French
Chocolate Mousse
A cooked custard base melts into chocolate, then folds into whipped cream for a light set mousse. The eggs are heated to 160°F before the mousse is chilled.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 12 min
- Total
- 37 min
- Servings
- 6
- Difficulty
- Medium
Why you’ll love it
- The egg yolks are cooked with hot milk to at least 160°F so this is not a raw-egg mousse.
- Chocolate melts into the hot custard, which sets the flavor before any cream is added.
- The base has to cool before the whipped cream goes in, or the cream collapses.
- A long chill is what turns it from a soft sauce into a spoonable mousse.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
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Instructions
- 1
Whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar in a bowl until they look thicker and a shade paler.
- 2
Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium until it is steaming and small bubbles form at the edge. Do not boil it.
- 3
Pour the hot milk into the yolks in a slow stream, whisking the whole time.
- 4
Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium-low, stirring constantly, until it thickens enough to coat a spoon and an instant-read thermometer reads at least 160°F, about 4 to 6 minutes. Do not let it boil.
- 5
Take it off the heat. If it is under 160°F, keep stirring over the heat until it gets there. Strain the custard over the chopped chocolate.
- 6
Add the vanilla and salt. Stir until the chocolate is fully melted and the base is smooth. Cool to room temperature, stirring now and then. It should be cool, not warm, before the cream is added.
- 7
Whip the heavy cream with the powdered sugar to soft peaks. Fold the cream into the chocolate base in two additions.
- 8
Spoon into six cups. Cover and chill at least 4 hours, until the mousse is set and holds a spoon.
Pro tips
- A thermometer is the safe stop for the custard. Color alone is not enough.
- If the custard lumps, strain it. The chocolate will still smooth most of it out.
- Soft peaks, not butter, are what you want from the cream. Stop when the cream holds a gentle peak.
Easy substitutions
- semisweet chocolate
- bittersweet chocolate for a darker mousse
- whole milk
- 2 percent milk
- powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar in the cream
Storage and reheating
Storage
Cover and refrigerate up to 3 days. The texture is best on the first and second day.
Reheating
Do not reheat. Serve cold.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 326
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 26 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
Moderate · Stovetop
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A heavy 12-inch skillet
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An air fryer with a real basket
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A half-sheet pan
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Dry cups and a liquid cup
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An instant-read thermometer
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