Chef's Recipes

Pheasant and ham hock terrine with rhubarb-apple chutney

Australian Gourmet Traveller recipe for Pheasant and ham hock terrine with rhubarb-apple chutney

By Mike McEnearney
  • 45 mins preparation
  • 6 hrs 30 mins cooking plus curing, cooling, setting
  • Serves 12
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Pheasant and ham hock terrine with rhubarb-apple chutney
“Pheasant is a really beautiful light game – it’s not strong like grouse. You could use guinea fowl, which is similar, or chicken, but I like that game flavour.” You’ll need to begin this recipe 2 days ahead.

Ingredients

  • 2 ham hocks (unsmoked; about 750gm each)
  • 100 ml white wine vinegar
  • ½ each onion and carrot
  • 2 cups flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped, stalks reserved (loosely packed)
  • 10 white peppercorns
  • 2 fresh bay leaves
  • 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
  • 160 gm sliced jamón
Confit pheasant
  • 2 pheasant, quartered (see note)
  • 80 gm sea salt flakes
  • 200 ml dry white wine
  • 1 garlic head, halved horizontally
  • 5 flat-leaf parsley stalks
  • 5 thyme sprigs
  • 2 fresh bay leaves
  • 1.2 kg duck fat, melted (see note)
Rhubarb-apple chutney
  • 250 gm rhubarb, cut into 1cm pieces
  • 110 gm caster sugar, plus extra to taste (½ cup)
  • 1½ Granny Smith apples, cut into 5mm dice
  • 125 ml white wine vinegar, plus extra to taste (½ cup)
  • 5 gm ginger (about 1cm piece), finely grated
  • ½ tbsp yellow mustard seeds, roasted and lightly crushed
  • ½ tsp each ground cinnamon and ground allspice
Quatre-épices salt
  • 5 whole white peppercorns
  • 1 each clove and cinnamon quill
  • 1½ tsp finely grated nutmeg
  • 25 gm sea salt flakes

Method

Main
  • 1
    For confit pheasant, rub salt into pheasant, place in a non-reactive bowl and refrigerate to cure (8-10 hours). Preheat oven to 120C. Brush excess salt from pheasant and pat dry with absorbent paper. Place skin-side down in a single layer in a roasting pan lined with baking paper, large enough to fit pheasant snugly. Pour over wine, scatter over garlic and herbs, pour over duck fat, cover closely with baking paper then with foil. Cook in oven until meat falls from the bone (2½ hours), then cool in fat to room temperature. Remove from fat (reserve 1½ cups fat and refrigerate remainder for another use), coarsely shred meat (discard skin, bone, fat and sinew), transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
  • 2
    Meanwhile, combine hocks, vinegar, onion, carrot, parsley stalks, pepper, bay leaves and 1 tbsp sea salt in a large saucepan with 2 litres cold water, bring to the simmer over medium heat, reduce heat to low and cook until meat falls from the bone (3-4 hours; top up with extra water if necessary). Remove hocks (discard liquid) then, when cool enough to handle, coarsely shred meat (discard skin, bone, fat and sinew) and add to pheasant. Add reserved fat, chopped parsley and mustard, season to taste and mix gently.
  • 3
    Line a 1.8-litre loaf tin or terrine mould with plastic wrap, letting it hang over sides. Line with jamón slices, overlapping slightly and letting edges overhang. Spoon pheasant mixture into terrine, press flat, then fold overhanging jamón over pheasant mixture. Cover with overhanging plastic wrap, cover with a piece of cardboard cut to fit top of terrine and weight with food cans. Refrigerate until firm (overnight).
  • 4
    Meanwhile, for rhubarb-apple chutney, combine rhubarb and sugar in a non-reactive container and refrigerate overnight. Transfer to a saucepan, add remaining ingredients and stir over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the simmer and cook over medium heat until thick and jammy (10-15 minutes), adjusting to taste with extra sugar and vinegar. Season to taste with sea salt and transfer to sterilised jars, refrigerate until required. Makes about 350ml. Chutney will keep refrigerated for a month.
  • 5
    Meanwhile, for quatre-épices salt, dry-roast whole spices until fragrant (1-2 minutes), finely grind in a mortar and pestle, then add nutmeg and salt.
  • 6
    Unmould terrine, thickly slice, and serve with rhubarb-apple chutney and quatre-épices salt.

Notes

Pheasant is available from select butchers. Duck fat is available from select butchers and delicatessens.
This recipe is from the July 2011 issue of
.

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  • undefined: Mike McEnearney