Based on this Jamie Oliver recipe. Although I tripled the quantity as I love pâté and it freezes well. If something’s worth doing, it’s worth doing in large quantities. From start to finish, I think this took me less than 30 minutes. It’s one thing that takes me longer to eat than to cook.
First off, about 350g of the butter goes in a pan in the oven at about 100C to clarify. The clear butter without the milky solids which float to the bottom is used to cover and seal the pâté in it’s pots. It apparently takes around 10 minutes to separate out, but I forgot about it. It was fine after about 20.
Shallots get peeled (I hate peeling them) and diced – fairly finely, but it’s not too important – everything ends up in the blender.
I bought myself a huge (14 inch) oven safe spun iron frying pan from Netherton Foundry, which is awesome. This is the second thing I’ve used it for (the first being bacon and eggs, which is so much easier in a large pan). It’s so big that it doesn’t fit in my oven…
In goes the onion, at a medium heat to soften but not burn.
Whilst the onion starts to cook, I chop the garlic. I used 5 cloves, but they are huge, so maybe 8 normal ones. I find slicing partially through both ends of the garlic from opposite sides gives me something to use to peel off the skin. Then cutting length ways almost through to the end, but not quite, along two axes and then slicing across gets a really fine dice.
Garlic goes in with the onion and cooks off until the onion is translucent and the garlic cooked but not browned. Then remove the garlic and onion and wipe the pan out with some kitchen roll.
The livers go in to fry off with the sage. They aren’t particularly photogenic. They are meant to be cooked to have “some colour” but still be “pink in the middle”. The recipe suggests a couple of minutes on each side. Perhaps my pan wasn’t hot enough, but mine took longer. I’m concerned I may have slightly overcooked them (as I was last time I made this). Over cooking apparently leads to a grainy texture, and once I blend these, they do appear grainy, but the end produce is fine, and delicious.
Once the livers are cooked, a “small glass” of brandy goes in, or three in my case as I’m doing triple. I used Calvados, and the measure was based on the amount left in the bottle.
I chuck everything (Liver including brandy, remaining butter, onion and garlic) in my blender in two batches to blend. I find dicing the butter roughly first helps the process. I poured it all into a bowl to mix before potting to ensure it’s consistent. Then I poured it into some plastic containers which have clip on lids and are handy for the freezer. Ramekins would be prettier, but I’m not intending to share. Then I skim the butter to get rid of whatever is floating on the top and pour the clarified part over the pâté to seal it. The milky looking butter solids in the bottom should stay where they are. Last time I decanted it into a jug first, which made it easier.
The pâté finished and sealed. Now I have to wait for the butter to set before sticking them in the freezer. And eating them. Apparently it’ll last a couple of weeks in the fridge if the butter is left intact. Last time I made it I was eating it so fast I was concerned I might overdose on vitamin A, I don’t think this is actually going to be an issue unless you ate several kilos per day.
Ingredients
1200g Chicken livers
750g Butter
5 large cloves garlic (or perhaps 8 normal ones)
some sage
100ml Brandy
8 Shallots
(pinch of mace to go in when blended, but I forgot)
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