14/12/2015
Homemade foie gras with litchis

I was invited by Labeyrie to participate in a foie gras masterclass, where I learned all the techniques to prepare a perfect foie gras. I left with a nice fresh liver, and was eager to cook it. I opened my fridge, I saw fresh lychees that I had just bought, and there it was! For those who might, like me, have a priori on how they force-feed the ducks, well I was quite reassured by the workers who came to talk about their everyday tasks. First, you must know that ducks roam free, in huge meadows. Wild ducks naturally gorge themselves before migrating, they actually fill their stomach in order to keep several days in the air without eating. Obviously we stuff them for the sole purpose of eating that famous foie gras but I did not know that it was basically a natural process. Regarding the feeding, it lasts only a few days: farmers stuff them once in the morning and once in the evening, and it only takes a few seconds. The ducks are even followed by veterinarians who come to see them every day. Then on the D day, the ducks are placed in a very quiet room very with music and light that reassure them. Anyway, at least for me, I was a little relieved to know more about the conditions… Well let us return to our liver. Do not worry, it’s really quite simple to do! Oh, and then I forgot! The dish on which I put the foie gras… I did it myself! Do you like it? Many of you asked me about my small plates, so I’m thinking about opening a small e-shop or do a flash sale of ceramics, would you like that?

The Ingredients

– 1 fresh liver
– a dozen fresh lychees
– a few Sishuan peppercorns
– some mustard seeds
– pepper, coarse salt
– a tablespoon of 4 spices

The Recipe

1. Cut the liver into two to separate the two lobes. Scrape with a knife if you see red spots.

2. Take the biggest part, put it flat and remove the main vein in the middle along the entire length with a knife. Remove other veins searching with fingers and digging. Do not worry if everything is crumbling apart, you will reconstitute it afterwards!

3. Take the small lobe, and remove all the veins that start from the middle. You can help yourself by watching videos like this one for example. Reconstitute the foie gras with all the pieces by packing it well.

4. Peel the lychees and cut into small pieces. You can either place them in the middle of the liver or on the bottom of the ceramic pot. Add salt and pepper, add the ground spices, you can put all the spices you like!

5. Bake in water bath in your preheated oven at 120 ℃ for 45 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool by placing weights on top of the foie gras with paper film on top, so that the fat rises to the surface and it is well compacted.

6. Then leave at least 4 days in the fridge. Remove the foie gras from the terrine, remove the water from the lychees, trim the fat. You can eat it with bread and coarse salt, and shallot jam for example!