No matter how many names in the culinary world have been invented. For example, not everyone knows what “foie gras” is, but most people associate this dish with something overseas, expensive and refined. Is it really so? Is it possible to cook enigmatic foie grass at home without resorting to the help of a chef. What are the varieties of the dish? The phrase foiegras in Russian quickly became a single word and partially lost its meaning, since in translation from the French language, from which it came, it means “fatty liver”. Initially, the phrase was related to goose or duck liver. The birds were intentionally well-fed before being slaughtered and butchered, turning their livers into a hearty cold snack.

But outside of France, the traditional recipe was quickly modified, and foie gras became a dish based on the liver of any bird, up to chicken, turkey, etc. The classic preparation of foie gras involves serving it as an independent dish or using it as a component of other hot dishes. Of the alcoholic beverages, foie gras is usually accompanied by champagne or other dessert wine.

In the historical homeland, foie gras has several varieties. Its whole version cannot have more than 2 parts from different copies of the liver, while spices, liqueur and table wines, vodka on grapes are added to it. The classic foie gras combines several different livers, so that the cut of the product reveals its marbled texture.

For block foie gravy, all pieces of liver are emulsified, so the consistency becomes more uniform both externally and when touched. Also, a dish can have only 50% foie gras or more to keep this name behind it, and it can be diluted with goose fat. By the way, the associations of this dish with the privileged segments of the population are not accidental. In terms of cost, goose liver, especially increased in volume due to forced fattening of poultry, is much more expensive than chicken and the like.

Separately, attention should be paid to the technology of preparation of various types of foie gras. The most common and affordable to the consumer is canned, obtained by processing the product at high temperature (100 degrees) in a closed container. This allows you to keep the liver in a form suitable for consumption or further cooking for a long time. However, it will need to be kept in a cool place: for example, a pantry.

Half-cooked foie gras has a creamy texture, as a result of which it does not lose its properties and taste only when stored in a cold place. To obtain such a product, the liver is sterilized and packed in a glass or ceramic container. And the most traditional is foie gras, which can only be purchased on the market. Such a product is not stored, but for most dishes, the recipe requires raw foie gras, which has not been preserved or sterilized, as the main ingredient.

How to cook foie gras according to the traditional recipe?

The classic recipe for processing goose liver foie gras includes, in addition to the main component, only 3 ingredients: white wine, pepper and salt. If desired, they can be supplemented with your favorite spices. For 1 kg of liver there are 50 ml of white table wine and a pinch of any seasonings.

Preparation of goose liver is carried out through its washing and soaking in cold water for a day. Therefore, the preparation of foie gras usually begins in the evening. After 8-10 hours, it must be cut into fairly large pieces, which are rubbed with pepper and salt, as well as any other seasonings and placed in a bowl filled with white wine. The liver will marinate in alcohol for another 2-3 hours.

The next step has several variations. If you want to get a traditional foie gras, then the pieces taken out of the marinade are filled tightly with light pressing, and a little empty space must be left up to the neck of the pot, where air exchange will take place. If a foie gras block is planned, the pickled liver is passed through a meat grinder twice, and then the resulting mass is also removed into a ceramic container.

In an oven preheated to 100 degrees, place a cup of water to create a steam effect, put a container with foie gras on the lower grate and cook the dish for 30-40 minutes. The fat that the liver secretes needs to be drained into a separate cup: they will subsequently be poured over ready-made foie gras when it cools to the required temperature. In addition, this impregnation is a natural preservation for foie gras, allowing it to be stored for up to 7 days in the refrigerator.

Christmas foie gras with goose liver and truffle: recipe

On the Christmas table in France, foie gras is an indispensable element that crowns the whole composition. But it is prepared differently than in the traditional recipe: foie gras is served here, diluted with duck or goose fat, lard and even pork fillet. However, the goose liver itself should retain about 55%.

Compound:

1. Goose liver - 800 g
2. Milk
3. White mushrooms - 1-2 pcs.
4. Duck liver - 300 g
5. Cognac - 120 ml
6. Pork fillet - 300 g
7. Spices - to taste

Cooking:

• The liver needs to be soaked in milk for 4-5 hours, after which it should be removed from films and other debris, including the biliary tract. If desired, all fat is cut off from it.
• Then porcini mushrooms are prepared, which are replaced by truffles in the original recipe. For the indicated volume of goose liver, there are 1-2 mushrooms that need to be cut and put into the liver.
• At the next stage, the liver is marinated in cognac, and at this time you should start preparing the remaining components. The pork fillet is ground in a meat grinder, having previously lost films and bones, the duck liver is sent there too.
• Minced meat must go through a meat grinder twice, after which it is combined with salt, pepper, nutmeg and foie gras marinade.
• Now you need to find a round shape that can be placed in the oven, and lay out its bottom and walls with a mixture of minced meat with spices and marinade. 0.25 of its total volume should be left for the subsequent “closing” of the dish.
• The marinated liver is placed in the resulting “pot” of minced meat and covered with the remains of minced meat, as a result of which it is sealed into it. So that when baking the dish does not turn out to be dryish, 50 g of duck fat is laid on it.
• Place the container of foie gras on the bottom rack in the oven and a bowl of water underneath to create a bain-marie. Under such conditions, Christmas foie gras will cook for 50 minutes at a temperature of 150 degrees.
• The traditional recipe assumes its further maturation within 2 days, but it is much more important to serve the dish cold, cut into plates 1-1.5 cm thick.

Chicken liver foie gras recipe: cooking features

Chicken liver, even with proper fattening, which is not produced in Russia, cannot be compared with goose in its fat content. Therefore, in all foie gras recipes where chicken liver appears, if necessary, butter is added to the list of ingredients, which allows you to increase the fat content of the product and the finished dish. And without it, foie gras becomes lighter and therefore attractive to those who follow the figure or are simply accustomed to sticking to healthy and low-fat foods.

The classic recipe involves soaking 1 kg of chicken liver in cold water for 4 hours, after which the product is rinsed again under running water and placed in a free bowl. The liver should be poured with 500 g of dry red wine, add 1 tbsp to this marinade. sugar and a pinch of salt. If you wish, you can throw 2-3 peas of red pepper there. It is required to impregnate chicken liver with such a mixture for 12-18 hours, therefore it is advisable to carry out such a procedure at night.

After the liver is marinated, it is necessary to prepare porcini mushrooms in the amount of 200 g. They are cleaned and washed, and then placed in a meat grinder, where the liver cut into pieces is also sent. You need to grind the products 2-3 times until they turn into a uniform mass. Then 50 g of butter, previously softened, is introduced into them, and the whole mixture is laid out in a ceramic mold.

Raw fua is pressed, the container is covered with a lid or covered with foil, and sent to an oven preheated to 190 degrees. As with the traditional French recipe, chicken foie gras is cooked in a bain-marie, so a bowl of water is also placed in the oven. Total cooking time - 45 min.