Country Pâté
Making homemade pâté, of course, is all about grinding. Here again, you can always buy a ready-made pâté from a specialty store, but making your own allows you total command of the quality of the ingredients and the freshness of the finished product. This recipe is for a country-style pâté, which means that it’s more rustic in texture and appearance than a smoother, mousse-like pâté. Country-style pâté usually includes chicken liver as well as pork and veal. The mixture is ground coarsely, and small cubes of meat, bits of fruit, and nuts—called garnishes—are folded in before the whole thing is packed into a terrine and baked. Maintaining the desired texture depends on making sure that all the ingredients—as well as the grinding equipment itself—are well chilled before you grind. Place everything in the freezer (the grinder for a half hour, the meat for fifteen minutes or so), so it’s very cold, then grind the meats according to their fat content, starting with the fattiest, as these are most likely to lose their structure and become pasty if ground when warm. After baking the terrine in a water bath (bain marie), the final, vital step is weighting the pâté to compress it, eliminating excess moisture and fat and giving it a sliceable texture. Once the terrine is compressed and well chilled, unmold it, then slice with a serrated knife, which will cut cleanly without marring the shape. Serve with its classic accompaniments: good bread, a flavorful grainy mustard, and cornichons.
Recipe information
Yield
Serves 6 to 12
Ingredients
For ground meat
For garnishes
For lining mold
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare ground meat Heat the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add shallots and cook until translucent, stirring constantly to prevent browning, about 6 minutes. Place in a large mixing bowl to cool. Meanwhile, grind the meats on medium speed with the fine die, making sure not to put too much meat into the feed tube at once. Grind the fatback first, before it becomes too warm, followed by the chicken livers, then the raw meats. Grind the cooked ham last (it has the firmest texture and least amount of fat and will be able to grind well even though the grinder parts are no longer as cold).
Step 2
Add shallots and garnishes Stir in the shallots, along with all of the garnishes, except the bay leaves. Add 2 teaspoons salt and mix to evenly distribute. To test for seasoning, heat some oil in a small skillet and cook a small amount of pâté mixture thoroughly. Taste and adjust seasoning, if desired.
Step 3
Prepare mold Heat oven to 400°F with rack in center. Line a 1 1/2-quart, 4 by 13-inch terrine with bacon, slightly overlapping the pieces and leaving an overhang of about 4 inches on one side (most likely you will need to use one whole piece and a half piece laid end to end, in order to have a piece long enough to line mold with desired overhang).
Step 4
Fill mold Bring a medium pot of water to a boil while you fill the mold. Spoon some of the meat mixture in the bottom of the mold and press firmly into the corners. Continue with remaining meat, making sure to distribute it firmly and evenly as you work so there are no gaps or air bubbles. When all meat is in the mold, press to flatten meat evenly. Fold over bacon, beginning with the long sides first, then the short ends. Arrange bay leaves on top. Cover with terrine lid.
Step 5
Bake Place terrine in a roasting pan and add boiling water until the level reaches halfway up the sides of the terrine. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted near the middle registers 165°F, about 1 1/2 hours.
Step 6
Compress pâté Cut a piece of cardboard to fit the interior of the terrine mold. Wrap cardboard tightly in aluminum foil. Remove terrine from roasting pan. Remove lid, and place terrine on wire rack set on a rimmed baking sheet. Place prepared cardboard on top of the terrine. Weight with canned items or other heavy objects. (This will allow excess fat to spill over the sides of the terrine as the pâté compresses.) Refrigerate terrine for 8 hours. (Terrine can be refrigerated up to 3 days; remove cardboard and weight after 8 hours, then cover tightly with lid or plastic wrap.)
Step 7
Unmold pâté Unmold terrine by inverting onto a platter or cutting board. If necessary, dip terrine in warm water and run a paring knife around edge to loosen before inverting.
Step 8
Serve With a serrated knife, cut pâté into 1/2-inch-thick slices, and serve with toasted baguette slices, grainy mustard, and cornichons.
Equipment
Step 9
You will need a 1 1/2-quart terrine that is about 4 by 13 inches. The terrine is lined with bacon in the recipe below to add another layer of flavor; be sure there is adequate overhang on one long side of the dish, so you can wrap it over the top of the mixture, covering the entire surface.
