiling liquid, as this will reduce its binding power. Line the dish with cling film. Line a rectangular loaf pan (capacity: 800 ml) with cling film. Pour the vegetable and meat broth into the dish, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Tip: Rinse the dish with clean water beforehand; this will help the cling film stick better. Serve the aspic: Turn out the aspic and peel off the cling film. Dip a large knife into hot water and cut the aspic into slices. Serve with crème fraîche, if desired. Note: Cutting the aspic with a hot knife is easier, as the cut surface remains smooth. And: Aspic keeps for 3-4 days when refrigerated.