Sauce Gribiche — Cold Egg and Caper Emulsion

Gribiche is the cold sauce that proves the saucier's range extends beyond the stovetop. Built on sieved hard-boiled egg yolk emulsified with oil and vinegar, it occupies the space between vinaigrette and mayonnaise — richer than the first, more textured than the second. The yolks are pushed through a fine drum sieve (tamis) while still warm for the smoothest base, then worked with Dijon mustard and white wine vinegar before oil is streamed in exactly as for mayonnaise. The emulsion holds because cooked yolk lecithin, though less efficient than raw, still binds oil when the yolk is fine enough. The garnish defines the sauce: julienned cornichons, nonpareil capers, chervil, tarragon, parsley, and the cooked whites cut into fine julienne — a detail that separates careful work from sloppy. The finished sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon but loose enough to spoon over proteins. It is the canonical accompaniment to calf's head and poached beef, but also excellent with cold asparagus, artichoke hearts, and poached fish. Gribiche does not keep well — the cooked-yolk emulsion weakens after 6 hours and the herbs darken. Make it the morning of service, hold at 14-16°C, and discard the remainder. The sauce should taste sharply acidic, richly eggy, and punctuated by the salt-brine burst of capers.

• Polish sos tatarski (egg-based cold sauce with pickles)
• Japanese tamago sauce (egg yolk emulsion for yoshoku)
• Turkish çerkez tavuğu sauce (walnut emulsion for cold poultry — same structural role)