Tremendous Quiche Lorraine
Prep
25m
Cook
55m
Total
80m
Bigly says
Sit down for this one. We need to talk about Quiche Lorraine. The TREMENDOUS Quiche Lorraine. There are people out there — sad people, confused people, people who eat dry toast over the sink — who still say 'real men don't eat quiche.' Wrong. WRONG. Real men eat quiche. Tough guys with the tears in the eyes eat this quiche. They call their mothers. They say, 'Mom, I finally understand the egg.' It happens. The quiche is a UNIFIER. The quiche has done more for civilization than most treaties. Hands down.
And this quiche — the Lorraine, named for a region in northeast France, older than France itself, older than most countries you can name on a map — this is the ORIGINAL quiche. The mother quiche. The quiche from which all other quiches descend. Bacon. Cream. Eggs. Gruyère. A flaky butter crust. That's the whole opera. Most chefs are afraid to leave it alone. They want to ADD things. Spinach. Mushrooms. KALE. Kale in a Quiche Lorraine is a disgrace to quiche. Kale is a disgrace in most places. We don't speak about kale here.
The trick — and a guy named Ramón taught me this, big mustache, ran a bistro in Strasbourg, he didn't smile but he nodded once when I got it right — the trick is to BLIND BAKE the crust. You par-bake it. You give it a head start before the custard goes in. Skip that step, you get a soggy bottom, and a soggy bottom is the mark of an amateur. It sounds like a problem and it IS a problem. We are not amateurs here. We are professionals. We blind bake. We win. End of discussion.
Ingredients
- 1.25 cupsall-purpose flour
- 1/2 tspkosher salt (for crust)
- 8 tbsp (1 stick)unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 3-4 tbspice water
- 8 ozthick-cut bacon, chopped(thick-cut, none of the flimsy stuff)
- 1 mediumyellow onion, finely diced
- 4large eggs
- 2egg yolks
- 1.25 cupsheavy cream
- 1/2 cupwhole milk
- 3/4 tspkosher salt (for custard)
- 1/2 tspblack pepper
- 1/8 tspfreshly grated nutmeg(freshly grated, the pre-ground stuff is dust)
- 1.5 cupsGruyère cheese, shredded
- 1 tbspfresh chives, chopped (for serving)
Steps
- 1
Make the crust: pulse flour and salt in a food processor (or whisk in a bowl). Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with pea-sized bits of butter.
- 2
Drizzle in ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing just until the dough holds together when squeezed. Do not overwork.
- 3
Turn the dough onto plastic wrap, shape into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes (or overnight).
- 4
Roll the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to a 9-inch tart pan or pie dish, press into the corners, and trim the edges. Prick the bottom all over with a fork. Chill 15 more minutes.
- 5
Preheat oven to 400°F. Line the chilled crust with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans.
- 6
Blind bake 18-20 minutes until the edges look set and lightly golden. Remove the parchment and weights and bake another 6-8 minutes until the bottom is dry and pale gold. Set aside. Reduce oven to 350°F.
- 7
Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp, 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate with a slotted spoon, leaving 1 tablespoon of fat in the pan.
- 8
Add the onion to the skillet and cook over medium-low heat 6-8 minutes, until soft and lightly golden. Let cool slightly.
- 9
Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, cream, milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a large bowl until completely smooth.
- 10
Scatter the bacon, cooked onion, and shredded Gruyère evenly in the par-baked crust. Place the tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet.
- 11
Slowly pour the custard over the filling, stopping just below the top of the crust to avoid spills.
- 12
Bake at 350°F for 35-45 minutes, until the custard is set around the edges with a slight jiggle in the very center.
- 13
Cool on a rack at least 20 minutes — the custard finishes setting as it rests. Garnish with fresh chives and slice into wedges. Serve warm or at room temperature.
One more thing
That's the quiche. A little patience, a little butter, a little bacon, and you've got a French masterpiece sitting on your counter that makes brunch restaurants weep into their $22 eggs. Slice it cold the next day, eat it standing at the fridge in your robe — that's living, no judgment here. Pair it with a green salad and a glass of something cold and you've officially passed civilization. People come up to me on the street, they say, 'Bigly, I made the quiche, my whole family is changed.' Of course they are. It's the quiche. Now go eat.
★ QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE? ★
Ask Bigly about Tremendous Quiche Lorraine.
Substitutions, what to serve it with, why other chefs are wrong about it. He's got opinions.
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