I consider myself to be more of a traditional oven-with-gas-hob kind of girl. So when LG recently gave me a Neochef® Microwave Oven with Smart Inverter Technology to try out, I am not ashamed to admit that I was highly skeptical and a little bit intimidated. I remember a microwave cooking course that I attended with my sisters in the 90’s, and even then I was not terribly impressed with the results. But technology is making strides and not being one to shy away from a challenge; I decided to attempt that most intricate and fail-prone of French dishes: the soufflé. Certainly, you’d be able to make anything in a convection microwave if you can create a soft, cloudy, cheesy soufflé. So, hold on to your aprons ladies, you’re in for a surprise!
I chose Faith Durand’s authentic French recipe via Kitchn, with a few slight variations (recipe below).
At first, I was a terribly worried when after 10 minutes I couldn’t see that anything was happening. But these little bowls of loveliness rose to the occasion, and at about 19 minutes they were golden and delicious.
Suffice it to say; I am super impressed with my Neochef! And a firm pat on the back for my own culinary ability as well – I conquered my fear of making a soufflé!
The Neochef has proven it can bake, but this baby can do so much more. It makes yogurt, defrost, has a Healthy Fry feature, and an awesome Easyclean Coating inside that helps to keep things safe and hygienic.
On top of all its features, this is a beautiful appliance as well.
How to Make a Soft and Delicious Cheesy Soufflé
You will Need:
- 4 Large Egg White
- 3 Large Yolks
- 1/2 Cup of Grated Cheese (I used Emmenthaler and Gruyere, but as she says, any one or a combination of cheeses will do)
- 6 Tablespoons of Flour
- 3.5 Tablespoons of Butter
- 1.5 Cups of Milk
- Salt, Pepper, Nutmeg & Cayenne Pepper
- Butter or Spray & Cook for the souffle dish
- Extra Parmesan for to coat the dish
Method:
Step 1: Grease the souffle dish or ramekins and sprinkle with a little bit of extra Parmesan.
Step 2: Make a Bechamel sauce: melt the butter in a saucepan. Remove from the heat and add the flour, stirring constantly to prevent lumps from forming. Add a little bit of milk while stirring. Put back on the stove and keep adding milk, while constantly stirring with a whisk. The sauce will thicken quickly after a few minutes. Keep whisking until it has the consistency of porridge and then remove from the heat.
Step 3: Spoon the bechamél sauce into a mixing bowl and allow to cool for a few minutes.
Step 4: Once the sauce is cool enough to the touch, stir the egg yolks into the sauce.
Step 5: Next, stir in the cheese. Add salt, pepper, nutmeg and Cayenne pepper to taste.
Step 6: Place the egg whites in a clean mixing bowl and beat until they form stiff peaks.
Step 7: Add one spoonful of the egg whites into the bechamel-mixture, mixing thoroughly.
Step 8: Now carefully fold the rest of the egg whites into the mixtures. This is where the secret to a great souffle lies: the egg whites are holding all the air, so you have to make sure that you mix them with the rest of the ingredients without losing that air.
Step 9: Carefully spoon the mixture into the prepared soufflé dish or ramekins. The batter should fill the dish about halfway.
Step 10: And this is where the Neochef comes in: you will notice that I didn’t start this recipe with an instruction to heat the oven. The heat in a convection microwave is instant, so once you’re ready to start baking your soufflé, put it in and switch it on – it’s super efficient!
The recipe says “broil for 3 minutes”, which refers to the top grill element. After that, without opening the door, change the setting to convection with a temperature of 200°C and bake for 20 minutes or until a testing pin comes out clean.
A soufflé has to be eaten immediately so make sure that everything is ready for supper. Serve with a side salad.
I hope that I have inspired you to try and make a soufflé at home. It’s a delicious light meal and looks fantastic too. And if you can make it in an LG Neochef®, all the better!
This post and the Neochef® was sponsored by LG.
