Sauce Vénitienne (White Wine Velouté, Shallots, Vinegar, Tarragon, Chervil, Green Butter)

This 3rd generation mother sauce derives from Sauce Velouté and Sauce Vin Blanc. The white wine velouté is fish-based sauce that pairs with any seafood, poultry and most pasta dishes.

2 cups white wine velouté (500 mL)
4 French shallots, minced
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. fresh chervil, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. (1 oz) green butter (30 g)
1 tsp. fresh chervil, chopped
1 tsp. fresh tarragon, chopped
sea salt
white pepper, freshly ground
lemon juice, freshly squeezed

Make the white wine velouté sauce, skipping the "finishing" stage. Cover and simmer on very low heat, whisking occasionally until ready for the next step.

Combine the shallots, wine, vinegar and 1 Tbsp. chervil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by ¾, to about ¼ cup.

Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir in the velouté sauce, and simmer for 5-10 minutes, or until the desired consistency is reached.

To Finish:
Remove from the heat and swirl in the green butter until melted. Season with salt, white pepper, and lemon juice. Garnish with 1 tsp, each of chervil and tarragon. Serve right away.

Makes 2¼ cups.

Green Butter (French Vert d’épinard)
Ordinary butter, softened to a paste and mixed with green spinach, prepared in the following manner: pick over, wash and dry the spinach leaves and pound them in a mortar uncooked. Put the spinach into a very strong cloth, twist the cloth to extract all the juice from the spinach, which should be collected into a little saucepan, set this juice to coagulate in a bain-marie (double boiler) ant turn out onto a fine cloth stretched out over a receptacle. Scrape off the green residue which remains on the cloth with a spoon. This substance is called vert d’épinard (spinach green). To this spinach green add double its weight in butter. Rub this butter through a fine mesh sieve or tammy.