Vol-au-vent
The classic vol-au-vent of French cuisine consists of a very light puff pastry case (supposedly so light that it could fly off in the lightest puff of wind) with a cream-based filling.
There are many different recipes for fillings. This version uses bacon, chicken, mushrooms and leeks.
There are many different recipes for fillings. This version uses bacon, chicken, mushrooms and leeks.
118K 41 4.1
Last modified on: October 20th 2013
Keywords for this recipe:Puff pastryCream basedFillingMushroomsFor 4 people, you will need:
- 1
1 leek - 2
½ onion - 3
300 g mushrooms - 4
½ lemon - 5
150 g small pieces of bacon - 6
1 tablespoon vinegar - 7
200 g chicken breast - 8
250 ml cream - 9
6 tablespoons olive oil - 10
4 vol-au-vents cases - 11
salt - 12
pepper - Total weight: 1,433 grams
How long does it take?
Time required for this recipe:
| Preparation | Cooking | Start to finish |
|---|---|---|
| 40 min. | 43 min. | 1 hour 23 min. |
At what time:
- When will I finish if I start the recipe at ... ?
When should I start for the recipe to be ready at ... ? - Work this out...
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 20 min.
Stage 2 - 5 min.
Pour 2 tablespoonsful of olive oil into a frying pan on medium heat. When hot, add the chopped onion, salt and pepper. Cook for 1 minute without colouring.
Add the leek, salt and pepper again, stir well and cook until the leek is just cooked but still a fresh green.
Set aside.
Add the leek, salt and pepper again, stir well and cook until the leek is just cooked but still a fresh green.
Set aside.
Stage 3 - 5 min.
Wash and chop the mushrooms into small pieces (these are shiitake, but you can use others, particularly wild ones: morels, chanterelles, etc.).
Stage 4 - 5 min.
Using the same pan on medium heat, pour in 2 tablespoonsful of olive oil. When hot, add the mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook briefly (they should not have time to soften much).
At the last minute, add the juice of half a lemon.
Set aside.
At the last minute, add the juice of half a lemon.
Set aside.
Stage 5 - 8 min.
Still using the same pan, fry 150 g small pieces of bacon.
At the last minute, add 1 tablespoon vinegar.
Set aside.
At the last minute, add 1 tablespoon vinegar.
Set aside.
Stage 6 - 10 min.
Cut 200 g chicken breast into small pieces.
Pour 2 tablespoonsful of olive oil into the frying pan and fry the chicken pieces after seasoning.
Pour 2 tablespoonsful of olive oil into the frying pan and fry the chicken pieces after seasoning.
Stage 7 - 2 min.
When they are browned, tip the bacon and mushrooms back into the pan on top.
Stage 8 - 15 min.
Stage 9 - 5 min.
Leave the sauce to reduce on low heat.
.When the mixture has thickened, add the leek then turn off the heat (this will help the leek to stay green).
.When the mixture has thickened, add the leek then turn off the heat (this will help the leek to stay green).
Stage 10 - 8 min.
Reheat the 4 vol-au-vents cases for 5 minutes in the oven. Place a pastry case on each plate and fill until slightly overflowing.
Serve immediately on its own or with pilau rice, for example.
Serve immediately on its own or with pilau rice, for example.
Remarks
The vol-au-vent was invented by the great chef Antonin Carême in the early 19th century.
I maintain (admittedly with a certain caution) that the French "bouchées à la reine" (literally, the Queen's mouthfuls) are simply small, bite-sized vol-au-vents.
I maintain (admittedly with a certain caution) that the French "bouchées à la reine" (literally, the Queen's mouthfuls) are simply small, bite-sized vol-au-vents.
And to drink?
A light Beaujolais.
Keeping
The filling will keep for several days in the fridge, but once the vol-au-vent is filled, only a few
Nutritional information
| Whole recipe | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 3,030 Kcal or 12,686 Kj | 77 gr | 59 gr | 276 gr |
| 152 % | 30 % | 6 % | 42 % |
| Per 100 g | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 212 Kcal or 888 Kj | 5 gr | 4 gr | 19 gr |
| 11 % | 2 % | <1 % | 3 % |
| Per person | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 758 Kcal or 3,174 Kj | 19 gr | 15 gr | 69 gr |
| 38 % | 7 % | 1 % | 10 % |
How much will it cost?
Source
Home made.
This recipe uses (among others)
 | Mushrooms: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Penne with Mushrooms, Mushroom bourguignon, Rabbit with mustard, Sautéed oyster mushrooms, Mixed salad, ... All |
 | Cream: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Chicken and mushroom pie, Lille style chicken, Bounty-style tart for Alison, Nicholas's fish, Tuna pasta, ... All |
 | Chicken breast: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Chinese style chicken, Chicken pie, Sautéed turmeric chicken with mushrooms, Paté en croute (terrine in a pie crust), Sliced chicken with mushrooms and broccoli, ... All |
 | Small pieces of bacon: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Gratin du Nord, Small cheese and bacon rolls , Aperitif rolls, How to cook bacon and remove excess fat, Eggs en Cocotte à la Française, ... All |
Other recipes you may also like
Pear tart with almond cream
This is a very quick and easy tart to make, as everything (or almost) can be done in advance. A piece of sweetcrust pastry, some almond cream and pears? You have "everything you need".333K4.3 1 hour 14 min. March 17th 2011
Finger biscuits
These small biscuits, that look a bit like savoy biscuits, are delicious alone or with Champagne, but are also the base for charlottes or Tiramisu.311K5 50 min. July 30th 2021
Macarons (the original French macaroons)
This recipe really is "of the moment": the success of these small, highly-coloured cakes, in an infinite variety of flavours, is impressive. It's a recipe which needs some care, in order to produce a result worthy of a professional pastrychef. No problem, I will guide you through the recipe,...1.5M 714.6 2 hours 38 min. October 3rd 2019
Bouquet garni
Used very frequently in French cuisine, a secret of French chefs, it adds flavour to a lot of recipes, and it's easy to prepare. The basic principle is to make a small bundle of herbs, bind them in green leek leaves and to tie it up, so that the whole thing can be removed and discarded easily after...376K3.5 12 min. March 21th 2017
Fruit coulis (fruit purée)
Contrary to what people usually think, coulis is not just a simple fruit purée with sugar. Of course, this is the general principle, but it's possible to make something much better and more refined. This recipe is for a strawberry coulis (see below for other fruits): how to make it, but also how...727K 44 24 min. October 20th 2012
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2022-07-03)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post your comment or question
Follow this recipe
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.