Passport & Plate - Foie poêlé with a red wine fig reduction
France | Thursday, February 12, 2015 | 5 photos
Ingredients
INGREDIENTS
1/2 kg of figs, halved
1/3 cup of red wine
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
1 sprig of thyme
500g of fois poêlé or duck liver, sliced into pieces about 1cm thick
French bread stick, cut diagonally (or any delicious crusty loaf)
Bunch of mint to garnish (and eat)
A few extra figs to garnish
How to prepare this recipeMETHOD OF PREPARATION
1. Start by combining the figs, red wine, balsamic vinegar, sugar, thyme and a crackle of salt and pepper in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and let it simmer for 15 minutes, pushing and crushing the figs with a wooden spoon to squeeze all its juices out.
2. After 15 minutes, take the mixture off the heat and push through a sieve. Allow to cool to thicken.
3. In a non-stick fry pan and without any oil or butter, fry the slices of fois poêlé on a medium to high heat until brown on each side. It should take less than a minute on each side. Note: after frying a few, the pan will fill up with grease and it will almost be like you’re deep frying (yes, that much grease and fat oozes out!). After frying the first batch, tip all the grease into a container or bowl and then continue frying until you’ve fried it all up.
4. Toast the bread by either putting it in the oven or in a toaster.
5. Start by spreading the fig sauce on the plate. Arrange the bread whilst placing the fois poêlé on top. Finish up by placing quartered figs around the plate and ripping leaves of fresh mint.
6. Enjoy and savour delicately whilst rolling your eyes back and letting the food do the thinking for you.
The story behind this recipeOne of the most memorable experiences when I was traveling around France was when I managed to bump into and meet a politician. Our love of food and cooking meant that we were quickly both engaged in deep conversation about regional food and his grandmother’s recipes as well as his more modern twists in his food experiments. Our age difference, our backgrounds and our occupations were the most unlikely of combinations but it was quite amazing how we were able to profoundly connect on such a simple topic.
He had invited me to Christmas dinner with his family and I was more than glad to help out and learn more about French food, whilst using fresh and local produce. The theme of the night was duck as duck is a specialty of the region in Bordeaux. The first course (this dish) was fois poêlé or duck liver with a fig sauce. This was a family favourite and it was often produced at the dinner table on occasions. The delicate, greasy fois poêlé bought fresh from the market that morning went so well with the fresh figs and fig sauce I just had to recreate it when I got home the next day. Going to the same morning market, I bought what was needed and recreated a success that was enjoyed and shared just in time for a friend’s birthday.
This dish is really special to me because you can taste the many layers of French history, modern twists and unlikely friendships all intertwined. I hope you guys at World Nomads will also be able to taste the depth of flavours and feel the story move in your mouth as you chew, chew and chew.
