Ham hock croque madame with beer-caramelised onions
This makes two very large croque madames - perfect when you’re in the mood for something rich and comforting. A touch of white miso adds a delicious savoury depth to the béchamel sauce. Of course, there’s no need to add the egg, in which case it would be a croque monsieur. Do not skip the cornichons on the side! They provide much needed sharpness.
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Sandwich
- 20g of butter
- 2 brown onions, finely sliced
- salt
- 100ml of beer, an IPA works well
- 4 slices of sourdough bread
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard, plus extra to serve
- 2 handfuls of ham hock, cooked and shredded
- 100g of Comté cheese, or Gruyère, grated
- oil, for cooking
- 2 medium eggs
- cornichons, to serve
Béchamel
- 500ml of whole milk
- 25g of butter
- 25g of Doves Farm Plain White Flour
- 2 tsp white miso
- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- 50g of low-moisture mozzarella, grated
Method
Caramelise the onions by melting the butter in a frying pan over low heat. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring often, for around 40 minutes, or until deeply caramelised. Add the beer and cook for 5 minutes more, or until all the beer is absorbed
- 20g of butter
- 2 brown onions, finely sliced
- salt
- 100ml of beer, an IPA works well
Preheat the oven to 180ºC
For the béchamel, warm the whole milk in a saucepan over medium heat (this isn’t strictly necessary but will help the milk emulsify better with the butter and ensure your sauce is lump free)
- 500ml of whole milk
Melt the butter in a separate saucepan (large enough to hold all the milk) over medium heat and, once foaming, add the flour. Whisk this together for a couple of minutes, to ensure the flour is cooked out properly
- 25g of butter
- 25g of Doves Farm Plain White Flour
Gradually add ladlefuls of the warm milk, whisking each to incorporate fully before adding the next
Melt in the miso, white pepper and mozzarella, whisking all the time. Cover and set aside
- 2 tsp white miso
- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- 50g of low-moisture mozzarella, grated
Lightly toast the bread on both sides and place two pieces onto a baking tray. Spread two pieces of bread generously with Dijon mustard, then top with the ham hock, caramelised onions and then grated Comté or Gruyère
- 4 slices of sourdough bread
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard, plus extra to serve
- 2 handfuls of ham hock, cooked and shredded
- 100g of Comté cheese, or Gruyère, grated
Top with the remaining pieces of bread, then a thick layer of the béchamel. Bake at 180ºC until the cheese is all melted and it’s warm in the centre (you can test this by probing it with a skewer to see if it comes out warm). It’ll probably take 15 minutes
Immediately place the sandwiches under a hot grill to get the top golden. They should be bubbling and have brown spots on top
Heat a frying pan with a splash of oil and fry the eggs, then serve on top of the sandwiches
- oil, for cooking
- 2 medium eggs
Serve with extra Dijon and the cornichons!
- cornichons, to serve
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