Ravigote
A cold French brasserie sauce — a sharp vinaigrette base loaded with capers, cornichons, shallots, and a tangle of fresh herbs, built to cut through the richness of tête de veau, calf's brain, or any poached meat that needs a confident, acidic foil. Its name comes from the old French for 'to invigorate,' and it earns it.
Ingredients
For 4 servings · tick what is ready
Use the scaled ingredient list. Steps and temperatures stay unchanged; use a larger pan or dish if needed. Seasonings to taste stay to taste.
How to make it
Combine the very finely minced shallot with the white wine vinegar in a small bowl. Let it macerate for at least 5 minutes — the vinegar will temper the raw sharpness of the shallot and take on some of its flavor. This also begins to lightly 'cook' the shallot through acid, softening its texture and edge without any heat.
Whisk the Dijon mustard into the shallot-vinegar mixture. Then stream in the oil slowly while whisking constantly to form a temporary emulsion. Ravigote is not a stable emulsion like a creamy dressing — it will break within minutes, which is fine. The mustard simply helps the oil and vinegar coexist long enough to be well-combined when spooned over food.
Stir in the chopped capers, cornichons, parsley, tarragon, and chervil. Season generously with salt and black pepper. Taste and adjust the acid: ravigote should be assertively tart — the name means 'invigorated,' and a timid ravigote defeats the purpose. Serve immediately or within an hour; the herbs lose their brightness over time.
About this recipe
By ForkRecipe Kitchen · Source: ForkRecipe / FoodML and contributors. Recipe content available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Serving count is an estimate; check quantities in the source recipe.