Chicken Liver Pate with Wine and Cilantro -- aka Chicken Liver Mousse or "Terrine de Foie de Volaille"

I never really liked winter. Having lived in the north part of this country for over a decade, I see winter as this long season (usually six months) consisting of cold winds and short days (and horrible snow storms sometimes). ..Until I went to southern France, where you could have an outdoor Christmas market in December, drinking mulled wine and sampling foie gras. What fun! How delicious! Oh, I miss it terribly...

Well, mulled wine isn't that hard to make. In fact, we've been making it every winter now. Homemade foie gras though, is tough. I mean, unless you live in the center of a metropolitan city or live in the middle of nowhere on a farm, where can you lay your hands on some goose liver here in the states?

No worries, I've found a cure, namely the chicken liver pate -- "terrine de foie de volaille" if you will. It is just like foie gras, but a bit less fatty. Perhaps a little healthier as well? (Oh, did I mention it's Paleo compatible?)

Chicken liver is much easier to find than goose liver. I got mine from the co-op turned local grocery store. They also carry beef liver in their freezer, right next to the frozen seafood. Don't ask me how they arrange the shelves, I've always been puzzled.

This particular creation was for a dear friend S, who has been a featured baker in my kitchen before. It was her birthday a few days ago, and I brought the pate over to her dinner party, along with a loaf of homemade crusty bread.

To start, I trimmed about a pound of chicken livers and marinated them in Shaoxin wine for about half an hour. This is an optional step to get rid of the strong oder. Alternatively you can use milk as well, but I have always preferred Shaoxin wine -- a trick I learned from my mom, as it adds some complexity to the dish. During this time, I started to prep the vegetables: onions, carrots, cilantros all got chopped, and two garlic cloves got bruised. 

Then I melted some butter in a pan. Hmmm, it smelled good already. 

The livers were drained and added to the pan. The heat should be on medium. The livers cook fairly quickly, and you don't want to over cook it. So be attentive, flip around once it turns brown. 

After about 2 minutes (or until the livers are brown on the outside), onion, carrot and garlic cloves all got tossed into the pan. Be patient. Cook till the onion starts to be translucent. Add a splash of red wine if you want. The aroma was killing! 

Add the herb of your choice. Cilantro was mine. Cook for another 2 minutes or so, or until the livers are of a slight pink in the center.

When you are done with the stove top. Let everything cool slightly. Take a food processor, and dump EVERYTHING in the pan to it. Do not leave out a single drop of that melted butter. Add in remaining wine and seasoning, process until smooth. The texture should be similar to mousse. In face, even the color resembles chocolate mousse to a certain degree. Is that why it is also called liver mousse instead of pate sometimes? Once you have it, transfer the mousse into a bowl. 

While the food processor is working hard, melt some more butter in the microwave (or on the stove if you fancy). Pour the melted deliciousness on top of the mousse. 

Add whatever garnish you want at this moment (eg, more chopped cilantro), and chill it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Chicken Liver Pate with Wine and Cilantro 

serves 8

• 1 lb chicken livers
• 1/4 cup Shaoxin wine or milk
• 3 Tbsp butter + 1 Tbsp melted butter
• 2 garlic cloves, bruised/smashed
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 medium carrot, chopped
• 1 Tbsp red wine (optional)
• 2 Tbsp white wine
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 Tbsp cilantro, chopped + additional for garnish (optional)

1. Trim the livers and marinate them in Shaoxin wine or milk for about 15 minutes.
2. Melt 3 Tbsp butter in a saucepan. Stir in livers and cook till the outside gets brown. Add in bruised garlic, chopped onion and carrot. Cook for 2 minutes or so, add in the chopped cilantro. Cook till the livers are tender and only the center is slightly pink.
3. Let the mixture cool before throw in a food processor. Add everything else in. Process until smooth and transfer into a bowl. Pour 1 Tbsp melted butter on top. Garnish if you want. Chill in the fridge for at least two hours.

Serve as a spread on a slice of baguette. Enjoy:)