Go to the Recipe: Foie Gras Torchon
Ok so this is not about the recipe but I have noticed that you guys don't recommend all purpose flour. I use King Arthur Unbleached All Purpose and it has a protein content of 11.7 percent and its only made with hard red winter wheat. So how is it inconsistent then? On the other hand I do understand your reasoning for products like: Pillsbury Unbleached AP Flour.
keeping in mind that foie gras is freakin' expensive, here is a challenge for the chefsteps crew: how about infusing a standard goose or duck liver with fat by using some modernist voodoo? Sure, u could make a liver parfait but that's not the real thing. The aim is fake foie gras. Challenge accepted?
The reason the liver in the top photo is so yellow or pale is that it's loaded with fat. The animal it belonged to was intentionally give a severe case of hepatic lopidosis ( fatty liver syndrome ) . There's a lot of debate about the ethics of such a thing and it aint gonna end anytime soon. Right now foie gras ( fat liver in French ) is en vogue so I imagine we'll be stuck with it like pork belly 2 years ago. I do like your "post mortem" foie gras idea albeit I don't think I could stomach the stuff anymore than I can the traditional one.
You can do a lot with modernist techniques. Making one thing into something it's not? Not gonna happen. There's too many differences between regular goose liver and foie gras to be a complete impossibility. Many have tried to emulate foie too, it just does not work.
It seems the foie is sold out on amazon, you can order online at the gourmet corner fyi.. https://www.thegourmetcorner.com/collections/foie-gras-pates
They carry as well affordable sauternes and coteau du layon!
They rarely recommend all purpose flour because it's the wrong protein content. I've seen King Arthur's website, and understand they claim that their flour is 11.7% protein.
You say you understand their reasoning with products like Pillsbury Unbleached ap flour, well, according to Pillsbury, their ap flour has a protein content of 10.5%. Is the claim made by Pillsbury any less reliable than the claims made by King Arthur? If so, how?
Different protein levels will give the outcome of the product different characteristics. A low protein content will yield a soft, giving, not particularly elastic dough. A higher protein flour will give you a stiffer, elastic dough. If you're trying to make a cake, you do not want to use a high protein flour because the texture will not be the soft, yielding crumb that you would get from using a cake or pastry flour. If you want to make a bread or pizza crust, you do not want to use a low protein content flour, because you won't get the gluten development and elasticity that you're looking for. You use the tool that will give you the best results. Now, if you look through some of the discussions and alternative ingredients, they do from time to time recommend using all purpose flour in place of bread flour, however, they do caution that the results will not be identical to what appears in their videos because of the protein content.
Anyway, the bottom line is they recommend the flours they do, because of the final outcome of the product they are making.
Foie in vogue now? Long before pork belly got attention, foie en torchon was active. But more overwhelmingly easy mode b grade seared in countless ways everywhere because the torch was intimidating. IMO too often. Nonetheless, this is the technique that deserves most credit and worth resurgence. With sous vide so accessible and great sources, anyone can do it properly. I'm excited to see something else here at CS I can depend on for success. Thumbs up.
The reason why I said I understand their reasoning for pillsbury is because I read that pillsbury flour ranges from 10-11.5 percent (Americas Test Kitchen). Also, I was under the assumption that they thought any brand of AP flour is inconsistent but now it makes sense. Because they are talking about the generic label "AP Flour"...at least I think thats what they are saying. But then again, pastry flour can range in protein content.
Just want to check the weights here. The links listed for purchasing Foie Gras all list the weight of one (1) lobe between 1 lb and 1.5 lbs. Whereas the recipe calls for 1 lobe @1.2 Kg. (2.6 pounds) So is it one lobe (approx 1.2 lbs) or 2 lobes @ 1.2 kg?
Can I do this with chicken liver?
For those of you balking at the price of foie, check out Dartagnan. Freezer sale is going on right now. they have 30% off of foie cubes. Ive used them several times to make torchon. A pound will set you back about $25 plus shipping. Order lots to offset shipping.
Rather than buying large expensive lobes of foie, is it possible to get the same result by using cheaper chunks of foie and binding them with Activa?
No. Don't even think about it ! ;-)
I noticed the same thing. Did you get an answer on this, as the weights of the spices and pink salt would depend on it? I found a couple sources that sold an approximately .9 - 1.3 lb lobe, just like you're alluding to.
Try a Coteaux du Lyon
@Skillet Punk absolutely. Chicken livers tend to be a bit drier, so you might consider augmenting with some fat, but you can definitely do this with chicken liver
I doubt that chunks of foie gras are cheaper than the whole lobe.
That still has alcohol so its not a valid option.
You could try to find or do a flavored simple syrup maybe.
Yikes. Spice mixture is overpowering and frankly ruined the dish. I had to toss the whole thing. And beware the typo 104 degrees. 140 is typical. Have made torchon many times and never had to toss one.
Df
Not working
Spice is overpowering. Ruined the dish. Had to toss it. And 104 degrees must be typo. I cook mine at 140. Have made torchon many times and never had one turn out like this. Bummer. Should have done it the way I usually do it. Wanted to try something new. My bad. Also website signin isnt working.
Not workiNg
@john anderson So, a few questions.
1. How much sweet spice did you use? The recipe only calls for 5.8 g of sweet spice mix for 1200 g of foie gras. Did you use the amount called for or did you use the entire amount of 1 recipe of sweet spice?
2. Did you cook your at 104°F (not a typo) or at 140°F? Just because you do something doesn't mean it's the only way and that everyone should do what you do.
3. Did you do allow for the flavors to develop (3 days to 2 months in the fridge)?
How much sweet spice did you use?
The 104°F is not a typo. how much sweet spice did you use?
Plus. 4. Did u sprinkle the empty plastic wrap plus the topside of the liver equaly with the spice mix to develope a better Taste.
@Vianney Cier it actually comes out quite nice with chicken liver. Granted, fast does need to be added (I used butter), but the taste and texture are lovely.
Can this be frozen after its cooked, and if so, is there any quality or texture degradation? (I'd like to try this, but I'd rather make two smaller torchons.)
Is it considered safe?
@Oleg Yes
I understand the flavor develops much more in a three day period but is there any reason you can't eat it within say 24hrs?
Interesting! I've got a few questions about it:
- Do you remember your butter / chicken liver ratio?
- Kept the livers intact or mixed to a pate?
- Same temp?
kind regards!
I did this recipe recently and only used half of the recommended spice mixture (~2.9g) due to the comments. I thought the spice was pretty interesting but my husband felt it was still too much, especially too star anise forward. I think this is going to be a personal taste experiment and it’ll take a few tries to get the balance of what you like.
No
Maybe ChefSteps gives this dish a over work. It would be nice and pleasant to see a classic Torchon recipe including sousvide. With „classic“ i mean without that „spice powder“ which for me and my guests in europe destroyed the taste. A standard: Salt, white pepper prague powder and sauternes basic recipe would help a lot. From there we can play around with own powder experiments. Thanks so much. One of the longest members of chefsteps. Cooked that recipe almost every year.
Can I use foie cubes for this recipe?
@Michael Moore i can't see why not
Hi I made the recipe and it came out great however I found a few veins that I missed. Should I be concerned about bacteria or is it more an unsightly issue as the veins look red ? I want to enjoy it but am concerned any advice would be appreciated
Wow only 40 degrees C?
Two questions:
1) would 50 degrees ruin the results?
2) would a fatty Moulard (duck) liver require the same temperature
Many thanks in advance
Hi Rene, for this technique since there is no hanging or cooking in a permeable material like cheese cloth. So there is no way for melted rendered fat to escape. We keep it at a lower temperature to keep that from occurring. If you go up to 50°c you will render a lot of fat out of the foie. That is fine if you want to make a pate, but won't work so well for this application.
And here in the US all foie is referencing duck liver. We rarely see goose available in the states.
Thanks a lot Kyl, I now have to try (starting with 40-42 C)
