How to pot a pretty pâté?

[FlashJack]

A seemingly absurd question: how do I stuff pâté into a jar?

 

Until recently I've potted chicken liver pâté  into china or stoneware vessels. I spoon, push and pack it in, run a wet finger over the top to smooth it off then seal with clarified butter. When it's cooled and set and I dip into it I've never noticed air pockets and crevices in the pâté .

 

I've been doing the same with shallow round glass preserving jars from Weck. These look great with their rubber seals and silver clips. Great for giveaways (hoping to get the glassware back).

 

But looking through the side of the jar the pâté  looks like an ant farm for very big ants. There are air filled pockets, gaps and tunnels. It's a bit unsightly.

How can I fill a glass jar to avoid this problem? I've tried pressing down with a coffee tamper. Result: messy.

 

OK, not a life-threatening situation but I'm curious. There must be a trick.

[pastrygirl]

What is the consistency of your pate, can you make it more liquid? 

 

Air bubbles seem bad from a food safety standpoint.

[FlashJack]

1 minute ago, pastrygirl said:

Air bubbles seem bad from a food safety standpoint.

Thanks PG. I'm not so concerned about safety: I guess absence of the pâté implies presence of air but they are under seal, protected by the butter, refrigerated and eaten fairly quickly. The air inside is less than the air at the surface once you start to use the pâté. 

 

Maybe the ant tunnels have been there all along but I've never looked from the side before using glass jars.

 

It's like an elementary school experiment. @rotuts will demur, but it's only there because I looked!

[FlashJack]

13 minutes ago, pastrygirl said:

What is the consistency of your pate, can you make it more liquid?

Oh, I'd say the consistency is about right. Smooth but a long way from being liquid. It's pâté like.

[AAQuesada]

I would use a pastry bag and give it a few hard raps on the counter to settle things

[FlashJack]

1 minute ago, AAQuesada said:

a pastry bag

As in, squeeze though a bag? Never thought of that. I'm a barbarian on the squeezy-creamy-pastry style of thinking. Great idea!

[AAQuesada]

Once you get used to using them they can be a lifesaver. Fast, neat and easy to use. 

[FlashJack]

1 minute ago, AAQuesada said:

Once you get used to using them they can be a lifesaver. Fast, neat and easy to use. 

You are a genius. Squeezing through bag eliminates air/consolidates the stuff.

 

Brilliant. Thank you.

[pastrygirl]

Are you cooking it in the jars?  
 

I personally never make pate but when you said chicken liver I was reminded of the smooth mix I’ve seen in restaurants kitchens, pureed in a blender then poured into ramekins and baked.  

[FlashJack]

Yes, that's it. Made in a pan, immersion blended, then spooned in to a jar. But I'll try piping it.

[EatingBen]

As AAQuesada said, piping bag but most importantly you need to do it correctly. Trying to swirl it in will result in lots of bubbles, it’s no longer ant farm but an aero bar.
 

Put the tip of the bag in the middle of the jar, squeeze hard and fast and once about half full then start lifting the tip of the bag. 
 

The faster you can push out the pate the cleaner it will appear in the jar. It’s worth the effort but first few attempts are going to look rough as heck if you aren’t used to it.

 

if you have big piping bags that are strong once you’ve filled them with the pate but before you snip the end off and if you are brave swing the bag around a half dozen times to help push air out of the mix. If you end up with a pate plastered ceiling I can’t be held responsible but I might send you a ladder and a box of your preferred cracker. 

[FlashJack]

2 hours ago, EatingBen said:

first few attempts are going to look rough as heck

Excellent tips. Thank you very much.