Dark Chocolate Mousse
A dense, silky French-style dark chocolate mousse set with just eggs, sugar and a pinch of salt. Rich and intensely chocolatey, with no cream needed.
- Total
- 270 min
- Prep 20 · Cook 10 · Rest 240
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Medium
You'll practice: Whisking · Folding
- No rush
- Sweet
- French
- Creamy
- Stovetop
Instructions
-
Separate the 4 eggs: yolks into one large bowl, whites into another clean, dry bowl. Keep the whites cold.
~5 min
Cold whites whip more easily and hold air better, while separated yolks stay free of fat that would deflate the whites.
-
Melt 150 g dark chocolate with 20 g butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes until just warm to the touch.
~5 min
Gentle indirect heat melts chocolate without scorching, and cooling prevents the yolks from scrambling when added.
-
Whisk the 4 egg yolks and 1 pinch salt into the warm chocolate until glossy and fully combined.
~2 min
The warm chocolate and salt help the yolks emulsify into a smooth, glossy base rather than seizing or graining.
If the melted chocolate feels hotter than lukewarm, wait before adding the yolks, or they will scramble and turn the mousse grainy.
-
Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer, adding 30 g sugar a spoonful at a time, until they hold soft, droopy peaks. Do not take them to stiff, dry peaks.
~5 min
Soft peaks fold easily into the dense chocolate; stiff peaks are dry and break, leaving lumps instead of airy mousse.
Whisking Beat whites on medium speed and stop when the whisk leaves soft, droopy peaks that just hold their shape. Overbeating to stiff, dry peaks makes them impossible to fold in smoothly.
-
Fold one third of the whites into the chocolate to loosen it, then fold in the rest in two additions with a spatula, cutting down and lifting up, just until no white streaks remain. Stop as soon as it is uniform.
~5 min
Folding preserves the air bubbles in the whites, while adding in stages avoids deflating the mixture all at once.
Folding Use a spatula to cut down through the mixture and lift it over, rotating the bowl, until just combined. Stop as soon as no white streaks remain; overfolding deflates the mousse.
-
Spoon the mousse into 4 ramekins, tap them gently on the counter, and chill for at least 4 hours, until set and spoonable.
~240 min