Tomato consommé

Ingredients

For the consommé:
1.8kg tomatoes
80ml white wine vinegar
20g sugar
1 large clove garlic
60ml lemon juice
6 fresh basil leaves
1 sprig tarragon blanched
420ml clear chicken stock
Salt
Celery salt
Worcester sauce
Tabasco
Black pepper

For the garnish: 200g potatoes
125g carrots
125g courgettes
150g tomatoes
56g Vermicelli (pasta) noodles
12 leaves of fresh coriander

Method

For the consommé:
Cut the tomatoes in half and squeeze out the seeds otherwise the consommé will be too acidic and on liquidising the seeds will cause clouding.

Boil together with the vinegar and sugar in a shallow pan until the liquid becomes syrupy. Cool.

To prepare the tarragon leaves scald in boiling water for two minutes strain and refresh. Strain again and reserve.

Liquidise the consommé ingredients until the mixture becomes a smooth pink pulp.

Strain through a fine mesh. Liquidise and sieve again.

Pour the tomato mixture into a piece of muslin draped over a colander sitting on a bowl. Allow to drip through into the bowl in the refrigerator. Filtration will take at least an hour.

Do not press the tomato pulp through the cloth as this will cloud the consommé.

For the garnish:
Cut out 24 little potato balls using a solferino cutter or Parisienne knife. Cook in a little boiling salted water until tender. Cool.

Repeat the process for 18 small carrot and courgette balls.

Blanch peel and dice the tomatoes into ¼in pieces.

I like to finish this dish by adding a few fine pasta noodles to the consommé. Cook to al dente and refresh in cold water. Strain and dice into ½in pieces.

To achieve the best results the soup plates should be as cold as possible for this dish.

To serve pour the consommé over the garnish and finely shred over the coriander leaves.