Got this from a magazine and it is wonderful served with crusty bread and home grown salad. It takes a bit of effort but is well worth it. Not for those who are on diet!
1tbsp olive oil
4 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1.5 tbsp finely sliced sage leaves
1kg pork belly (weight excluding bones and rind)
200g unsmoked rindless back bacon
200g pork back fat
1.5 tbsp finely chopped rosemary
2 tsp green eppercorns
125ml white wine (and some extra for your glass!
)
3 tbsp brandy or armagnac
0.5 tsp mace or mixed spice
1 tsp ground black pepper (I omitted this because my children and husband don't like too much pepper, unlike me)
2 tsp sea salt
1. Heat the oven to 180 degrees C (160 fan oven) gas mark 4. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and fry the shallots and garlic for a couple of minutes until softened, stirring occasionally, adding the sage just before the end. Transfer this to a large bowl.
2. Cut the pork belly into large chunks and mince it in batches in the food processor. Add this to the bowl with the shallots. Mince the bacon and back fat, too, and add these to the bowl.
3. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix together thoroughly. To check the seasoning, fry a little patty of the mixture in the pan you cooked the shallots in and taste it for seasoning.
4. Press the mixture into a square 23cm/1.5 litre bowl or terrine dish and smooth the surface with the back of a spoon. The pate will shrink considerably as it cooks so don't worry if it goes right to the top. Cover the terrine with foil and place it inside a roasting dish with hot water coming two-thirds of the way up the sides. Bake it for 1.5 hours, uncovering it 45 minutes before the end to brown the top.
5. Remove the dish from the roasting tray and weight it. If you are using a square or largeish round dish then you cna use the base of a cake tin with a couple of tins on top, otherwise make a lid using card, cover it with foil and then weight it. Leave it to cool.
6. Cover the terrine and chill it overnight. Remove the fat around the edge before serving it, you will find a lovely loose jelly underneath. Serve the terrine in slices.
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