Offal: A Global History by Nina Edwards Read Free Book Online Page A

chicken hearts
1 cup (250 g) cleaned, soaked chicken livers
Skin of 2 large chickens (attached as much as possible)
2 cups (470 ml) whole milk
¼ cup (60 g) all purpose flour
¼ cup (60 g) whole butter
1 tablespoon chopped thyme
1 clove chopped garlic
1 large shallot diced
1 cup (235 ml) clover honey
2 tablespoons Activa (meat glue)
7 sheets of silver gelatine
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Kosher salt to taste
2 quarts (2 l) of grape seed oil for frying
For biscuits:
1.5 cups (375 g) plain (all-purpose) flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon crushed pink peppercorns
2.5 tablespoons butter cut into half-inch cubes
½ cup (118 ml) cream
    For chicken skin
    (Recommended 24 hours prior)
    Spread chicken skin on perforated rack with drip pan and salt heavily. Place in refrigerator overnight.
For spiced honey
    In saucepot, add honey, half of the shallots, garlic and thyme. Put on super low heat and let steep for 1 hour. Strain into a bowl and put aside.
For chicken-heart filling
    In a large saucepot, put butter and flour on medium heat and whisk for 3–5 minutes until golden roux forms. In a separate saucepot, heat milk just below a simmer. Once roux is ready, add hot milk whisking slowly into roux to form béchamel. Lower heat and stir every couple of minutes to let the sauce thicken. In a large cast-iron pan, heat olive oil to high heat and brown chicken hearts and chicken livers. Add the remainder of the garlic, thyme and shallot and cook until everything is soft and the organs are golden brown. Place in a bowl and set aside.
    Once organ mixture is cooled, rough chop contents on a cutting board into small pieces. Be careful not to over chop or leave too large. Place contents into béchamel on stove and stir thoroughly. The mixture should be a little bit thinner than wallpaper paste. Incorporate bloomed gelatine to mixture. Mix thoroughly. Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Pour into a thin pan and place in the refrigerator for 3 hours or until set.
For biscuits
    Mix all of ingredients together in a bowl. Add the cubed butter and use a bench scraper or 2 knives to cut the butter into lentilsized pieces throughout the dry ingredients. Pour in the cream and mix until it just comes together.
    Chill the dough for 1 hour in fridge and roll out into a 1-inch-thick disc. Use a ½-inch circle cutter to make small cylinders. Bake at 350° F (180° C ) for 8 minutes or until golden-brown on the bottom.
To finish chicken skin
    Rinse salt off chicken skin and dry in between paper towels very well. Cut with scissors into 2 inch × 2 inch (5 x 5 cm) squares. Take one piece of plastic wrap and lay chicken skin on top. Dustwith a thin layer of meat glue (we recommend using an icing (powered) sugar dispenser) ensuring you cover all four corners of the chicken skin. With a small melon-baller or teaspoon, set a dollop of chicken gravy in the centre. Fold all four corners of the chicken skin into the centre and then lift the plastic up and twist tightly to form a snug ball. Tie with an additional piece of plastic so the ball stays extremely tight. Place in fridge for 1 hour. After 1 hour, place chicken balls in boiling water for 5 minutes and then shock in an ice bath to stop the cooking (make sure you cook the chicken skin fully in boiling water).
To finish
    Remove plastic from chicken ball and place in 350° F (180° C ) fryer. Fry for 2–3 minutes or until golden-brown. Salt foie gras and roast in cast-iron pan until golden-brown. Lightly warm the biscuit in the oven.
To plate
    With a spoon, drizzle some of the spiced honey on a plate. Place the foie gras, the biscuit and chicken ball on the plate and serve immediately. Optional garnish: bitter lettuce.
Pig’s Ear and Pork Chop Pie
    —Sham Kesar-Bramall of Little Chilli Catering, 2012
Pastry
100 g plain flour
45 g butter
salt
    Add the above to a food processor and blitz up until you have breadcrumbs. Add cold water slowly until