Fish Terrine Recipe

Origin: Britain      Period: Modern

This dish grew out of the need to provide a substitute for my Game Terrine for those members of my family who would not eat either meat or game. I went through a couple of incarnations of the recipe before I eventually settled on this one:

Ingredients:

About 600g of fish steaks or fish fillet (any firm fish like haddock, cod, trout, salmon, monkfish, plaice, bream) which can be cut into strips about 5cm long and 2cm thick will do.
zest of half a lime
juice of 1 lime
400g of fish to make forcemeat (I've found that a strong oily fish like mackerel is essential for this but any other fish can be added to bulk this up)
50g lard
50g butter
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
leaves from a few sprigs of lemon thyme, finely chopped
small sprig of chives, chopped
6 mint leaves, finely chopped
100g fresh white breadcrumbs
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
splash of Armagnac
2 tbsp dry white wine
salt and pepper to season
3 sheets of sushi nori

Fish Terrine Preparation:

Method:

First you'll need to make your forcemeat. Drop about 400g of boned fish into your food processor. Blitz this to chop the fish up then add the lime zest, the lime juice and the herbs. Add a twist of back pepper and a pinch of salt. Use the blender to mix the herbs in then add the breadcrumbs and again blend these in. Next add the lard and butter (you need these for the fat content to bind the terrine together. Use the blender to mix the fats into the meat until it forms a paste. Finally add the egg, the lime juice and the alcohol and blend in.

Meanwhile prepare the terrine dish by cutting one of your sheets of sushi nori (the seaweed used to make sushi rolls) in half. Flame the sushi then dip gently in some water and use to line the base and sides of the terrine (make sure that enough hangs over the edge to overlap the top of the terrine. Now add a layer of forcemeat to the base of the terrine and cover this with a layer of the fish meat strips. Cover again with a layer of forcemeat and another layer of fish strips (I usually use three layers of fish strips). However you fill the terrine dish make sure that the final layer you add is of the forcemeat and ensure that this rises above the level of the terrine's rim. Use the overhanging sushi nori to cover the top of the terrine. Now cover the terrine with cooking foil, forming a parcel above the dish to make sure that the foil doesn't touch the terrine.

I usually place the terrine in a lidded roasting dish so that once I pour in the hot water (enough to come half-way up the side of the terrine) I can add the lid and place the whole roasting dish in an oven pre-heated to 160°C for about 2 hours. After this time take the terrine from the oven and test with a skewer to make sure that the terrine has cooked. If the skewer does not come out of the middle of the terrine piping hot return to the oven for about a further half an hour.

Once the terrine is done allow to cool a little then remove its foil parcel. You now need to press the terrine down (this will make it easier to cut). It's easiest to do this by placing another terrine dish over the top of the first and placing a brick in it to weigh it down (you can also use a piece of wood and a brick. Leave the terrine to solidify until it is completely cold then transfer to the fridge (it will keep for several days). You can also cut the terrine and freeze it in the freezer for up to a month.

When ready to serve use a flat knife to go around the side of the terrine, tip it onto a plate and curve into slices about 2cm thick.

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