What is the culinary term for a mixture of egg yolks and cream used to finish and thicken some sauces off the heat?

What is the culinary term for a mixture of egg yolks and cream used to finish and thicken some sauces off the heat?

• A. A mixture of egg yolks and cream added off the heat to finish and thicken some sauces.
• B. Emulsion
• C. Reduction
• D. Roux

Answer: (A)

Finishing a sauce with a mixture of egg yolks and cream off the heat is a finishing technique known as a liaison. This option describes the exact practice: you whisk egg yolks with cream and add them to the sauce off the heat to enrich and lightly thicken without curdling. The key is temperature control—adding the mixture off the heat (or tempering it with a small amount of hot sauce first) prevents the yolks from scrambling while giving the sauce a smooth, glossy finish. Other terms don’t fit because emulsion refers to a stable blend of fat and liquid, reduction to concentrating liquid by evaporation, and roux to a flour-and-fat thickener cooked on the stove. The described method specifically captures the finishing technique of a liaison.

Finishing a sauce with a mixture of egg yolks and cream off the heat is a finishing technique known as a liaison. This option describes the exact practice: you whisk egg yolks with cream and add them to the sauce off the heat to enrich and lightly thicken without curdling. The key is temperature control—adding the mixture off the heat (or tempering it with a small amount of hot sauce first) prevents the yolks from scrambling while giving the sauce a smooth, glossy finish.

Other terms don’t fit because emulsion refers to a stable blend of fat and liquid, reduction to concentrating liquid by evaporation, and roux to a flour-and-fat thickener cooked on the stove. The described method specifically captures the finishing technique of a liaison.