Carrot Sauce v.1

This sauce has an intensity to it-both sweet and deeply earthy/carroty. The color adds a burnished look to the plate, and this technique is pretty versatile. I know this sauce is really good, as I once watched a couple at my house eating it, and when the wife asked the husband to get something for her, she ran her bread through his sauce and got half of it. When he called her on it, she was unrepentant. Next time they were over and I made the sauce, I doubled the amount and put some in a pitcher next to her. It all disappeared.

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

In a tallish saucepan, warm the carrot juice over medium-high heat. When the juice begins to heat, you will see it clouding up. This will thicken and begin to form a “scum”. This scum is bitter, and will cloud the sauce, which is why you want to be diligent in getting it out of the sauce. Push the pot to the side of the burner so one side of the pan is off the heat. This allows for the scum to not get boiled into the sauce.

Using as fine a strainer as you can get, skim off the scum. When no more foam appears pour the juice through the cleaned strainer into a clean non-reactive bowl. I actually pour it through a cloth napkin I wet before hand with water to get out all the coagulants.

Clean the pan or get a smaller saucepan out and heat over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil or butter, and as soon as it is heated, add the shallots and cook until translucent and fragrant.

Add the curry and cinnamon mix, and stir to mix it with the oil. Wait for the color to deepen and the fragrance to come up. At this point, add the clarified carrot juice to the pan and bring just to the boil. Immediately reduce the heat so the sauce just barely simmers. Reduce the sauce to a slightly syrupy consistency.

Check the pan frequently as this happens and stir as needed to avoid scorching the sauce. A pan with a very small footprint and surface area is the ideal for this to avoid the sauce reducing too fast and burning. The higher sugar content of the juice means these types of sauces may be more apt to burn when not watched.

When the sauce reaches the desired consistency, season with salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

The sauce is now ready to use.

Chef’s Notes:

This technique will work with many fruit and vegetable juices. Although it sounds odd, it is a refreshing change from the usual stock and butter sauces. The colors can be vibrant and the flavors intense (Think reduced beet juice with perhaps a touch of orange juice to mellow the earthiness.) A variety of juices can be found at juice bars and even in the grocery stores. The juices contain both pectin and sugars that act as thickeners when cooked. It is sometimes necessary to balance the sauce with a pinch of sugar or a dash of vinegar.

When the juice begins to heat up, you will see it start to cloud up, and then form a scum on the surface. These are proteins that can cause bitterness, and it is imperative to skim and filter these out. While these sauces are very low fat and high in minerals, these sauces are high in sugars and may not be good for those watching their blood sugar.

Yield: ½ pint

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen