Chicken Liver Paté
A smooth chicken liver and bacon paté, full of rich ingredients and probably
not too good for you as a daily nosh but as an occasional treat who cares?
INGREDIENTS
- 350 gm Chicken livers (may also be made with duck liver)
- 150 gm Lardons or chopped smoked streaky bacon
- 250 gm Salted butter
- 200 gm Finely-chopped Onion
- 1 Clove of garlic - chopped (optional)
- 2-3 Bay Leaves or ¼ tsp powdered bay leaf
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- (A little nutmeg and possibly very small quantities of cinammon and ground cloves - experiment)
- 1 Tsp Thyme (fresh if possible - off its woody stalk - otherwise dried)
- 1-3 Tsp Soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp Thick cream
- 1-2 Tbsp Brandy
PREPARATION
Gently sauté the onions, garlic, bacon/lardons and the herbs and spices in the butter until well cooked, but not darkened, then add the chicken livers and cook until their outsides are cooked but their centres are still, just, pink.
Remove the bay leaves and any thyme stalks you missed and tip into a food processor/cup blender with the soy, cream and brandy and whizz thoroughly until smooth. If you are a perfectionist strain through a fine sieve into a large ramekin or similar serving dish, otherwise just tip it out into it (helping with a palette knife). Allow to cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for a minimum of several hours before serving.
This paté will keep for a week in the refrigerator if it is covered with a thin layer of clarified melted butter before refrigeration. If you do this you can put a few peppercorns and bay leaves on top of the paté as garnish before pouring on the butter.
Serve with Melba Toast and a dessert wine such as Sauternes, Tokaji Aszú, or other botrytized late harvest wine.
This is a recipe page on the James Bryant (G4CLF) Web-site.
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