Country Pate

Charcuterie boards have become all the rage for wine tastings at vineyards, so I thought I’d talk a little bit about charcuterie- and how to make one of the staples of such boards- a country pate. In French, charcuterie refers to a branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines and pates. It is only recently that items such as nuts, jellies and cheeses have been added to make a “charcuterie board” and to broaden its appeal.

Pate (pronounced pah-TAY) is French for “paste”. Pate is simply a mixture of seasoned ground seafood, poultry, meat or vegetables, and often a combination of several different base ingredients. Beef, pork, liver, ham, seafood, wild game, poultry, and vegetables are all candidates for pate. It can be smooth and creamy or on the chunky side. It is usually eaten with a baguette and cornichons.

Ingredients (for 10 people)

• 2 lbs of pork

• 1 lb of veal

• 8 oz of pork belly fat

• 6 slices of raw bacon

• 2 shallots

• 1 clove of garlic

• 2 eggs

• 1 c. Panko bread crumbs

• 4 oz of armagnac or cognac

• Salt, pepper as desired

Directions

1) Grind the pork, veal and belly fat. Add the 2 eggs, cognac, the bread crumbs. Fine chop the shallots and garlic and add to the mixture. Add the salt and pepper. Let the mixture marinate for 24 hours.

2) When ready to cook, pre-heat oven to 250 degrees.

3) In the bottom and on the sides of a terrine, lay out the bacon. Add the ground meat mixture and cover. Put some water in a 2 in. Deep roasting pan. Place the terrine in the water and bake for 2 hours.

4) After 2 hours, remove the terrine from the oven and let it cool for 24 hours.

Bon Appetit,
Alain Guichard