Food - Drink
How Long You Should Be Cooking The Pâte à Choux For Gougères
By AUTUMN SWIERS
French cuisine may be famous worldwide for pastries like croissants, pain au chocolat, and eclairs, but gougères are the perfect option for those with a salty tooth who want a light fluffy pastry. The best part is that gougères are relatively easy to make at home, but first, you need to know how to cook pâte à choux, a special, French pastry dough.
Gougères, pronounced GOO-jher-s, are light and airy pastry balls baked with cheese, typically Gruyère or Comté, and they rely on pâte à choux, an essential pastry for many French baked goods. Pâte à choux is made of water, butter, salt, flour and eggs; first the water, butter and salt are brought to a boil, then the flour is mixed in and finally, the eggs are added.
The important part is to make sure all the water has evaporated before you add the eggs, so they incorporate into the dough more easily. Look for a mashed-potato-like texture and a nutty aroma before you add your eggs. Once your dough is done, add your cheese, shape your dough into balls, and pop them in the oven or freeze them to cook at a later date.