Legendary French chef Joël Robuchon earned 31 Michelin stars by being the master of simplicity. His chocolate soufflé cannot be beat — just three ingredients and a Swiss meringue that makes it rise above all others. But it had to be made to order. By sneaking two extra ingredients between the bubbles and a clever trick of refrigerating them upside down, you can make these soufflés up to two days in advance and have them rise to nearly the same level of perfection as Robuchon’s.
Serves
4Prep
15 to 20 minsCook
20 minsIngredients
Softened butter, as needed
110g granulated sugar, plus more for ramekins
150g dark chocolate (70%)
300g egg whites
2g cream of tartar (about ¼ tsp)
10g xanthan-sugar blend (see below)
For the xanthan-sugar blend (make extra):
3g xanthan gum
97g Sugar
Whisk together until evenly distributed. You’ll use 10g of this blend in the recipe (yielding a 0.1% xanthan concentration relative to egg whites). Store the rest in an airtight container for future batches.
Steps
1
Melt chocolate: Melt chocolate in a large bowl over simmering water. The bowl needs to be large enough to fold in the meringue later. Set aside.2
Preheat oven: 375 °F (190 °C), convection off.3
Prep ramekins: Butter four 6-ounce (180ml) ramekins with vertical brush strokes. Coat generously with sugar, tapping and rotating to cover the sides and lip.4
Make Swiss meringue: Combine egg whites, sugar, xanthan-sugar blend, and cream of tartar in a stand mixer bowl. Set over the steaming water and whisk to 130 °F (54 °C). Transfer to the stand mixer and whip on high to soft peaks. Better to underwhip than overwhip.5
Fold meringue into chocolate: Fold half the meringue into the chocolate, then gently fold in the rest. Fill ramekins to about 1 cm below the rim. Knock on the counter to level.6
Refrigerate and flip: Refrigerate 5 minutes, then invert ramekins onto a sheet tray. Refrigerate for up to 48 hours.7
Bake & serve: Flip right side up from the fridge into the preheated oven. Bake approximately 20 minutes—soufflés should nearly double the ramekin height. I aim for a core temp of 203 °F (95 °C). If cracks split open on the top or sides, pull immediately. Serve right away; they begin collapsing immediately and fully deflate in about 10 minutes.
Open in Crouton