Let's discover together the foie gras!

Let’s start with a short history of foie gras… Foie gras, one of the world’s most distinguished delicacies, was born along with the ancient chronicles of mankind. In 2500 BC the Egyptians began this process. Egyptians, Hebrews and Greeks used soaked wheat to feed the waterfowl, while the Romans used figs from which the word “liver” originated. The result was an enlarged fatty liver which has been the highlight of the finest gastronomy in the world for over 4,000 years. In the Roman time, the foie gras was one of the most appreciated meal and it production started in the French South West, after the invasion of Aquitaine Region by the Roman Legion. Much more rich, buttery and delicate than a regular duck or goose liver, it is a much sought after French gastronomical experience.

How to prepare foie gras… Foie gras is made from the liver of a duck or goose. Goose liver or duck? This is according to taste: the first is known as the finest and it is often more expensive. The second is “more distinctive “and melts more easily during cooking. To prepare successful foie gras, two steps are essential.  First, it is “denervated” (to remove the blood vessels of foie gras)the foie gras.; it is quite difficult for a person who does not much used to remove the blood vessels of foie gras.  The second step, and this is the most difficult step, you must season it.  The seasoning of foie gras is a matter of accuracy: do not hesitate to weigh and measure each ingredient!

Choose a goose foie gras (600g minimum) or duck (400g minimum); smaller, it may be a bit difficult. Before starting to work, leave the liver at room temperature for about an hour.

Take your liver and open the two lobes. You will notice that they are not the same size (usually it is rather a third and two thirds).  Help yourself with a fork to remove the main vein that connects all the branches of the nerves, allowing you to achieve a perfect skinning. Scratch traces of blood. If during this first stage hurt your lobes do not worry, they will replenish during cooking.

When you have finished denervation, gather the pieces and carefully follow these steps: 10 g salt per kilogram of liver and 3 g pepper per kg of liver. Preferably fresh ground pepper. You can complete the seasoning flavor your liver with truffles, a sweet wine such as porto (1 tablespoon per kilogram), cognac (1 teaspoon per kilogram). Also select some spices to taste: nutmeg, French four spices (2 tablespoons ground white pepper, 1 tablespoon ground ginger, 1 tablespoon ground nutmeg, 1 tablespoon ground cloves), possibly sugar (1 teaspoon per kilo). Do well to enter the seasoning with your fingers and place your preparation, protected in plastic wrap, in refrigerator.  Let stand overnight.

One simple way of preparing foie gras…To make ballotin of foie gras, lay a large piece of cling film on your work surface. Take the foie gras and place on the piece of cling film. Wrap the cling film over the foie gras and roll into a sausage shape, squeezing both ends of the cling film very tightly and rolling four times. Fold the edges of the cling film over the foie gras ballottine. Expel the air and make sure that the package is completely sealed. 

 

Fill a large saucepan with water and, using a cook’s thermometer, heat the water to 80°C. Make sure your water is and remains at a temperature of 80 ° C. Let your small ballotin in the water 10 minutes if you want a foie gras half cooked (mi-cuit) and 15 minutes for a cooked liver. Made to cool the small ballotin in a bowl filled with ice for half an hour, and place it on a plate in the refrigerator where it will rest 24 hours before being eaten.

How to serve your foie gras…Get out your foie gras from the refrigerator with 20 minutes before serving to your guests. To determine clearly, use a thin-bladed knife or a lyre, you wipe between each cut.

How to best accompany your foie gras…

Foie gras is normally served as a starter (prior to the main course). In some cases it is the main course, but this is relatively rare. For most people, foie gras is too fat to be a main course.

Bread: toasted bread, rye bread and you can dare sweet brioche or downright gingerbread.

If you serve it, as a main dish, try the original associations by a few leaves of lettuce, although this is mainly for decoration. If you used lettuce or salad, it should be without salad dressing because salad dressing would clash with the taste of the foie gras. In general, sweet-sour items go best with foie gras. For example, cranberry jelly or oriental chutney often finds favour.

In any case, remember that the centerpiece of any foie gras dish is the foie gras itself. However, the plate should be dominated by the foie gras itself.

Wine:  sweet wine, Sauternes, a Monbazillac, or a Frontignan Jurançon. But it is also consistent with the reds wines from South West as a Cahors or Bergerac, or a Gewurztraminer from Alsace.

Bon appetit!