Foie Gras: The Topic

[Al_Dente]

Soup looks great Al. And that leg of lamb. That looks outstanding.

I've seen Icelandic lamb for sale lately. How does it compare to the New Zealand, Australian, and American versions?

I'm no expert on lamb (or much else for that matter), so making any really educated comparisons would be difficult for me. But, for one thing, the legs seem tiny. I ended up buying a leg and a half. The whole leg I bought was a little less than 3 1/2 lbs. It did seem more moist than other legs I've done-- this despite the fact that I cooked it about 10 degrees more than I would have preferred. For my tastes, it had just the right amount of lambiness-- not too gamey, not overly mild. Whole foods had them for $8/lb.

[Susan in FL]

The sauteed foie gras with a savory pineapple sauce... It's a test run for posting a photo.

[tim olivett]

It does seem that sweet/acidic preparations have overtaken foie gras the last few years.

If you're looking for a meatier, more savory preparation of foie gras try pairing it with fresh porcini cut to the same size as the medallion of foie gras. Only fresh porcini will do, if you get a great fresh porcini,( smaller are better, also look for ones where the gills are dry and firm and not discolored) sear it on both sides then braise it with stock, butter, herbs & if you have them, shallots and garlic you'll wind up with something really special. Joel Robuchon has foie gras with a lentil cream that's delicious. Foie Gras with root vegetables like parsnips and turnips that are simply pan roasted in butter with some toasted brioche or a savory french toast.

For a simple cold preparation, grab a professional book like the French Laundry by Thomas Keller or better yet by the book solely dedicated to it, "Foie Gras" by Michel Ginor and make what is called a "torchon" where you shape and wrap the liver in plastic wrap or cheesecloth and poach it briefly to present a beautifully pure flavor of foie gras.

I'll try to look up the recipes for you but it's funny how many sweet preparations come to my mind although foie gras is actually very versitile. Scraps can be used in anything, sauces, ragouts of vegetables, in mash potatoes, polenta, to marinate poultry etc.

[Susan in FL]

Tim, wonderful ideas, especially the dish with the porcini... thank you very much. I have never been able to find fresh porcini. Do you know if they are available anywhere to order in small amounts?

I will be fully prepared for the next time I order a foie gras! I may be checking back with you for more details, when that time comes.

I really appreciated the ideas for the scraps, too.

[Jon Tseng]

I'll try to look up the recipes for you but it's funny how many sweet preparations come to my mind although foie gras is actually very versitile. Scraps can be used in anything, sauces, ragouts of vegetables, in mash potatoes, polenta, to marinate poultry etc.

Had it hot with a curry ice-cream once

went wonderfully (sic)

J

[alanamoana]

I have never been able to find fresh porcini. Do you know if they are available anywhere to order in small amounts?

try looking for "cepes" the french name which some places use when they are fresh (as opposed to dried porcinis, which are common).

usually available from late spring through summer into early fall (according to one source...don't know if it is reliable, so i won't site it).

[iriee]

a favorite of mine is a combo of seared foie gras on top of a big seared diver scallop with a crispy potato cake on the bottom. a good drizzle of saba or a bitter sauce made of arugula or watercress is also nice! remember that foie is so high in fat that it freezes real well. so instead of making a pate or terrine with whats left you can just freeze them in ready to thaw and sear pieces. yummmmmmm!

[Susan in FL]

These are great ideas. I'm almost drolling on the keyboard. A special thank you, iriee, for the mention of freezing. I hadn't thought of that. That sounds better than making a pate or terrine from what's left. I'll probably be ordering another foie gras sooner than planned... maybe Valentine's weekend will be the occasion [excuse]!

I'm looking for sources for fresh porcini using the term cepes, and so far this is what I've found: They are frozen, rather than actually fresh, but it's a start. I'll keep you posted.

[Bicycle Lee]

in making a torchon, is it bad form to cut some pieces off to sear before wrapping in the cheese cloth and poaching?

I wanted to do a foie gras app that had a couple variations on the foie... a poached torchon and a seared version...

is this blasphemy?

[sabg]

i was lanning on making a recipe from mark ginors book. foie gras with fresh apricot compote and apricot sorbet this weekend. went to get the apricots and the produce man told me they were not in season and not particularly good and also very expensive 4.99 a lb. i dont really buy freash so i have no comaprison. this is my first time with 2 whole fresh foie gras..so along with my excitement, i was wondering if anyone has any fool proof ideas...i do have his cookbook with ALL the great pics and recipes...if there is anything that could help me out it would be great

[Steve Martin]

Coulis works well from frozen fruit, if you can find frozen apricot. Use that as a base for your sorbet and serve it in a separate dish (shot or martini glass) alongside.

For the compote, start with dried apricots well soaked in peach schnapps, with a cinnamon stick.

Try the Michel Bras idea of slicing your prepared foie and freezing the slices, individually wrapped in film. When you give them a damn good searing from frozen, the inside will be just right. You can also briefly confit in fat, after the searing.

[Carolyn Tillie]

Out of Ginor's book (which I also use), I can recommend page 152, the Miso-Marinated Foie Gras with Fried Shiso; Page 212, Crispy Potato and Turnip Galettes with Foie Gras and Wild Mushrooms; Page 238, Foie Gras-filled Pasta with Black Truffle Emulsion and Mascarpone Cream (I've made this several times - labor intensive and FABULOUS!); and Page 280, Medallions of Ahi Tuna and Seared Foie Gras with Pinot Noir Sauce.

I'm like many that believe that foie gras with fruit is being over done. I prefer it more on the savory side than the sweet side.

[ludja]

Here are a few other ideas that e-gulleteers came up with along with tips on preparation:

other foie gras ideas...

[balmagowry]

I'm like many that believe that foie gras with fruit is being over done. I prefer it more on the savory side than the sweet side.

Hear hear!

And meself, I like a little fat, and also a little fat, with my fat - there's nothing on earth quite like a whole foie gras wrapped in bacon and then in puff paste. (There's also nothing on earth quite like its effect on appetite and digestion, but what the hell....)

OTOH, if you're really wedded to the apricot thing and you can't get frozen apricots (I second the notion of dried for compote), here's my favorite quick-and-dirty sorbet trick. Sounds nasty, but works brilliantly. Get canned apricots in heavy syrup. Stick 'em in the freezer - can and all. When they're good and frozen SOLID, take 'em out and toss 'em in the food processor. Zap! Sorbet. Ideally, if there's enough lead time, re-freeze and re-process for a better texture. You may also want to add a little lemon juice (I usually do) to cut the extreme sweetness.

(This works well, BTW, with any number of canned fruits - anything that comes in heavy syrup is fair game, and often a combination of two will come out greater than the sum of its parts. Strawberry with pineapple. Grapefruit with mandarin orange. Peach with - you get the idea. It's been some time since we've been able to get raspberries frozen in syrup on this coast, alas, but there are ways around that. I've gotten into the habit of keeping a few cans of various things in the freezer all summer for impromptu dessert purposes - you never know....)

[chefseanbrock]

foie gras with deconstucted banana split?????????????????

[spoonbread]

foie gras with deconstucted banana split

Or foie gras creme brulee?

I'm looking at the recipe and I know you can sub some other fruit, peaches ( not in season as well), orange, mango, papaya, pear, apples, etc. You may have to adjust some things ( like orange, because it has a large content of water), but the recipe can apply to most fruits.

[howard88]

My favorite way is to slice a quarter of an inch plus, sear quickly to medium rare, serve on good quality french or italian bread. If there is any pear, grapefruit, apple confit or such, I toss it away or offer it to dining companions.

[bleudauvergne]

Egad! How do you "shave" foie gras! I would be scared, very scared

I just brought home a fois gras cru. It's like butter. Coming out of the fridge, it's hard like butter. After a 1/2 hour at room temp you touch it and your finger imprints. So about shaving, it's solid when it comes out of the fridge. you can shave it like you'd shave butter, I will try a fruit peeler when I do the soup above.

All this talk about fois gras including the other thread, I was subliminally inspired yesterday when I saw big huge lovely yellow lobes of fois gras on sale.

I now have in my fridge a 700g. (enormous!) fois gras de canard. It's huge. Hmm. What to do with it. I do not want to limit myself to just one thing, it's huge and I can do a whole lot of different things with it, I think. I don't have the cookbooks mentioned in these two threads. I can't order the cookbooks and get them anytime soon.

The recipes in my cookbooks (which are mostly written about French cooking for the American cook) are all so conventional (They all say do not under any circumstances freeze the stuff, for example) or they tell these very exotic anecdotes featuring a mystery marinade or a legendary method and how heavenly it tasted but do not describe any details about how exactly it is done.

I plan, as inspired by the Terrine thread and some things I've seen at Les Halles to make a terrine and put a lengthwise sliced lobe from it in that. That's one thing.

Ah but everyone has had it in restaurants so interestingly prepared. It's so wonderful to hear about what you've had. My husband has heard the ideas being thrown around here - figs, dates, etc. he's raising a few eyebrows and this makes me want to do this 100% - I want to change his ideas (and upcoming guests ideas) completely about fois gras -

Questions about the above ideas:

1. For "au torchon" which is the one classic thing aside from insertion in the terrine I want to do, - What's the marinade? I want to do that. Please help! Can't find a reliably sourced recipe even in French.

2. I want to do a few different aperetif bites mentioned above like the figs and dates stuffed with slices and mousse, that I can take out of the freezer and pop in the oven. Has anyone done this and frozen it? How was it? If you use doughs like phyllo or little brisee shells do they freeze before or after cooking? What's the best medium for a piped mousse?

3. For slicing to freeze and sear, how should I slice the liver? lengthwise? crosswise? Really, how thick? I want to pu 8 or 10 slices on reserve for a dinner in the future.

4. What herbs should I be thinking of when I think of Fois Gras?

Thank you very much

-Lucy

[auntdot]

Love foie gras, but then again who does not?

Well, PETA and its various similarly minded organizations about the world.

And those groups may be winning the war to ban the stuff.

It seems that Israel is going to have to stop producing foie gras in 2005.

Yes, the Israeli Supreme Court has decided that all foie gras production should stop, cruel to the animals it seems.

Would not particularly care, except it seems Israel is the third largest producer of foie gras in the world, after France and Hungary, and exports most of its production to France, under strict contracts.

France, as far as I can find out, then exports the stuff to the rest of the world.

And in 2005, Israeli foie gras will be no more, probably pushing up the price of the stuff greatly.

And let's face it, when France raises its prices, the limited US domestic sources will do the same.

What was once dear, will become impossibly expensive.

Suggest we all enjoy the next few months and fwa gra outselves to the limit.

For tomorrow, we may be liverless.

[mikerock]

this may be a little late to help out with your soup, but i think i can help out. my favorite way to incorporate foie into soups is in a hubbard squash or pumpkin soup, but the following technique could be used for any idea.

a little foie gras goes a long way so for 6 people i would get the (previously mentioned) portioned and frozen slices. it's about 3-4 oz.

place a heavy bottomed soup pot on a med-high flame

score (xxxxx) one side of the foie gras and season with kosher salt and pepper

quickly sear the scored side (1 min) and then the other and remove

reduce heat and use the rendered foie gras fat to sweat and saute your veg (mirepoix, shallots, garlic whatever you're using) add stock and cook as a normal soup.

when your soup is all done your going to puree the seared pieces of foie (w a drink blender or immersion blender) into the soup and strain.

i've done this many times at home and work and it is always beautiful. a little cream will allow the foie falvor to travel even further.

the onlyreason i say to scale back on the foie is i believe that the beauty of foie gras is in large part the texture. this, sadly, is lost when put into a soup situation. hope this can help for next year's xmas

[mikerock]

to answer the other question (preperations) my favorite way to prepare foie at home is to roast it whole. there is nothing more fun (and more impressive to guests) then to bring to the table a beautifuly seared and steaming whole foie gras to the table. i roast mine in maple syrup and chantrelles and then add a little chervil at the table. the inside is almost molten foie gras. perfect to soak into brioche toasts on the side.

[mikerock]

the marinade for torchon is 1T sugar, 2Tkosher salt, 1t Pink salt (optional) pepper to your taste and armagnac or cognac (just enough to coat the liver 2-3T).

it isimportant to soak the liver in milk overnight to draw out the blood. this is especially important for cold presentations as they are not usually cooked very long.

then place in marinade for a night

on the third day wrap your liver up into a torchon (long tube) and poach for about 45-60 secs. if you don't have an interesting stock or wine to poach in, i would reccomend wrapping the torchon in plastic wrap and just poaching in water

as for freezing, once it's thawed you cannot freeze it again so if it is/was already frozen, you must deal with it all at once.

for searing, cut 3/4"-1" crosswise slices. make sur to score (xxxx) one side and sear on that side first.

[Bux]

on the third day wrap your liver up into a torchon (long tube) and poach for about 45-60 secs. if you don't have an interesting stock or wine to poach in, i would reccomend wrapping the torchon in plastic wrap and just poaching in water

Actually a torchon is a kitchen towel, or dish towel. The dish gets its name from the towel use to wrap it up in a tube, much the same way as a terrine gets its name from the earthenware in which it was originally cooked.

[bleudauvergne]

In an attempt to get inspired with ideas about what to do with the 700grams (that's nearly a pound and a half) of fois gras I've got, I searched and cut and paste dish mentions from the board. Here are some of the mentions that foie gras had in the year 2001 on this board. As time goes on, I noticed that spices like cinnamon began to come out in the beginning of 2002. There were so many mentions I could not conceivably catch them all. But I went as far as January 2002. I will do 2002 tomorrow. And 2003 the next day.

2001 eGullet fois gras dish mentions:

-Sauteed foie gras with chestnuts and walnuts with a reduced Sauterne sauce accompanied with a glass of an excellent sauterene

-Call it a French burger (well, they call it a DB Burger) - ground sirloin stuffed with short ribs, foie gras and truffles.

-Griggstown pheasant was presented with foie gras

-the "Venetian pasta" at Peacock Alley: Rich, eggy noodles supersaturated with butter and cream and tossed with chunks of foie gras

-and I will do two things: a chocolate dessert--using a new technique, a caramel meringue foam and a savory "truffle"-- a ganache of foie gras, with a liquid center of Inniskillin icewine, enrobed in chocolate and rolled in brioche crumbs and caramel powder.

-penne with foie gras and wild mushroom sauce

-foie gras baguette is, er a crusty foie gras sandwich (but, like Kingsmill, better bread ;-) ). nuff said.

-"cuttlefish cannelloni of duck and maple syrup, parsley broth." According to a New York Times article by R.W. Apple, Jr. (May 31, 2000), the procedure at the Fat Duck is to cut cuttlefish bodies into rectangles and then freeze them to break down the molecules, thus tenderizing them. The filling consists of preserved duck, duck ham, foie gras, cuttlefish and maple syrup, served in a parsley puree.

-Feuillantine of crab with marinated salmon, roasted foie gras, crystallized seaweed and oyster vinaigrette

-Wonderful foie gras pate

-duck with foie gras

-The terrine of foie gras and smoked eel

-the smoked eel, apple and foie gras starter

-Highlights were foie gras with lentils

-turkey stuffed with chestnuts and foie gras

-I had the terrine of foie gras, chicken and venison wrapped in ham

-Assiette Gourmand of ballotine of foie gras, chicken liver parfait, rillette of duck, fig chutney and green beans was a technical marvel

-Christina had unctuous jasmine tea and I a glass of the 1997 house label Sauternes, which was a little chippy and earthy, which meant it went great with the thin slices of foie on Poilane grillee and some apple compote

-The duck with foie gras, a potato shallot cake and duck jus - was tough and I didn't care for the sauce.

-It was seared foie gras, a thin slice (a technical error in my view--can't get all the different textures with this thin a slice, or maybe just the hedonist poking up again) with a chocolate-black pepper cookie (including roasted cocoa beans) and bitter chocolate sauce.

- Le foie gras d'oie truffé, en terrine

-bouillion bresse chicken with foie gras tortellini.

-tranche of roast foie gras with chutney-type stuff (my description, not theirs)

-chicken breast with fois gras-stuffed tortellini

-Sure, one can marinate fois gras in maple syrup and tart up a tortierre with truffles

-a salad of foie gras, confit and air dried duck with saute potatoes to begin

-terrine foie gras with asparagus salad

-a fabulous pork belly and foie gras dish

-hot searred foie gras with both hot and cold fruits plus some reduction or another

-Pan-Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras Magret with Poached Figs, Soft Polenta and Balsamic-Apple Cider Vinagar

-there was foie gras "breaded" with minced truffles on four sides. At the ends were white breast cubes--perhaps pheasant or some other less gamy bird. As the meats were all very moist and the dish devoid of all fat save for the foie gras, and as the breast meats all seemed to have been cut from the center of the breast, I have no idea how this was cooked or assembled, except to say it was done with great expertise.

-Tartufi de Alba et foie gras de canard en ravioli

-Starter panfried foie gras with lentils and pancetta

-Second was fois gras with eggy waffle in drag & shredded/sauced apple with some sort of minor berry accent

-crudite of apple and foie gras

-foie gras and eel lasagna (caramelized like a creme brûlée)

-Foie gras avec des pommes vertes et des truffes, sauce aux truffes

-Pan fried foie gras

-foie gras (which is offered in 5-10 different preparations, including sometimes as a dessert with a sauce made from violets)

-Foie gras pate

-Hot Smoked foie gras

-The dying François Mitterrand's last meal consisted of: marenne oysters, foie gras, chapon and ortolans.

-I've had chocolate with foie gras and with wild hare and both were right on the money

-rare seared duck slices topped with some vegetables and seared foie gras

-poulet Bresse with garlic and foie gras sauce

-Just what we need - bobbing for foie gras

-Foie Gras, Lobster and Green Beans with various other ingredients added to make it a proper salad

-the foie gras broth w. rabbit ravioli

-terrine of foie gras studded with rabbit rillette

-Bocuse's soup also contains foie gras and chicken cosumme

-a duck dish whose ingredients included foie gras, veal stock and bordeaux

-Bonbons de Foie Gras

-Ragout de Ris de Veau, de Truffes, de Foie Gras et de Cretes de Coq

-ravioli stuffed with either foie gras or lobster

-he's not plunging foie gras into liquid nitrogen or whatever.

-We saved a quarter of the foie gras to make a foie gras butter which we're keeping in the freezer for last minute whisking

-Half to half, butter to raw foie gras - just whizz it up in a bowl or in the cuisinart-type appliance. Use it as you would ordinary butter to finish a sauce for meat or game

-a VERY thick slice of fois gras grilled, served with a kind of cabbage

-The Rabbit was singularly the best dish I've tasted in a while. Braised, with bacon, foie gras, parsnip and potatoes, shaving of truffles

-Foie Gras or Smoked Salmon Pops

- The Bresse chicken "G7" style (foie gras and roasted garlic sauce), which had been served at the G7 summit

I've got a few ideas going, namely

1) the fois gras tortellini in light of the recent class on pasta making (any my new machine!).

2) the above mentioned aperetifs using dried fruits

3) the fois gras butter for use in sauces

4) torchon - Thanks for the marinade idea

5) slices for pan searing

Still thinking...

Edited April 5, 2004 by bleudauvergne (log)

[markk]

Share one of your favorite preparations of this delectable, cooked at home or prepared by someone else...

Well, foie gras is my hobby, so I'll happily share some photos with you.

I have cooked it at home, and as long as you get the pan really hot you're fine - it's better to have the pan too hot and take it off when it crisps on each side, then to have the pan too cool - besides, there's nothing wrong if it's rare inside. Here's a beautiful piece of French foie gras (imported by D'Argagnan) that I sauteed then served with a deglazing sauce of shallots and aged sherry vinegar with a little apricot preserve...

Eating foie gras in Alsace is one of my great passions. Here are a few favorites...

This is the "Cromesqui de Foie Gras" at Restaurant du Faude in the village of Lapoutroie in the lower Vosges mountains, near Colmar, and is a must for anyone traveling in the region. You can see all my photos of this chef's food here:

Restaurant du Faude

And one more dish to share, the Large ravioli of smoked and poached duck foie gras, pot-au-feu bouillon, covered with black truffle shavings served at Restaurant Le Cerf in Marlenheim:

And for anybody interested in more, there are lots more foie gras and French food photos located here...

Guyarts Ltd. Digital Food Photo Gallery

Well, I hope you enjoy!

Edited April 5, 2004 by markk (log)