Boudin Blanc Ordinaire

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Food processor with metal blade
• •Sturdy fine-mesh sieve or tamis
• •Sausage stuffer or large piping bag with a ½-inch (12 mm) plain tube
• •Kitchen string and clean pin
• •Wide pot with small heatproof wire rack or perforated insert
• •Instant-read and clip-on cooking thermometers
• •Ridged cast-iron grill pan
• •Potato ricer

Instructions

1. 1

   Soften the onion

   Melt 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) butter in a small pan over low heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until completely tender and translucent without a trace of browning. Spread it on a plate, cool it, then refrigerate until cold. Warm onion would soften the pork fat before the forcemeat has formed.

2. 2

   Chill and prepare

   Soak the casing in cool water for at least 30 minutes, then flush water through it and check for holes. Put the food processor bowl, blade, sieve, and mixing bowl in the cold. Spread the pork, fatty fresh bacon, and foie gras on a tray and chill them in the freezer for about 20 minutes, until firm at the edges but not frozen solid.

3. 3

   Pound and sieve

   Pulse the lean pork and fatty fresh bacon in the chilled processor until finely chopped, working in two batches if the bowl is crowded. Add the foie gras and process just until the mixture becomes a smooth, cohesive paste, scraping down the bowl as needed. Keep it below 50°F (10°C); if the fat begins to look glossy or smeared, stop and chill everything for 10 minutes. Force the paste through a sturdy fine-mesh sieve with a flexible scraper. The processor replaces the mortar, but the sieve stays because it gives boudin blanc its fine, tender texture.

4. 4

   Finish the forcemeat

   Set the bowl of sieved forcemeat over a larger bowl of ice. Beat in the cold eggs one at a time with a sturdy spoon, then mix in the chilled onion. Add the ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon (95 ml / 95 g) cold cream in three additions, followed by the salt, white pepper, and nutmeg. Beat only until the forcemeat is even, sticky, and faintly glossy. If beads of fat appear, stop immediately and refrigerate the bowl for 15 minutes, then resume over ice with the remaining cream. Ça se rattrape.

5. 5

   Fill and tie

   Fit the casing onto a sausage stuffer or a large piping bag fitted with a ½-inch (12 mm) plain tube. Tie the end with kitchen string and fill the casing loosely, guiding the forcemeat with one hand so no section grows taut. Tie the rope at regular intervals to make 8 boudins, each about 6 inches (15 cm) long. Do not overfill. If a casing tears, pinch it closed on both sides of the break and retie it into two shorter links.

6. 6

   Poach below simmer

   Arrange the boudins on a small heatproof wire rack or shallow perforated insert that fits inside a wide pot. Add enough water to cover the sausages by 1 inch (2.5 cm), remove the loaded rack, and bring the water to a full boil. Lower the heat as you return the rack to the pot, then hold the water at 203°F (95°C) for 12 minutes. The surface may quiver, but it must never roll. If a casing begins to balloon, slide the pot off the heat and add a little cool water around the edge. At 12 minutes, prick the end of one boudin lengthwise with an instant-read thermometer; the centre must reach 160°F (71°C). If necessary, continue poaching minute by minute.

7. 7

   Cool the boudins

   Lift out the rack so all the boudins leave the water together. Transfer them carefully to a tray and let them cool for 20 minutes, then refrigerate uncovered for at least 30 minutes, until completely cold and firm. Cooling sets the forcemeat and allows the casings to face the grill without bursting.

8. 8

   Make the purée

   While the boudins cool, put the potatoes in a saucepan, cover with cold water, and add 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 18 g) salt. Bring to a gentle boil and cook until a knife passes through without resistance, about 20 minutes. Drain thoroughly, return them to the dry pan over low heat for a minute, then pass them through a ricer. Warm the ½ cup (120 ml / 120 g) cream with the 4 tablespoons (60 ml / 56 g) butter and fold most of it into the potatoes, adding the rest only as needed. If the purée tightens, loosen it with a spoonful of warm cream; if it is loose, fold it over low heat until it holds soft ridges.

9. 9

   Prick and grill

   Heat a ridged grill pan over medium-low heat. Prick each cold boudin three or four times with a clean pin. Do not cisel, or score, the casings: a cut invites the forcemeat to escape, while a pinhole merely releases pressure. Brush eight pieces of baking parchment with the softened butter, wrap one around each boudin, and grill gently for 8 to 10 minutes, turning every 2 minutes, until warmed through and delicately bronzed beneath the paper. If the paper blackens, lower the heat. If a casing splits, leave the boudin inside its paper so the filling and butter remain together, then spoon them over the purée. Ça se rattrape. Serve two boudins per person with the cream-rich potato purée and any melted butter from the papers. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Fat fresh bacon means a very fatty piece of uncured, unsmoked pork belly, not breakfast bacon. Ask for the palest, fattiest section available. Smoke and curing salt would dominate this delicate forcemeat.
• •Use raw foie gras, not pâté or a seasoned terrine. Its small quantity should deepen the pork and cream without turning the boudin into liver sausage.
• •Cold is part of the recipe. If the processor bowl feels warm or the fat begins to shine separately from the meat, stop and chill it. A broken raw forcemeat can usually be restored before stuffing, but it cannot be repaired after poaching.
• •The exact water temperature matters more than aggressive grill marks. A hard boil bursts the casings, and a fierce grill finishes the same mischief. Patience, not force.
• •Serve with a dry Champagne or a firm, dry cider. Both cut through the cream and foie gras while respecting the boudin's quiet seasoning.

Advance Preparation

• •The onion can be cooked and chilled one day ahead. Keep it covered in the refrigerator until the forcemeat is mixed.
• •The boudins can be poached, cooled, and refrigerated for up to 2 days before grilling. Wrap them only after they are completely cold. If serving them from a full chill, grill gently until the centres reach 165°F (74°C).
• •The potato purée may be made several hours ahead and reheated over very low heat with a little reserved warm cream. Stir sparingly so the potatoes remain light rather than gluey.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 470g)