A chicken liver and pork belly pâté, packed into terrines and sterilized so it keeps
Spread on a slice of bread with drinks or served as an appetizer, a good chicken liver pâté wins everyone over. It has a smooth, creamy texture and a rich flavor, and it is as much at home at holiday meals as at an indulgent cocktail hour. The recipe is easy, but it takes time and care, including an overnight rest before cooking. Once the terrines are sterilized, you’ll have some on hand for gatherings with family or friends.
What Is Chicken Liver Pâté?
Chicken liver pâté is a traditional French dish made from chicken livers, pork, and spices. In the same vein, pork liver mousse is made on a similar principle.
A Pâté Born in the Countryside
This dish comes from the French countryside, where every part of the animal was used so that nothing went to waste. Pâté was often made in large batches, then preserved so it could be eaten all year round.
The Main Ingredients in Chicken Liver Pâté
The base combines chicken livers, pork belly, and duck fat, rounded out with eggs and onions. For a well-seasoned pâté, here are the recommended amounts per kilogram of mixture:
- 3 g pepper
- 12 g salt (you can increase this to as much as 18 g, depending on your preference)
- 2 g sugar
- 1 g dried garlic
- 2 g Rabelais spice
Technical Tips for a Good Pâté
Always bring the duck fat to room temperature before mixing it in, or microwave it to make it easier to work with. Then let the mixture rest overnight in the refrigerator before cooking so the flavors can meld. You can skip this step if you’re short on time, but it gives the pâté a deeper flavor.
When filling, wipe the rims of the terrines thoroughly with a paper towel soaked in distilled white vinegar to prevent any contamination and help the pâté keep better. Sterilization is key to preservation: follow the recipe’s times and temperatures to the letter. A pressure canner, which goes above 100°C, is the safest option for this kind of pâté; if you use the boiling-water method, keep the jars in the refrigerator and eat them without waiting too long.
This recipe was found on the “Charcuterie Di Lorenzo” blog
Equipment
- 10 terrines
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg chicken livers
- 1.2 kg pork belly
- 100 g duck fat
Seasonings
- 7 g pepper
- 30 g salt
- 5 g sugar
- 2 g garlic dried
- 5 g Rabelais spices
- 15 ml Mei Kwei Lu
- 3 eggs
- 2 onions medium
Instructions
- Remove the rind from the pork belly and dice it.
- Grind the pork belly together with the chicken livers and the onions.
- Cook the whole onions in the microwave before grinding them.
- Mix all the ingredients, except the eggs, kneading the mixture thoroughly.
- Leave the duck fat at room temperature so that it mixes in well.
- Cover the mixture with plastic wrap pressed directly onto its surface.
- Let the mixture rest in the refrigerator overnight.
- The next day, add the eggs and mix well.
- Fill the terrines up to 2 cm from the rim.
- Wipe the rims of the terrines with a clean dish towel or a paper towel soaked in distilled white vinegar.
- Sterilize the terrines in a pressure canner at 10 lbs of pressure for 75 minutes or in boiling water for 3 hours.
- For terrines cooked in a water bath, heat the oven to 180°C and bake for about an hour.
- Insert a skewer to check for doneness.
