Chicken Terrine

When it comes to elegant and sophisticated dishes, my chicken terrine wrapped in zucchini slices is a true masterpiece that will impress even the most discerning palates. This exquisite dish combines chicken mousse with the freshness of vibrant zucchini slices, creating a harmonious marriage of flavors and textures. Stay tuned to discover the secrets behind this culinary marvel and learn how to recreate it in your own kitchen. Let's do it!

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Elegant and sophisticated

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Prepare The Zucchini

Wash the zucchini thoroughly and trim off the ends. Using a mandoline to slice zucchini is an excellent way to achieve uniform, thin slices. Always use the hand guard that comes with the mandoline to protect your fingers. If you don’t have a hand guard, consider wearing a cut-resistant glove. Adjust the mandoline to a thickness of about 1/8-inch/3mm. Hold the zucchini firmly with the hand guard or your cut-resistant glove and slide it down the mandoline blade in a smooth, even motion. Once you have a few slices, rotate the zucchini a quarter turn so that you can change the orientation of the slices. Repeat twice leaving the heart of the zucchini intact. Save scrapes for later use.

Prepare The Carrots

Start by peeling the carrots to remove the outer skin. Cut off both ends of the carrots. Depending on the length of your carrots, cut them into sections about 2.5-inches/5cm long. Trim a thin slice from one side of each carrot section to create a flat base. Rotate and trim the other three sides to create a rectangular block. With the carrot block standing on one of the flat sides, slice it into planks that are 5 mm thick. Cut planks into sticks that are 5 mm wide, creating uniform bâtonnets.

Blanching Veggies

Bring water to a boil, and whisk in salt. Add the zucchini slices to the boiling water. Blanch them for about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the blanched zucchini slices to the ice bath. This will stop the cooking process immediately. The slices should become supple but still retain their vibrant green color. Drain well, and carefully lay zucchini over a baking tray lined with paper towels. In the same boiling water, cook carrot bâtonnets for 7 minutes, and transfer cooked carrots to the ice bath. Drain and keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Prepare The Mold

The key to creating this stunning dish is to carefully overlap the zucchini slices, ensuring that they cover two-thirds of the loaf pan. This not only creates a visually striking pattern, but also allows the slices to meld together during cooking, resulting in a cohesive and flavorful terrine. Start by moisturizing your countertop with a damp sponge to create a non-slip surface for your plastic cling wrap. Then, lay a large microwave-safe plastic sheet onto the countertop, ready to receive your carefully arranged zucchini slices.
Top with another plastic film sheet, and then drap the zucchini patchwork over the mold. Gently press into the bottom edge of the pan thoroughly to make sure there are no air pockets. Take the top plastic wrap off.
Overlap more zucchini slices to cover the corners of the terrine entirely. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Prepare The Chicken Breasts

Look for any white, tough connective tissues and dark red or blood spots. Slide the knife just under the tissue and pull it away from the meat as you cut, being careful not to remove too much meat. Cut chicken breast into pieces, and place in the freeze along with the bowl of the food processor and blade for about 25 minutes. Keeping everything cold helps prevent the chicken mixture from becoming too warm, which can affect both the texture and the safety of the final product.

Chicken Mousse

Place the super cold chicken pieces in the food processor. Add salt and pepper and give a few pulses. Add the cold eggs – mix for 15 sec. Add zest, chicken stock, porto and mix to combine. Add milk and cream; puree. Keep mixture refrigerated until ready to use.

Montage

Fill the pan with a third of the chicken mousse. Create a few lanes of carrot bâtonnets lengthwise, and repeat. Close the terrine with the zucchini leaps in contact. Keep plastic wrap away from the mold's edges, and seal the top with more zucchini slices. Enclose with the plastic wrap that is hanging from the edges, and top with aluminum foil.

Cooking

Preheat oven to 300ºF/150ºC. Cook chicken terrine in hot bain-marie for 60 minutes until internal temperature reaches 167ºF/75ºC. Remove the cooked terrine from the bain-marie, and let rest for an hour. Cover the lukewarm terrine with a few folded paper towels, and top with a flat tray and weights. Place terrine in the refrigerator overnight.

Storage

Remove weights, tray and foil. Flip it over a cutting board, and de-mold. Take out plastic film, and absorb the rendering water with paper towels.
Luster terrine with olive oil. Store chicken terrine for up to 4 days in the refrigerator; covered with plastic wrap. Avoid freezing temperature.