Traditional Salmon Rillettes
From The Country Cousin in An Academy Award Review of Walt Disney Cartoons
There's a lot of indistinguishable blobs of color painted in the background of this short. Conventional wisdom would suggest these would be sweet things like ice cream, however, I would like to offer up a more savory option.
Rillettes is a type of preserved meat confit where said meat is stewed, shredded, and then stored in a sterile container like a can or a mason jar.
Since we've already had beef and pork the last two recipes let's go with a seafood option.
250 g of skinless salmon fillet
115 g of skinless smoked salmon
1 tbsp of sour cream or creme fraiche
Mason Jars for canning if you choose
Add 4 cups of water to a pan along with the peppercorn, bay leaf, and lemon juice, then let the mixture boil. Once it starts boiling, simmer it for about 2-5 minutes.
Afterward, add the salmon while simmering. Keep poaching the salmon for about 5-10 minutes. Make sure to turn the salmon over to poach both of its sides equally.
When you’re done poaching the salmon, take it away from the heat and cover it. Then, put it in the refrigerator to cool down. Note that it can cool down to room temperature without having to refrigerate it, but it’d take more time.
While the salmon is cooling down, start working on the smoked salmon. Get a medium-size bowl and put together the smoked salmon, butter, olive oil, sour cream or creme fraiche, lemon juice, chives, and the shallot. Whisk this mixture well until all the ingredients are combined together perfectly.
Back to the salmon. Flake it, and heat it together with a tablespoon of butter and shallot till it’s soft. Then, wait till it’s cool and add it to the mixture you prepared previously.
Whisk the mixture enough so that it’s chunky. Afterward, season it with salt, white pepper, and a sprinkle of dill.
Your rillettes are now ready to be served. You can serve it on baguettes and top it with the watercress or any other vegetables you like. You can put the rillettes in two glass cups or mugs, and place them along with the side dish on a tray, for some fancy-restaurant vibes.
That's all for the meats. Next up, breads