Eels in Green Sauce (Escoffier A)

Ingredients

• 500 g small eels, skinned and cleaned
• 50 g butter
• 100 g sorrel leaves, cleaned
• 25 g young nettle leaves, very tender
• 10 g parsley
• 5 g salad burnet (pimprenelle)
• 5 g green sage
• 5 g summer savory (sarriette)
• 2 g tarragon
• a pinch green thyme
• 500 ml white wine
• 8 g salt
• black pepper, to taste
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 filet fresh lemon juice

Instructions

1. Cut the skinned eels into 5-centimetre sections.
2. Melt the butter in a wide pan, then add the cleaned sorrel leaves, tender nettle leaves, parsley, salad burnet, green sage, summer savory, and tarragon. Cook gently until the herbs soften and release their flavours. Add a pinch of green thyme.
3. Add the eel sections to the melted herbs and let them stiffen slightly in the heat. Pour in the white wine, season with salt and a little pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Take the pan from the heat. Beat the egg yolks lightly and temper them by stirring in a spoonful of the hot cooking liquid, then slowly stir the yolks back into the sauce to thicken it. Finish with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
5. Transfer to a serving dish and allow to cool. These eels are traditionally served cold.