Brochettes de Foie de Veau

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •8 flat metal skewers, 8 to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm)
• •12-inch (30 cm) wide skillet
• •Rimmed sheet pan with wire rack
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Kitchen scale

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the finishing butter

   Work 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 42 g) of the softened butter with 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 4 g) parsley, the lemon juice, a small pinch of salt, and a little pepper. This is beurre maître-d’hôtel, a parsley and lemon compound butter. Shape it into a short log in parchment and chill until sliceable. Keep it apart from the cooking; its fresh acidity belongs beneath the finished brochettes, not under the broiler.

2. 2

   Cook the mushroom slices

   Melt 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) butter in a wide skillet over medium heat. Cook the sliced mushrooms in two batches with a small pinch of salt, turning until tender and dry with only a little gold at the edges. Spread them on a tray to cool, then weigh out exactly 12 ounces (340 g). That cooked weight matches the liver and prepared pork, preserving the source recipe’s equal proportions. If you are short, cook a few more mushrooms rather than filling the gap with extra duxelles.

3. 3

   Reduce the Duxelles

   Melt 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) butter over medium-low heat. Add the finely chopped mushrooms and shallot, then cook gently until their liquid has escaped and evaporated. Add the wine and reduce until the pan is nearly dry. Reserve 1 tablespoon of stock, then stir in the rest with the tomato paste and reduce until the Duxelles sauce is stiff enough to stand in a mound, about 6 tablespoons (90 ml / 100 g). Fold in the remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and spread the sauce on a plate to cool. If it remains loose, keep reducing. If it catches, move the unscorched sauce to a clean pan, add the reserved stock, and reduce again. Ça se rattrape.

4. 4

   Prepare equal pieces

   Bring the salted breast of pork already prepared by Blanchings (No. 273) to the board and dry it thoroughly. Weigh out 12 ounces (340 g), then cut it into ⅔-inch (1.7 cm) squares. Trim every membrane and firm tube from the liver without soaking it, weigh out the same amount, and cut it to match. Equal size is not decoration here; it lets the liver and pork finish together under gentle top heat.

5. 5

   Stiffen the liver

   Season the liver pieces with most of the remaining salt and pepper. Melt 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) butter in the cleaned skillet over medium-high heat until its foam subsides without browning. Toss the liver in small batches for 45 to 60 seconds, just until the surfaces turn pale and feel firmer while the centers remain raw. Transfer each batch immediately to a cool plate. If the liver releases liquid, lift it out, let the pan boil dry, and resume with a smaller batch. The surface will still set properly. Ça se rattrape.

   Do not chase browning during the stiffening. Colour comes beneath the broiler; the pan’s only job is to set the liver’s exterior so it holds the sauce and crumbs.
6. 6

   Coat and skewer

   Let the liver lose its pan heat, then combine it with the prepared pork and cooked mushroom slices. Add the cold, stiff Duxelles sauce and turn everything carefully until every piece wears a thin coating. Thread the liver, pork, and mushrooms alternately onto 8 flat metal skewers, leaving a hairline of space between pieces so top heat can reach their edges. If the Duxelles slips off, the ingredients are too warm or wet; chill the mixture for 10 minutes, then coat it again with the sauce left in the bowl.

7. 7

   Crumb with butter

   Spread the fine breadcrumbs over a tray and roll the skewers through them, sprinkling and pressing until all sides are generously covered. Melt 4 tablespoons (60 ml / 57 g) butter and spoon it evenly over the crumbs as you turn the skewers. Rest them on a wire rack for 5 minutes so the coating settles. Meanwhile, preheat the broiler and position an oven rack 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) below it. Fine dry crumbs are essential; coarse crumbs leave bare patches and scorch before the liver is ready.

8. 8

   Grill them gently

   Set the rack of brochettes over a rimmed sheet pan and broil gently, turning each skewer a quarter turn every 2 to 3 minutes, until the crumbs are evenly bronze and the centers of the largest liver and pork pieces reach 160°F (71°C), about 10 to 14 minutes. If the coating darkens before the centers reach temperature, move the tray down and finish at 400°F (200°C). You keep the crust and finish the meat without burning either one.

   A flat metal skewer prevents the pieces from spinning as you turn them. It replaces the original ringed skewer without changing the cooking.
9. 9

   Serve over the butter

   Cut the chilled beurre maître-d’hôtel into thin coins and bring it to the table in a small dish beside the brochettes. Place a coin on each warm plate, lay two brochettes over it, and let their heat soften the butter into the crumb coating. Serve at once, while the crust is crisp and the liver remains tender. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose calf’s liver that is pale rose-brown, moist without being slick, and clean-smelling. Dark, leathery edges warn that it has sat too long. Technique comes first, but liver gives the cook nowhere to hide poor freshness.
• •Use unsmoked salted pork belly, not ordinary smoked bacon. Unsmoked slab bacon is the nearest substitute when salt pork is unavailable, though its curing will be gentler and the finished brochettes less assertively savory.
• •The Duxelles sauce must be cold and stiff before it meets the other ingredients. A warm or loose sauce slides away, takes the crumbs with it, and leaves the skewer bare.
• •Fine dry breadcrumbs are the home equivalent of the source recipe’s fine bread raspings. Panko is too coarse for this close coating; save it for another supper.
• •Pour a light red with modest tannin, such as Beaujolais or a supple Pinot Noir. Heavy tannin makes the mineral character of liver seem harsher, while bright fruit handles the salted pork and maître-d’hôtel butter beautifully.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare the salted breast of pork through Blanchings (No. 273) up to a day ahead. Chill it covered, then dry it thoroughly before cutting and weighing.
• •The stiff Duxelles sauce and cooked mushroom slices can be made a day ahead and chilled separately. Bring the slices close to room temperature before assembly, but keep the Duxelles cold.
• •Beurre maître-d’hôtel keeps for 3 days in the refrigerator or several weeks frozen. Slice it while cold and keep it apart until serving.
• •The brochettes may be assembled up to 4 hours ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Add the breadcrumbs and melted butter shortly before broiling so the coating remains dry.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 320g)