Quenelles, like gefilte fish (page 36), are fish balls, but they are elegant fish balls, containing cream, herbs, and butter. As a result, they’re more expensive and more caloric than gefilte fish, but faster and easier to make. Also like gefilte fish, they traditionally were made from freshwater fish (especially pike), but you can use any delicate white-fleshed fish you like. This is a big, fancy first course, best followed with something light and simple, unless you’re planning an elegant dinner. Chervil is the best possible herb to use here, but it is almost always difficult to find; dill is the standard second choice.

　　

Ingredients

makes 6 to 8 servings

　　2 to 3 pounds fish heads, bones, and skin

　　1 onion, peeled and quartered

　　2 carrots, roughly chopped

　　2 celery stalks, roughly chopped

　　1 bay leaf

　　10 peppercorns

　　Salt and black pepper to taste

　　Stalks from a bunch of dill or chervil

　　1 1/2 pounds assorted white fish fillets, carefully picked over for bones, rinsed, and patted dry

　　1 cup snipped fresh dill leaves or minced chervil

　　2 egg whites

　　1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

　　1 1/2 cups heavy cream

　　4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, cut into bits

　　

Step 1

Combine the first 8 ingredients with water to cover in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes while you prepare the fish.

　　

Step 2

Combine the fish fillets and 1/2 cup of the dill in a food processor and pulse until the fish is chopped and blended. Add the egg whites and process until just blended, no longer. Add the lemon juice, 1 cup of the cream, and a bit of salt and pepper and, again, process briefly, until the mixture is combined and smooth, but no longer.

　　

Step 3

When the stock is done, strain it into a clean pot and bring it to a simmer. Use 2 tablespoons or your hands to form 8 to 16 ovals of the fish mixture, depending on size. Place them in the pot and simmer for 5 minutes. Turn them and simmer for 5 minutes more. Remove the quenelles with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Place on warmed plates and cover with foil.

　　

Step 4

Boil the stock until it is reduced to about 1 cup. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the butter a bit at a time. When the sauce thickens, add the remaining cream and 1/4 cup of the remaining dill. Stir and heat through, but do not boil.

　　

Step 5

Serve the quenelles hot, with the sauce, garnished with the remaining dill.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.