Do liver-lovers live longer?
Beef, pig and chicken liver have been shown to contain high levels of spermidine. With chicken liver, we immediately remembered this delicious recipe. Our mother prepares this terrine on special occasions as a starter or for a cold buffet. It is definitely something you can impress your guest with, but don’t panic, the most difficult part of this recipe is to get the ingredients. A butcher will surely know what you need.
The terrine gets wrapped in white unsalted bacon, which is raw solid pig fat. You should get it cut into thin slices, preferably with the butcher’s machine.
Liver is not only spermidine-rich, but also a good natural source of folate, iron and other trace elements. Further, it contains high concentrations of fate soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) and all B vitamins, in particular B12, which is very important for the nervous system.
Recipe
It is best to prepare the terrine one day before the planned meal, as it needs a few hours to cool down and become firm. Of note, the sultanas and peppercorns should soak separately in water for a few hours!
Melt the butter except a small piece (about 10 g). In the remaining butter fry the finely chopped onion until it’s glassy. Add the pressed garlic, deglaze with a dash of water and bring to a boil until no liquid is left. Chop the chicken liver with the blender or the cutter. Add the onion-garlic-mixture, salt, pepper, marjoram and nutmeg. Then while mixing again add the egg and the lukewarm butter, one at a time.
Put the strips of bacon in your terrine-dish, in a way that part of the bacon sticks out over the edge (to fold in and cover at the end). Pour in the liver mass, spread the drained sultanas and peppercorns on top and close with bacon. Garnish with thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Poach the whole in a water bath for one hour with at 120 °C (hot air). Then cool for a few hours (preferably overnight). As long as it is well wrapped up, so no light and no air comes to it, the liver does not get grey. Slice it just before serving, garnish for example with salad, tomatoes, etc. and serve it with fresh white bread.
Optional: self-made baguette
For a simple baguette, you need spelled flour, water, yeast, salt and olive oil. Mix the yeast with the water and add it to flour and salt, then knead. Finally add the olive oil and knead until the dough is smooth. Put in a warm place covered with cloth until it has at least doubled in size (takes about 1 hour). Then form 3 baguettes and leave them again covered on the baking sheet for about 30 minutes. Bake for 30 minutes at 220°C.
Ingredients
250 g chicken liver
200 g butter
1 small onion shallot
1 pinch of pressed garlic
1 egg
1 tsp marjoram rubbed dried
Salt and pepper to taste
Some nutmeg
15 g of sultanas
1 teaspoon red peppercorns
2 fresh thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
About 150 g of white bacon unsalted in thin slices
Terrine shape with a little more than 500 ml capacity, our measures 16x10x5 cm
Optional: baguette
400 g spelled flour smooth
250 ml of water
1 tsp salt
100 ml of olive oil
