A mousse (, ; ) is a soft prepared food that incorporates air bubbles to give it a light and airy texture. Depending on preparation techniques, it can range from light and fluffy to creamy and thick. A mousse may be sweet or savory.
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History

Various desserts consisting of whipped cream in pyramidal shapes with coffee, liqueurs, chocolate, fruits, and so on either in the mixture or poured on top were called ('cream in a foam'), ('foamy cream'), ('foam'), and so on,M. Emy (officier), ''L'Art de bien faire les glaces d'office; ou, Les vrais principes pour congeler tous les rafraichissemens, etc'', Paris, 176
p. 222
/ref> as early as 1768.Jim Chevallier, ''A History of the Food of Paris: From Roast Mammoth to Steak Frites'', 2018, , p. 195 Modern mousses are a continuation of this tradition.

Types

Sweet

Sweet mousses are typically made with whipped egg whites,

whipped cream Whipped cream, also known as Chantilly cream or (), is high-fat dairy cream that has been aerated by whisking until it becomes light, fluffy, and capable of holding its shape. This process incorporates air into the cream, creating a semi-soli ...

, or both, and flavored with one or more of chocolate, coffee, caramel, puréed fruits, or various herbs and spices, such as mint or vanilla. In the case of some chocolate mousses, egg yolks are often stirred into melted chocolate to give the final product a richer mouthfeel. Mousses are also typically chilled before being served, which gives them a denser texture. Additionally, mousses are often frozen into silicone molds and unmolded to give the mousse a defined shape. Sweetened mousse is served as a dessert or used as an airy cake filling. It is sometimes stabilized with gelatin.

Savory

Savory mousses can be made from meat, fish,

shellfish Shellfish, in colloquial and fisheries usage, are exoskeleton-bearing Aquatic animal, aquatic invertebrates used as Human food, food, including various species of Mollusca, molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish ...

foie gras ; (, ) is a specialty food product made of the liver of a Domestic duck, duck or Domestic goose, goose. According to French law, ''foie gras'' is defined as the liver of a duck or goose fattened by ''gavage'' (force feeding). ''Foie gras'' i ...

, cheese, or vegetables. Hot mousses often get their light texture from the addition of beaten egg whites. Molded and shaped fish mousse with bread and butter remains a popular meal of American cuisine, if not a party dip, although it is not as common as it was in the 1950s.

Gallery

File:Lemon mousse with peach compote (4455679740).jpg, Lemon mousse with peach compote File:Smoked salmon and dill mousse in cucumber cups.jpg, Savory salmon mousse File:Mousse cake 7.jpg, Mousse cake File:Debesmanna.JPG, Redcurrant semolina mousse

References