a joy to make, terrines seem to be a culinary tradition sadly slowly disappearing from our menus.
why? perhaps its just in the too-hard basket, takes too long, maybe its the cult of cook-inna-minute chefs who forgo the value of method skill & training for marketability & how good they look on a tv screen...
whatever
terrines take a little time i guess, but once made there is a real sense of accomplishment. i think its because they look so choice!
i remember the first time i made terrine, working at petit lyon in wellington, my chef kent baddeley brought over a cpl of rabbits & a pheasant which we boned out, holding the fillets & backstraps aside, hand mincing the rest, layering with spring onion & baby carrots threaded thru the layers, three spices (red peppercorns, coriander seed, thyme), wrapped in strips of leek, inside a pastry casing...it was cooked slowly in the terrine, not simply cold pressed as mine is this time.
it's a chef's dish for sure
this week's terrine recipe then:
stage 1: the cooking of:
>lamb/goat shanks/carrot/onion/celery/leek/garlic/bouquet garni/chicken stock: in the crock pot all together, on low, cook all day or overnight, til meat falls from the bone. let it cool, remove the meat gently, leaving the muscles intact where possible. strain the liquid stock & discard the solids.
>yellow split peas/onion/garlic/thyme/a ladle or three of stock from the crock pot: all together in a casserole, cook slowly till the sauce has been absorbed & the peas are firm but not crunchy. i did mine in the oven, lid on the pot, for 1 1/2 hours, but on the flame slowly is good too, adding more liquid as necessary, just try not to stir or it goes mushy. i like the nuttiness of unstirred peas, slightly caramelised, sweet from the onions & garlic.
>remaining stock from crockpot/a cinnamon quill/allspice/a little cayenne pepper/crabapple jelly: in a saucepan, add the spices, a good dollop of port wine/crabapple/quince jelly & reduce the stock to about a cpl of cups worth. at this point it is thick & tacky, concentrated in flavour it will set to a firm jelly in the fridge.
stage 2: the assembly of:
>line yr terrine dish with gladwrap, leaving overhang that can be folded over completely covering the top. i have a terrine dish proper, but a loaf tim, or indeed any container will do, tho long & rectangular is probably best, or else perhaps the small individual timbale type shape is good too. just remember, it will be set in the fridge, turned out & sliced for service. so shape is important.
>combine meat & pea mixture, correcting the seasoning if necessary. layer longways the meat, with a good amount of the pea mixture in between to help bind it all together. i like to lay carrots or garlic chives the length of the terrine too, for the cross section effect, tho this time round i simply layered without getting fancy about it all...
>when terrine dish is full, take some warm liquid reduced stock & pour over the top to cover completely. i use my carving fork to poke in & make space inside the layers for the stock to properly seep in & fill all the empty spaces, moving the dish side to side a little to settle it all evenly. wrap gladwrap flaps over the top & gently press down till stock liquid comes over. i cut out a piece of cardboard next, laying ontop & weighted down with a cpl of containers with water in them, lay the whole thing in the fridge overnight to set.
>next day, remove, turn out, slice. its good to go.
stage 3: the presentation of:
>options include cold/warm/hot. some terrines are good cold, this one i think is improved with a little warming up. dinnerbox convenience would suggest the microwave style zap, tho i like to flash it in a smoking hot cast iron pan with a little olive oil, for about 30 secs each side. remember the jelly setting aspect, which quickly turns to liquid. so speed & gentle handling are crucial here.
>alternatively, crumbed in panko (flour/egg/crumb process - aka pane (+accent over the e, however you do that)) is good too, very good actually.
>regardless, served with a nice crunchy pickle, cornichon or whatever, as in the ploughman's type arrangement, & a sweet/savoury relish, over a nice crisp green lettuce salad is perfect.
extra stage: because i'm making something of a meal out of this dish, i have chosen to accompany some potatoes. (bernadette, this is for you:) this week fondant potatoes:
>easy version, firm flesh potatoes, cut in two. seasoned, in a hot roasting dish with olive oil & thyme, starting off like roast potatoes & get some colour on the cut side. turn them over, half fill roasting dish with hot stock, & into the oven. crisp & crunchy on top, soft & flavoursome underneath. when yr knife slides thru the potato without resistance, they are ready.
(a bundle of beans, a few carrots, just as good an accompaniment...)
happy cooking!
why? perhaps its just in the too-hard basket, takes too long, maybe its the cult of cook-inna-minute chefs who forgo the value of method skill & training for marketability & how good they look on a tv screen...
whatever
terrines take a little time i guess, but once made there is a real sense of accomplishment. i think its because they look so choice!
i remember the first time i made terrine, working at petit lyon in wellington, my chef kent baddeley brought over a cpl of rabbits & a pheasant which we boned out, holding the fillets & backstraps aside, hand mincing the rest, layering with spring onion & baby carrots threaded thru the layers, three spices (red peppercorns, coriander seed, thyme), wrapped in strips of leek, inside a pastry casing...it was cooked slowly in the terrine, not simply cold pressed as mine is this time.
it's a chef's dish for sure
this week's terrine recipe then:
stage 1: the cooking of:
>lamb/goat shanks/carrot/onion/celery/leek/garlic/bouquet garni/chicken stock: in the crock pot all together, on low, cook all day or overnight, til meat falls from the bone. let it cool, remove the meat gently, leaving the muscles intact where possible. strain the liquid stock & discard the solids.
>yellow split peas/onion/garlic/thyme/a ladle or three of stock from the crock pot: all together in a casserole, cook slowly till the sauce has been absorbed & the peas are firm but not crunchy. i did mine in the oven, lid on the pot, for 1 1/2 hours, but on the flame slowly is good too, adding more liquid as necessary, just try not to stir or it goes mushy. i like the nuttiness of unstirred peas, slightly caramelised, sweet from the onions & garlic.
>remaining stock from crockpot/a cinnamon quill/allspice/a little cayenne pepper/crabapple jelly: in a saucepan, add the spices, a good dollop of port wine/crabapple/quince jelly & reduce the stock to about a cpl of cups worth. at this point it is thick & tacky, concentrated in flavour it will set to a firm jelly in the fridge.
stage 2: the assembly of:
>line yr terrine dish with gladwrap, leaving overhang that can be folded over completely covering the top. i have a terrine dish proper, but a loaf tim, or indeed any container will do, tho long & rectangular is probably best, or else perhaps the small individual timbale type shape is good too. just remember, it will be set in the fridge, turned out & sliced for service. so shape is important.
>combine meat & pea mixture, correcting the seasoning if necessary. layer longways the meat, with a good amount of the pea mixture in between to help bind it all together. i like to lay carrots or garlic chives the length of the terrine too, for the cross section effect, tho this time round i simply layered without getting fancy about it all...
>when terrine dish is full, take some warm liquid reduced stock & pour over the top to cover completely. i use my carving fork to poke in & make space inside the layers for the stock to properly seep in & fill all the empty spaces, moving the dish side to side a little to settle it all evenly. wrap gladwrap flaps over the top & gently press down till stock liquid comes over. i cut out a piece of cardboard next, laying ontop & weighted down with a cpl of containers with water in them, lay the whole thing in the fridge overnight to set.
>next day, remove, turn out, slice. its good to go.
stage 3: the presentation of:
>options include cold/warm/hot. some terrines are good cold, this one i think is improved with a little warming up. dinnerbox convenience would suggest the microwave style zap, tho i like to flash it in a smoking hot cast iron pan with a little olive oil, for about 30 secs each side. remember the jelly setting aspect, which quickly turns to liquid. so speed & gentle handling are crucial here.
>alternatively, crumbed in panko (flour/egg/crumb process - aka pane (+accent over the e, however you do that)) is good too, very good actually.
>regardless, served with a nice crunchy pickle, cornichon or whatever, as in the ploughman's type arrangement, & a sweet/savoury relish, over a nice crisp green lettuce salad is perfect.
extra stage: because i'm making something of a meal out of this dish, i have chosen to accompany some potatoes. (bernadette, this is for you:) this week fondant potatoes:
>easy version, firm flesh potatoes, cut in two. seasoned, in a hot roasting dish with olive oil & thyme, starting off like roast potatoes & get some colour on the cut side. turn them over, half fill roasting dish with hot stock, & into the oven. crisp & crunchy on top, soft & flavoursome underneath. when yr knife slides thru the potato without resistance, they are ready.
(a bundle of beans, a few carrots, just as good an accompaniment...)
happy cooking!
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