Debbie and I bought two whole ducks at the Maple Leaf Farms company store recently. I’m turning one of the ducks into confit (more about that in a coming post). The whole ducks included the liver and giblets. The liver looked really good and I thought I should do something with it. But what? A quick Internet search gave me the answer: duck liver pâté!
Here’s almost everything needed to make pâté.
That’s minced red onion (most recipes call for shallots, but I didn’t have any), a garlic clove, some herbs, and of course, duck liver.
All you do is cook all that in some duck fat until the liver is cooked and the onions are soft. Then into the blender it goes. Add a splash of port, and then blend until smooth.
It’s a good idea to have a little glass of the port before you pour it in with the duck. You want to make sure it hasn’t gone bad. It’s just one of those sacrifices you have to make to turn out a good dish.
After blending the pâté goes in a ramekin and is topped with a thin layer of clarified butter. Refrigerate it for a couple of hours at least and then enjoy! It’s delicious on toasted baguette slices or crackers.
I’d never made pâté before and I was surprised how easy it was to make and even more surprised how tasty it was.
Here’s the whole recipe.
Duck Liver Pâté
3 tablespoons duck fat (assuming you have the rest of the duck you got the liver from, you can render the fat from some of the trimmings from the duck)
1 large shallot, finely chopped (about 2 1/2 tablespoons, red onion is fine too)
1 duck liver cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 teaspoon herbes de Provence (I didn’t have any herbes de Provence, I used a little oregano, fennel, and lavender)
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon port (or cognac or brandy)
1. Place duck fat in a skillet over medium heat.
2. When the fat has melted, add the shallots, and cook for a few minutes until they are softening. Don’t let them brown.
3. Add the liver, herbes de Provence, and garlic, and continue cooking until the liver is cooked through. It should take just a few minutes. Add the salt and pepper.
4. Transfer the mixture to a blender, add the port, and blend until liquefied. Put the pâté in a small bowl (a ramekin works well) and let it cool for a couple hours.
5. Pour a thin layer of clarified butter over it, cover, and refrigerate until serving time.
6. Spread the pâté on the toasted baguette slices, and serve.
This makes enough for 4 people.
The pâté will keep in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
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