Pigeon Pate
Posted on
This recipe originated because a one of my neighbours who was a bit stressed, decided to take up shooting, and was determined to single handedly eliminate the entire wood pigeon population of South Yorkshire. He was generous to the extreme - Knock, Knock on the front door - Hi there, here's some more pigeons for you ( Oh no, not another 30 pigeons!!). Having said that the recipe is damn good!Makes 2 bread tins.
Ingredients
- 20 pigeon breasts
- 250 gms chicken livers
- 500gms good butchers sausages skinned
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 large cloves of garlic finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons red currant jelly
- 1 large glass of port
- 1/4 teaspoon ground mace
- 2 juniper berries crushed
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- 2 eggs
- 24 rashers streaky bacon
- Olive oil
- Salt and Pepper
Method:
- Saute the onion and garlic gently for about 5 minutes until soft, golden and translucent. Put aside.
- Chop the pigeon breasts and chicken livers
- Quickly brown the pigeon and liver in batches and put aside in a bowl
- Deglaze the pan with the port and add to the meat
- Put the meat and port, sausage meat, mace, eggs, onions and garlic, thyme, , juniper, red currant jelly into a food processor.
- Blend to a smooth, but slightly grainy texture. You may have to do this is several batches.
- Remove from food processor into a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
- Test seasoning by frying a teaspoon of the mixture for a few minutes and taste.
- Adjust seasoning as required.
- Using a heavy knife flatten and stretch the rashers of bacon.
- Line the bread tins with the bacon, with the bacon overlapping the sides so that it can be folded over to cover the top of the pate.
- Fill the tins with the mixture and fold over the bacon
- Cover the tins with double thickness of foil and tie the foil in place.
- Place tins in a roasting tin and fill half full with hot water.
- Cook at 180C or gas mark 4 for 1 hour 20 minutes.
- Remove and check - the pate should have shrunk away from the sides.
- Leave to cool with the foil in place and with a heavy weight on each tin to compress the pate as it cools.
- Mature in the refrigerator for 2 days before using.