How to Devein a Foie Gras? - Les Gastronomes

How to Devein a Foie Gras?

Les Gastronomes

Step by Step Guide to Deveining Foie Gras

 

Have you been considering deveining foie gras at home? If so, make use of our step by step guide that will help the deveining process run as smoothly as, well, a hot knife through foie gras! 

 

Ingredients

  • Foie gras (between 400g and 600g)
  • Ice cubes
  • Cold water
  • A pinch of coarse salt

 

Equipment

  • Sole fillet knife
  • Chopping board
  • Vegetable peeler
  • Bowl
  • Blow torch

 

Instructions

  1. It’s impossible to remove the veins of a cold or frozen liver, so ensure that your liver is at room temperature before beginning.
  2. Follow the natural separation line of the liver and use your hands to separate it into two lobes. You’ll note that one lobe is small, while the other lobe is significantly bigger. Put the smaller lobe aside for now, we’ll get to that later.
  3. Locate the veins in the bigger lobe. You’ll find the start of the main vein located near the top of the lobe spanning across the lobe’s length. The other important vein is found in the centre of the lobe at the point where both lobes were attached.
  4. Grab your chopping board and place the bigger lobe on it. Position the lobe so that it’s lateral—the thicker part should be on your right and the thinner part on your left.
  5. Place your left hand over the lobe and press down lightly. Using your sole fillet knife, cut the lobe in half lengthways in one swift slice. It’s highly recommended that you heat the knife with a blow torch to ensure the foie gras doesn’t stick to the blade.
  6. Now that your bigger lobe has been divided into two pieces, lay them both down flat on the chopping board and note the network of veins. The foie gras should be void of bruises and haematoma, if it isn’t then this is an indication of a lower quality liver.
  7. To prime the foie gras for further deveining, gently work your hands on the lobe until it begins to split.
  8. Using your thumb and a vegetable peeler, pinch the main vein & carefully pull the vein towards yourself until it’s completely removed.
  9. Repeat step 8 with all the smaller veins that are present on the lobe until all visible veins have been removed.
  10. Grab a large bowl and fill it with water, ice cubes and a pinch of salt. Place your deveined foie gras lobe in this saltwater solution to keep the lobe firm.  
  11. Locate the central vein in the remaining half of the bigger lobe and slice crosswise to where this vein is located.
  12. Fold the foie gras in half and begin rotating the two pieces, almost as though you are trying to unscrew them from one another. By doing this, you’ll easily see the vein running through the lobe that is holding the two pieces together.
  13. Put the lobe back down on your chopping board and hold one piece of the lobe down while you pull the other piece towards yourself. Doing this removes the venous system in one stroke. Place the piece without the vein in it into your saltwater solution along with any pieces that may have broken off.
  14. Take the remaining piece of foie gras and devein it by pinching the vein between your thumb & vegetable peeler once more, pull towards the foie gras’s tip. Once the vein is removed, place the lobe into the saltwater solution.
  15. Remember the smaller lobe we set aside in step 2? Grab it now and remove the foie gras chunks from around the veins in order to release them.
  16. You’ll note that two veins are clearly visible—one near the top of the foie gras and one in its centre. Using your left hand, lift the central vein and use the vegetable peeler swivel to clear the meat at the vein’s base. Once the base of the vein has been cleared, remove the meat found on either side of the vein. Repeat this process on the top vein.
  17. Now that the meat has been cleared from both the top and central vein, the vein network is clearly exposed. Hold the foie gras flat with your left hand and lift the central vein upwards with your right. Detach the veins by pulling gently with the aim of removing all veins in one intact piece.
  18. Once the central vein has been removed, move on to the top vein. Pull on the vein gently and remove it. Place the deveined foie gras in the saltwater solution.
  19. Allow the foie gras lobes to soak in the saltwater solution for 30 minutes before you go on to use the foie gras in a recipe.

Recipe inspired from www.meilleurduchef.com 

Will you be trying your hand at deveining foie gras? Or are you leaning more towards skipping the deveining process and opting instead for our deveined foie gras?

 

Either way, we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to make use of the comments section below.

 

 

 

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