French Provincial Cooking - Elizabeth David [126]
As for pâtés and terrines, with the exception of the incomparable pâté de foie gras, bought pâtés in England are seldom very satisfactory, and it is not difficult to make your own. If you have no earthenware or fireproof porcelain terrines in which to cook them, this need be no deterrent. For a very small cost enamelled baking tins in all sizes, fireproof glass dishes, or even oblong loaf tins can be bought, and these serve just as well. They don’t look quite so nice on the table, but the pâtés can be turned out on to a dish and sliced for serving.
There is a tendency among English restaurant cooks to put far too much bacon in their pâtés. No doubt this is a legacy of the days of rationing, when bacon was easier to come by than fresh pork. Nowadays there is no need and no reason for it.
TERRINE DE CAMPAGNE
PORK AND LIVER PÂTÉ
This is the sort of pâté you get in French restaurants under the alternative names of pâté maison or terrine du chef.
The ingredients are 1 lb. each of fat pork (belly) and lean veal, lb. of pig’s liver, an after-dinner coffee-cup of dry white wine, 2 tablespoons of brandy, a clove of garlic, half a dozen each of black peppercorns and juniper berries, a teaspoon of ground mace, 4 oz. of fat bacon or, better still, if your butcher will provide it, of either flare fat, or back fat, which is the pork fat often used for wrapping round birds for roasting.
An obliging butcher will usually mince for you the pork, veal and liver, provided he is given due notice. It saves a great deal of time, and I always believe in making my dealers work for me if they will.
To the minced meats, all thoroughly blended, add 2 oz. of the fat bacon or pork fat cut in thin, irregular little dice, the seasonings chopped and blended (half a dessertspoon of salt will be sufficient), and the wine and brandy. Mix very thoroughly and, if there is time, leave to stand for an hour or two before cooking, so that the flavours penetrate the meat. Turn into one large 2-pint capacity terrine, or into 2 or 3 smaller ones, about 2 to 2 inches deep. Cut the remaining fat or bacon into thin strips and arrange it across the top of the pâté. Place the terrines in a baking tin filled with water and cook, uncovered, in a slow oven, Gas No. 2, 310 deg. F. for 1 to 1 hours. The pâtés are cooked when they begin to come away from the sides of the dish.
Take them from the oven, being careful not to spill any of the fat, and leave them to cool. They will cut better if, when the fat has all but set, they are weighted. To do this, cover with greaseproof paper and a board or plate which fits inside the terrine and put a weight on top. However, if this proves impractical, it is not of very great importance. If the terrines are to be kept longer than a week, cover them completely, once they are cold, with a sealing layer of just-melted pure pork lard.
When cooking the pâtés remember that it is the depth of the terrine rather than its surface area which determines the cooking time. The seasonings of garlic and juniper berries are optional.
Serve these pâtés as a first course, with toast or French bread. Some people like butter as well, although they are quite rich enough without.
Lastly, the proportions of meat, liver and seasonings making up the pâtés can be altered to suit individual tastes, but always with due regard to the finished texture of the product. A good pâté is moist and fat without being greasy, and it should be faintly pink inside, not grey or brown. A dry pâté is either the result of overcooking, or of too small a proportion of fat meat having been used. And ideally all the meat for pâtés should be cut up by hand rather than put through the mincing machine, which squeezes and dries the meat. But this is a counsel of perfection which few people nowadays would care to follow.
Alternative proportions for those who like more liver and less meat 1 lb. 2 oz. pig’s liver, 1 lb. belly of pork, lb. lean veal,