French Terrine Recipes

Steps:

• Assemble and marinate terrine:
• Cook onion in butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet, covered, over moderately low heat, stirring frequently, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and thyme and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Transfer to a large bowl set in a bowl of ice.
• While onion cools, pulse salt, peppercorns, allspice, nutmeg, and bay leaf in grinder until finely ground. Add to onion mixture and whisk in cream, eggs, and brandy until combined well.
• Pulse chicken livers in a food processor until finely chopped, then add to onion mixture along with ground pork and veal and mix together well with your hands or a wooden spoon. Stir in ham cubes.
• Line bottom and long sides of terrine mold crosswise with about 6 to 9 strips of bacon, arranging them close together (but not overlapping) and leaving a 1/2- to 2-inch overhang. Fill terrine evenly with ground-meat mixture, rapping terrine on counter to compact it (it will mound slightly above edge). Cover top of terrine lengthwise with 2 or 3 more bacon slices if necessary to cover completely, and fold overhanging ends of bacon back over these. Cover terrine with plastic wrap and chill at least 8 hours to marinate meats.
• Bake terrine:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 325°F.
• Discard plastic wrap and cover terrine tightly with a double layer of foil.
• Bake terrine in a water bath until thermometer inserted diagonally through foil at least 2 inches into center of terrine registers 155 to 160°F, 1 3/4 to 2 hours. Remove foil and let terrine stand in mold on a rack, 30 minutes.
• Weight terrine:
• Put terrine in mold in a cleaned baking pan. Put a piece of parchment or wax paper over top of terrine, then place on top of parchment another same-size terrine mold or a piece of wood or heavy cardboard cut to fit inside mold and wrapped in foil. Put 2 to 3 (1-pound) cans on terrine or on wood or cardboard to weight cooked terrine. Chill terrine in pan with weights until completely cold, at least 4 hours. Continue to chill terrine, with or without weights, at least 24 hours to allow flavors to develop.
• To serve:
• Run a knife around inside edge of terrine and let stand in mold in a pan with 1 inch of hot water (to loosen bottom) 2 minutes. Tip terrine mold (holding terrine) to drain excess liquid, then invert a cutting board over terrine, reinvert terrine onto cutting board, and gently wipe outside of terrine (bacon strips) with a paper towel. Let terrine stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving, then transfer to a platter if desired and cut, as needed, into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C.
• Melt the butter in a saute pan and gently saute the onions until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the Cognac, remove from the heat and cool slightly.
• Combine the ground pork, liver and ground veal in a large bowl. Add the onion mixture, breadcrumbs, herbs, quatre-epices and eggs. Mix well. Sprinkle with plenty of salt and pepper. Fry a patty of it to check for seasonings and adjust if necessary.
• Thinly slice the pork fat and line a 10-by-2 1/2-inch terrine mold with the slices, slightly overlapping them and allowing it to hang over the edges. Pack the meat mixture into the terrine and press down evenly. Fold the overhanging strips of fat over the top and add a few more slices if necessary to cover the top. Cover the top with a piece of parchment paper, then cover the terrine with foil.
• Put the terrine in a roasting pan and pour around enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the terrine. Place in the oven and cook for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Remove from the water bath and cool completely. Place a brick on it and refrigerate overnight. Slice and serve.

Steps:

• Clean the chicken livers - cut away any sinew, blood or green bits, then set enough aside to run along the length of your terrine dish or loaf tin. Chop the rest into small cubes. Tip all the ingredients - except the prosciutto, whole livers and cornichons, etc, to serve - into a large bowl. Season and mix well with your hands. If you have time, you can cover and set aside in the fridge for the flavours to mingle for a few hours or overnight.
• Line the base and sides of a 1kg terrine dish or small loaf tin with baking parchment. Then carefully line the base and sides of the dish/tin with the overlapping slices of prosciutto (A), leaving some hanging over the side and a few slices for the top. Pack half the meat mixture down into the terrine and press down. Lay a row of chicken livers down the middle of the terrine (B), then add the rest of the meat mixture and press down. Lay the remaining prosciutto over the top, then lift the slices from the sides up and over, and cover the dish with foil.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 6. If you have a spare cardboard box in your kitchen, cut a piece of card out slightly larger than the base of the terrine. Put it in a deep roasting tray and sit the terrine on top (this helps the terrine to cook evenly). Boil a kettle and pour in enough water so it comes halfway up the terrine. Carefully place it on the middle shelf of the oven and cook for 1 hr.
• Remove the tin from the oven, take out the terrine and leave to cool completely. Place on a plate or a tray with another flat tray on top, weigh down with a few cans and leave to chill overnight. To turn out the terrine, slip a knife between the paper and the terrine to loosen it, then turn it out onto a board. Wipe off the jelly and either serve straight away sliced or wrap in cling film and slice later. Serve with toasted bread - a favourite of mine is walnut bread and some nice leaves dressed with walnut oil. You can keep the terrine for up to two days, but it will start to lose its colour.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Bring a small pot of water to boil. Add pistachios and boil for 2 minutes. Drain, then remove skins.
• Line a 6 cup ceramic terrine or 9" x 5" loaf pan with bacon. Place on baking tray.
• Cu chicken breast into long thin strips. Place in small bowl with 1/2 cup madeira and season with salt and pepper. Let marinate while preparing the stuffing.
• For the stuffing: In a large bowl, mix together pork, veal, liver, onion, garlic, kosher salt and thyme. Add pistachios. Whisk remaining Madeirawith the eggs, add to stuffing and mix very well.
• Take a small piece of stuffingand flatten into a mini patty. Cook in a fry pan, then taste to check seasonings.
• Drain chicken strips and discard marinade. Place 1/3 of the stuffing in the prepared terrine and pack down. Arrange half the chicken strips on top. Top this layer with another 1/3 of the stuffing, press well; and add remainign chicken. Top with final 1/3 of stuffing and pack down. Push any exposed nut into the stuffing. Place bay leaves on top. Bake uncovered for 1 1/2 hours until firm and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out hot.
• Allow to cool thouroughly. Keep refrigerated, but serve at room temperature with fresh crusty bread and cornichons.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4 and butter a 1kg loaf tin. Roughly chop 3 of the pork rashers and mix with the thyme and peppercorns. Set aside. Put the remaining pork rashers into a food processor with two-thirds of the chicken livers, the wine (if using) and 1 tsp salt, then blend to make a smooth pâté.
• Spoon half the pâté into the loaf tin, then top with the chopped pork mixture and remaining livers. Spoon the rest of the pâté mixture over the livers, then lay the 5 smoked bacon rashers lengthwise over the top.
• Cover the loaf tin with foil and put in a roasting tin. Pour cold water into the roasting tin until it is half-filled, then bake for 1½ hrs until the terrine is set. When the terrine is cool, put another loaf tin on top and weigh it down (with cans from your storecupboard) to compress it. Leave overnight in the fridge. Can be made and chilled up to 2 days ahead.
• To serve, turn the terrine out of the tin and carefully cut into slices with a sharp knife. Serve with the French toasts (recipe below) and cocktail gherkins or chutney.