A well made foie gras parfait is a beautiful sight, and even nicer to eat. There are a few good ways to make it, but the techniques differ a fair bit, so I will keep them separated. This is the sous vide method I have used. Obviously this method requires a bit of equipment, but the results are golden. One thing to note is that you still use a terrine mold, so you will need vacuum bags that are big enough to hold the mold and still seal. If the recipe is too large for a single mold you have on hand, you can use two and seal each one separately. If you have only one mold, you can cook the other half after unmolding the first, but you will want to vacuum seal the uncooked parfait in the interim to avoid oxidization. You can also use this recipe with chicken livers - it's a simple one for one substitution.
Depending on your usage - basically, will you serve the entire terrine in one meal - you may opt to coat the finished and unmolded terrine with a seasoned butter, which will help defend against oxidization (and is delicious). The technique is simply to put the finished parfait on parchment paper in the freezer until the outside is extremely cold. Then take some very soft (but not separated) butter, season it (olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper), and paint it on in a very thin layer with a pastry brush. You can smooth it out with a palette knife or leave it rustic. Then, after the cold terrine has set the butter, carefully roll it over on the parchment paper and paint the underside of the terrine. It can then be stored in the fridge until service, or once the butter is fully set, vacuum sealed (on a loose setting) and stored longer - it even freezes well if you handle it gently and don't rush the thaw.
Depending on your usage - basically, will you serve the entire terrine in one meal - you may opt to coat the finished and unmolded terrine with a seasoned butter, which will help defend against oxidization (and is delicious). The technique is simply to put the finished parfait on parchment paper in the freezer until the outside is extremely cold. Then take some very soft (but not separated) butter, season it (olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper), and paint it on in a very thin layer with a pastry brush. You can smooth it out with a palette knife or leave it rustic. Then, after the cold terrine has set the butter, carefully roll it over on the parchment paper and paint the underside of the terrine. It can then be stored in the fridge until service, or once the butter is fully set, vacuum sealed (on a loose setting) and stored longer - it even freezes well if you handle it gently and don't rush the thaw.
You will need:
500g / 17.6oz foie gras
500g / 17.6oz unsalted butter
4 eggs
100ml / 3.4fl oz Madeira wine
100ml / 3.4fl oz Port wine
3 shallots
1 clove garlic
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs thyme
splash brandy
to taste kosher salt
pinch nitrate (optional)
Method:
- seal the foie, eggs and butter in separate bags and put in warm (not hot) water - this aids emulsification
- set an oven with a generous water bath for 260F / 127C
- line a terrine mold with parchment paper (use pan spray to help it stick to the sides) and leave flaps to cover the top
- chop the shallot, smash the garlic, and put them in a saucepan with the herbs and two wines
- reduce the wines to almost dry, then strain and set aside
- put the foie gras in a food processor and pulse to puree
- add the eggs and incorporate
- add the butter and incorporate
- add the reduction and brandy and season with salt
- mix in the nitrate - this helps with that charcuterie "pink" look
- strain the mix through a chinois, fill the mold, and fold the top flaps over
- place the mold in a vacuum bag and seal tight (carfeful it's not so tight it squishes the parfait)
- place the parfait in the water bath and cook for about 45 minutes to an hour (depending on mold size)
- transfer the parfait to an ice bath and cool completely
- open the bag and remove the parfait
- use a palette knife to loosen the paper from the mold and turn the parfait out
- if coating with butter, chill in the freezer
- prepare your delicious, very soft seasoned butter
- paint your terrine on all sides and set aside in the fridge
- use a hot, wet knife to slice portions
- serve cold - brioche and jelly make for nice accompaniments
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs thyme
splash brandy
to taste kosher salt
pinch nitrate (optional)
Method:
- seal the foie, eggs and butter in separate bags and put in warm (not hot) water - this aids emulsification
- set an oven with a generous water bath for 260F / 127C
- line a terrine mold with parchment paper (use pan spray to help it stick to the sides) and leave flaps to cover the top
- chop the shallot, smash the garlic, and put them in a saucepan with the herbs and two wines
- reduce the wines to almost dry, then strain and set aside
- put the foie gras in a food processor and pulse to puree
- add the eggs and incorporate
- add the butter and incorporate
- add the reduction and brandy and season with salt
- mix in the nitrate - this helps with that charcuterie "pink" look
- strain the mix through a chinois, fill the mold, and fold the top flaps over
- place the mold in a vacuum bag and seal tight (carfeful it's not so tight it squishes the parfait)
- place the parfait in the water bath and cook for about 45 minutes to an hour (depending on mold size)
- transfer the parfait to an ice bath and cool completely
- open the bag and remove the parfait
- use a palette knife to loosen the paper from the mold and turn the parfait out
- if coating with butter, chill in the freezer
- prepare your delicious, very soft seasoned butter
- paint your terrine on all sides and set aside in the fridge
- use a hot, wet knife to slice portions
- serve cold - brioche and jelly make for nice accompaniments
How does one set a water bath at 127C, a temperature above boiling point?
ReplyDeleteSurely setting the water bath at 65C and cooking until an internal temp of 65C is reached would be a better approach?
All I can think is that you have an oven set at 126C, with a tray of water (5cm deep), in which case, why vac pack the terrine mold?
You are right, I was a bit incomplete in my instructions, so thank you for the comment - I have made the correction, and good catch on finding the technique I use.
DeleteI was using an oven with a water bath - a generous one to be as gentle as possible. Guessing that you have cooked a few custards in your time, I'm sure you know that an oven temperature of 260F/127C is a pretty gentle cook, and as a parfait is more or less a modified custard and you definitely want to be gentle with the eggs. You absolutely could set a water bath for 65C, but to be honest, at this point, I could not give you an accurate time estimate as when this item was on the menu, all our available circulators were constantly occupied before service. They do make vacuum bags that allow for probe insertion without breaking the seal - if you can get your hands on some, this would be the easiest way to work out a lower temperature cook. We tinkered with different temperatures and times and found the results this way were excellent and stuck with it.
As for why vac pack at all, there were a few reasons we stuck with it. Firstly, vacuum sealing the whole terrine ensures that none of the aromas and flavours have anywhere to escape to - thus, even if we are splitting hairs, you get a fuller-flavoured product. Second, and possibly most important, the steam from the water bath does penetrate an unprotected parfait and compromises the texture of the product and the top layer especially can come out a bit mushy. Thirdly, livers of all sorts are so prone to oxidization (even after being cooked), cooking in a sealed environment will save you a lot of trimming of unappetizing grey parfait later. The bag also provides that little bit of protection from the air in the oven - even with a water bath, there is a difference between the "dry" heat of the air and the moist heat of the water bath and the bag helps even those two elements out.
Again, nice catch! Thanks for the comment, and if you happen to play around with the 65C cook, let me know what time frame you end up with .