Chicken Liver Paté
Recipe by Mike McEnearney – Kitchen by Mike
Makes a Medium Bowl to Serve 10
Ingredients
15 ml olive oil
375 g chicken livers, soaked in milk
2 eschalots or ¼ small red onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
100 ml sherry
1 pinch sea salt
½ teaspoon four spice mix
35 ml double cream
75 g butter, melted (save 30 ml to seal the top of the pate)
Four Spice Mix
Store in an airtight container and it will keep for at least 6 months in the pantry.
10 white peppercorns
10 cloves
1 cinnamon quill
2 tablespoons sea salt flakes
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
For the four-spice mix, lightly toast the peppercorns, cloves and cinnamon under a hot grill or in a heavy based saucepan over a medium heat until fragrant. Allow to cool, then grind to a fine powder with a mortar and pestle or an electric spice grinder. Add the nutmeg and salt flakes and crush lightly to combine. If you don’t have time to make the four-spice mix, use a little grated nutmeg.
For the chicken liver pate, pat the livers dry with a paper towel and trim off any sinew. Add the olive oil and the trimmed livers to a heavy based saucepan and sauté the livers over a high heat until well coloured and still soft to the touch. Place them in a bowl leaving the oil in the pan.
In the same saucepan with the oil, on a low to medium heat, sweat the diced eschalots and garlic with a pinch of salt. Add the sherry to the pan with the eschalots and garlic and deglaze, reducing the liquid by half.
Place the cooked chicken livers and the reduced deglaze from the pan into a food processor adding the melted butter and cream and blend until very smooth. Season with salt and the four-spice mix.
Pour into a serving bowl, smooth the top of the mixture and set in the fridge for at least an hour.
Pour a little melted butter over the pate to seal. Place back in the fridge to fully set for a further hour.
When you are ready to serve, use a spoon dipped in hot water, scoop pate onto your guest’s plate or grazing platter with a small dish of the four-spice salt on the side. The pate is best served with a fresh baguette with the four-spice salt sprinkled on top.
Recipe created with the Smeg blender.
