Chicken Terrine

Terrines make a great addition to a picnic or alfresco dining, it also makes an excellent prepare ahead starter for a dinner party. This terrine has the addition of soft dried fruit and a little pear liquor to give it a lift in flavour. Of course as always for the taste of chicken use free-range or organic chickens and remember to keep the terrine cold until ready to serve (best to avoid sore tummies.)

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8-10 Portions
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Prep: 20-30 minutes
Cook: 1 hour

Ingredients

Chicken Terrine

  • 300g chicken mince
  • 350g chicken thigh meat, diced into small pieces
  • 550g chicken breast diced into small pieces
  • 4 tbsp fresh oregano, roughly chopped
  • 2 tbsp shelled pistachio nuts
  • 50g soft ready to eat mixed dried fruit eg. apricots, prunes and pears, roughly chopped
  • 20ml pear brandy
  • generous pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
  • maldon salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 8-10 rashes of rind less streaky bacon

Method

  1. Terrine: Combine all the terrine ingredients together in a large bowl until well combined, season lightly with salt and pepper.
  2. To Cook: Preheat an oven to 180°C. Line a 800ml-1litre terrine container or loaf tin with the bacon slices, leaving no gaps, allowing slices to hang over the edge. Fill the container with the terrine mixture, pressing it down firmly. Fold the overlapping slices over the terrine. Cover the terrine with buttered foil and cover with a lid if you have one. Place the terrine in a roasting dish filled with enough water to come up to 2/3s of the terrine container (bain-maire). Place the terrine in the roasting tin on the centre shelf in the preheated oven. Cook the terrine for 1 hour, until the terrine is set. The terrine is cooked when it begins to come away from the sides and the juice runs clear.
  3. Take the terrine from the oven and bain-marie, remove the lid and/or foil from the terrine and allow it to cool. Cover the terrine with cling film and place a weight on it eg. tin of food. Place the terrine in the refrigerate and leave it for at least 4 hours before serving but preferably for 1 day. The terrine will keep for 2-3 days covered in a refrigerator.
  4. To Serve: Serve the slices of the terrine with quartered figs and handful of watercress or/and slices of buttered rye or wholemeal bread and chutney of your choice