Step by step recipe

Stage 1

2 min.

De-veining:

Take the liver out of the fridge at least two hours beforehand, so it will be at room temperature and soft.

Rinse it thoroughly under warm water to eliminate any remaining traces of blood, then dry it with absorbant paper.

Stage 2

Pull the two lobes apart gently.

Stage 3

20 min.

Pull the veins carefully towards you and remove them, without breaking or cutting, by passing your fingers underneath and following them right to the end.

This is the first tricky stage of the recipe. Your hands will get very greasy (to be expected with a foie gras, you might say), and you should not leave any veins, or as few as possible.

Stage 4

1 min.

You might feel more comfortable working in fine rubber (surgical) gloves.

I recommend using a vegetable peeler as the point does the job quite well.

Another tip: have a bowl or a large cup in front of you and scrape the sticky veins off the blade into this as you work.

Stage 5

1 min.

Once done, don't worry about the forlorn look of the liver – it's past caring!

Stage 6

30 min.

To remove any traces of blood, put the liver in cold water with a tablepoonful of coarse salt and some ice cubes added, for half an hour.

Then rinse the liver under running cold water and dry on absorbant paper.

Stage 7

1 min.

Line a wide oven-proof (gratin) dish with cooking-grade plastic film.

This is not essential, it just makes cleaning the dish afterwards much easier.

Stage 8

2 min.

Spread the liver out in the dish in a single layer, as far as possible.

Stage 9

2 min.

Seasoning:

Start by adding the alcohol. Trickle a few shlurps of Armagnac and Porto over the liver.

You only need a little, otherwise the flavour of the booze will dominate over that of the liver, which is a shame.

Note: Prefer white alcohols instead of red ones, because red ones turn liver to grey when cooking.

Stage 10

4 min.

Weigh and mix the seasonings: salt, pepper, sugar and "quatre épices" spice blend (see below*). Do calculate these quantities carefully and respect the following proportions:7 g salt and 2 g pepper for 600 g liver.

The best way to do this is by using precise scales, but you can also measure them: 1 level teaspoon = 5 g of fine salt or 2.5 g of ground pepper (or near enough).

This is the second tricky stage of the recipe. It is important to use the right quantity of salt for the weight of liver. To help you, here is a little automatic calculator.

Stage 11

2 min.

After weighing the correct amounts, mix the seasonings and scatter the mixture over the liver.

To spread them more evenly, scatter half, then turn the pieces of liver before adding the other half.

Stage 12

12 hours

Cover the seasoned liver in its dish with a plastic film and refrigerate overnight.

Please note: the liver's maturing time in the fridge is important for the flavour. If you don't do this, it will still be good, but not quite as good as if left overnight.

Stage 13

2 hours

Next day, the liver is ready to be cooked. Take out of the fridge and remove the plastic film at least 2 hours before cooking.

Stage 14

Cooking

Stage 15

40 min.

Preheat the oven to 210°F (100°C), preferably without fan - quite unnecessary at such a low temperature.

Stick a thermometer into the thickest part of the liver and put in the oven.

If you'd like to keep the liver "pink", cook until the temperature reaches 122°F (50°C). For "mi-cuit" (just properly cooked, but not overdone), cook until it reaches 149°F (65°C).

If you don't have a thermometer, count 30 minutes cooking for "pink" and 45/50 minutes for "mi-cuit". Unfortunately, these times can only be approximate as your oven and the room temperature will have a marked effect on the cooking. In other words, as soon as you can, buy yourself a thermometer.

Stage 16

After cooking, the liver looks unattractive swimming in its fat and cooking juices, but don't worry, this is perfectly normal.

Stage 17

Now it's time to pack the terrine with the pieces of liver.

Use a skimmer to fish the pieces of liver out of the dish, drain them...

Stage 18

5 min.

...and transfer to the terrine.

If you intend turning out the terrine later, choose the best-looking and largest pieces first to go in the bottom and finish up with the smaller ones (as in the photo).

Stage 19

If, on the other hand, you will be serving the terrine straight from the dish, save the best pieces until last (like in this photo).

This cooking method, inspired by chef Eric Leautey, is very efficient as the centre of the liver gets up to temperature more rapidly when it is in a thin layer. This is the method I use for years.

Stage 20

Stage 21

Stage 22

Stage 23

skimmer

Stage 24

Finish the terrine by pouring over a little of the molten fat from the cooking dish.

Stage 25

This is not just an attractive finishing touch; once set, it will help the terrine keep better.

Stage 26

The final stage is to compact the terrine a little. I use a block of polystyrene cut to fit the shape of the dish (but a piece of thick cardboard would do just as well), covered with aluminium foil. I place this on top of the contents of the terrine and stand two jars of jam on top. The weight of the full jars is enough to press the terrine.

Leave to cool for 2 hours at room temperature, then refigerate.

Stage 27

4 days

The "press" contraption can be removed after a couple of hours in the fridge.

Your terrine should be left for at least 4 days in the fridge before eating, to give time for the flavour to mature fully.

Stage 28

Remarks

Nutritional information

How much will it cost?

• For 1 foie gras : 17.76 €

Change currency:

Your 6 comments or questions on this recipe

• I wish I would have found your site before I made my terrine today. I appreciate your alternate version #3, I will attempt it next time, it looks much easier. Now I have a question about freezing my terrine for New Years Eve. Will freezing change the texture or the taste. Thank you for responding. Have a good day.
  Posted by Rose december 11^th 2010 at 01:44 (n° 1)
• No, don't be worry, freeze don't change texture or taste. But if you plan to make your terrine for new year eve, you could also wait some more days, and make it around the 20th, and keep in the fridge with a plastic film on top. Anyway, don't forget to remove it from the fridge, one hour before serving to your guests, taste will be better, and texture smoother. Have a nice new year "réveillon" !
  Posted by jh december 11^th 2010 at 16:30 (n° 2)
• Thank you for this recipe. i have about 30 pheasant livers and 10 mallard livers and am making a few pots of pate . I am surprised that you havent blended your pate, why is that, every recipe I have seen blends the liver after adding other ingredients.
  Posted by peter october 24^th 2012 at 18:56 (n° 3)
• Blending is not needed because seasonings are sprinkled all around liver sides.
  Posted by jh october 26^th 2012 at 13:33 (n° 4)
• How can I compensate for not having a small enough terrine for the liver?
  Posted by Anonymous may 3^rd 2016 at 13:59 (n° 5)
• You can't.
  Instead use a smaller container, a jar for example.
  Posted by Anonymous may 3^rd 2016 at 14:51 (n° 6)

Post your comment or question

You are welcome, if you wish, to comment on this recipe: why you like it or not, what you have changed, what results it gave, point out a mistake or omission, etc. You can also ask a question. I answer all questions (in a broken English, sorry) unless someone else does it before me.
Please feel free to say what you think, I'm always very interested in your opinion. Your comment will appear on line with the recipe, so please write in standard readable English, not SIM or only in CAPITALS, otherwise your comment may be rejected.

Please look at advice for submitting a comment or image (what you should or should not do). By the way, don't type your e-mail address in the comment, otherwise you might be spammed.