Pork Liver Pâté
also called pâté · liver pâté · pate · the spread in a bánh mì · pa tê · banh mi pate · pork liver pate · bò pâté · country pâté
- Phở & Bánh Mì
- Deli
- serves 12
- about 16 hr
- Dressings & Dips
Three ways to read this recipe
The table
| Preheat oven 325°F (165°C) | |||||
| 1 lb(450 g; trimmed of ducts and cut in chunks)pork liver | soak cold 2 hr, drain | grind coarse | pulse in | line the terrine, bake 90 min in a water bath | weight, chill 12 hr |
| 2 cups(475 mL)whole milk | |||||
| 4 large(about 1 cup, sliced)shallots | sweat 10 min, no colour | ||||
| 6 cloves(sliced)garlic | |||||
| 2 Tbs(30 g)unsalted butter | |||||
| 8 oz(225 g; cut in 1-inch cubes)fatty pork shoulder | |||||
| 8 oz(225 g)diced pork fatback | |||||
| 2 largeeggs | |||||
| 1/3 cup(80 mL)heavy cream | |||||
| 2 Tbs(30 mL)fish sauce | |||||
| 2 Tbs(30 mL)brandy | |||||
| 1 tspfive-spice powder | |||||
| 1 Tbs(10 g)kosher salt | |||||
| 1 tsp(coarsely ground)black pepper | |||||
| 1 tspsugar | |||||
| 6 oz(170 g; cut thin, or streaky bacon)sliced pork fatback | |||||
What to lay out
Everything the recipe asks for, sitting under the step that eats it. Tick each one as you measure it.23 things to get out.
Pans and tools
Before anything else
2soak cold 2 hr, drain
3sweat 10 min, no colour
4grind coarse
goes in with what steps 2 and 3 made
5pulse in
goes in with what step 4 made
6line the terrine, bake 90 min in a water bath
goes in with what step 5 made
Cooking it
Start to finish is the longest chain through the table, so branches that overlap are counted once. That is why the waits add up to more than the clock — and it only holds if you get them going together.
Tap a step when it is done; the next one lights up.
The clock
- Start to finish
- at least 15 hr 30 mintwo waits that overlap count once
- Needs you
- 10 minof the steps that give a time
2 of the 6 steps never say how long they take, so both numbers are floors. Nothing here says whether you can walk away, so all 10 min of it is counted as time you are standing over it. The recipe itself says 16 hr.
soak cold 2 hr, drain
2 hrwalk awayfrom the start
sweat 10 min, no colour
10 minneeds you(assumed)from the start
grind coarse
not timed2 hr in
pulse in
not timed2 hr in
line the terrine, bake 90 min in a water bath
1 hr 30 minwalk away2 hr in
weight, chill 12 hr
12 hrwalk away3 hr 30 min in
- needs you
- you can walk away
- never timed
Drawn to scale, so a long wait really does take up the room it takes. The shortest stretches keep a sliver so they stay visible; their times are printed beside them. Bars that line up are happening at the same time. The minutes are always the recipe’s own; a dashed edge means we worked out from the step whether you have to be there, and a dotted one means nothing was said, so we assumed you are standing over it.
You'll need food processor · fridge · oven · roasting pan · skillet · terrine
Goes with
See how it is written
>> title: Pork Liver Pâté
>> category: Dressings & Dips
>> tags: pork, liver, vietnamese, terrine, oven
>> servings: 12
>> time: 16 hr
>> counters: Phở & Bánh Mì, Deli
>> aka: pâté, liver pâté, pate, the spread in a bánh mì, pa tê, banh mi pate, pork liver pate, bò pâté, country pâté
>> pairs-with: baguette, do-chua
>> step.1: preheat oven 325°F (165°C)
>> step.2: soak cold 2 hr, drain
>> step.3: sweat 10 min, no colour
>> step.4: grind coarse
>> step.5: pulse in
>> step.6: line the terrine, bake 90 min in a water bath
>> step.7: weight, chill 12 hr
Preheat the #oven{} to 325°F (165°C).
Soak @pork liver{1%lb}(450 g; trimmed of ducts and cut in chunks) in @whole milk{2%cup}(475 mL) in the #fridge{} for ~soak{2%hr}, then drain and pat dry. The milk pulls out the blood that makes liver taste tinny; pour it away.
Sweat @shallots{4%large}(about 1 cup, sliced) and @garlic{6%cloves}(sliced) in @unsalted butter{2%Tbs}(30 g) in a #skillet{} over low heat for ~sweat{10%min}, until soft and sweet with no colour on them.
Grind @&(~2)drained liver{}, @&(~1)aromatics{}, @fatty pork shoulder{8%oz}(225 g; cut in 1-inch cubes) and @diced pork fatback{8%oz}(225 g) in a #food processor{} to a coarse paste still flecked with fat — this is a country pâté, not a mousse.
Pulse @eggs{2%large}, @heavy cream{1/3%cup}(80 mL), @fish sauce{2%Tbs}(30 mL), @brandy{2%Tbs}(30 mL), @five-spice powder{1%tsp}, @kosher salt{1%Tbs}(10 g), @black pepper{1%tsp}(coarsely ground) and @sugar{1%tsp} into @&(~1)paste{} in short bursts.
Line a #terrine{} with @sliced pork fatback{6%oz}(170 g; cut thin, or streaky bacon), pack @&(~1)forcemeat{} in and fold the ends over, then set the covered terrine in a #roasting pan{}, pour boiling water halfway up its sides and bake ~bake{90%min}, until the centre reads 160°F (71°C).
Weight @&(~1)baked pâté{} with a foil-wrapped brick and chill ~chill{12%hr}, overnight, before turning it out. It slices on day two and spreads better on day three.