Photo by Age Fotostock/neillangan
A loaf of bacon-wrapped pate.
one 4-pound loaf
SERVINGS
Ingredients
- 28.8 ounces pork lean trim
- 9.6 ounces pork back fat, trimmed
- 9.6 ounces pork or beef liver or heart
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 ounces onion, minced
- Small handful of parsley, minced
- 4 ounces hazelnuts
- 1 egg
- 1.2 ounces crème fraîche
- 0.7 ounce brandy or port
- 0.3 ounce orange zest
- 2.5 ounces pâté spice mix (recipe below)
- 1.5 ounces kosher salt
- 1.5 ounces brown sugar
- Bacon, sliced thin for wrapping pâté
Pâté Spice Mix
- Yield: about 13 ounces 3 ounces ground cloves
- 3 ounces ground coriander
- 2 ounces dried thyme
- 1.5 ounces white pepper
- 1.5 ounces ground nutmeg
- 0.75 ounce ground mace
- 0.5 ounce bay leaf
Directions
- Grind 1 pound of the pork lean trim and all the fat, plus the liver or heart, garlic, onion, and parsley, through the coarse plate of the meat grinder, then through the fine plate. Set aside.
- Grind the rest of the pork lean trim and the hazelnuts through the coarse plate. Add to the meat and fat mix. Chill it in the refrigerator.
- Combine the egg, crème fraîche, brandy or port, and orange zest to make a thick binder known as “panade.” Measure out 2.5 ounces of the pâté spice mix and add it to the panade.
- Remove the meat mix from the refrigerator and place in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the panade, salt, and brown sugar, and mix on speed 2 or 3 for about 2 minutes. Taste, and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap, and then line it with the strips of bacon, leaving a bit of overhang. Fill the pan with the pâté mixture, fold the bacon over, then the plastic wrap, and then wrap the top with foil.
- Cook in a water bath at 300 degrees Fahrenheit until the internal temperature of the pâté reaches 145 degrees.
- Cool to room temperature, weighted on top (a heavy cutting board will do). Then, transfer it to the refrigerator and chill overnight, still weighted. Turn out onto a wooden board before slicing. Serve chilled with crusty bread, cheese, and condiments.
- This pâté will keep in the refrigerator for at least 2 weeks.
I make this bacon-wrapped pate recipe every weekend, so that during the week, I can rush in from the farm, kick off my boots, and have a wholly delicious and nutritious sandwich meat in a flash, accompanied by some good cheese, a crusty bread, fresh greens, and mustard.
Man’s Lunchbox Pate Recipe){kind=link}