On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 330

accordinglythereisverylittleconnective
tissuebetweentheminutehexagonalcolumns
ofcells.It’sadelicateorganthatisbest
brieflycooked;longcookingsimplydriesit
out.Thecharacteristicflavorofliverhasbeen
littleinvestigated,butseemstodepend
importantlyonsulfurcompounds(thiazoles
andthiazolines),andgetsstrongerwith
prolongedcooking.Generally,bothflavorand
texturecoarsenwithage.Theoccasionally
milkyappearanceofchickenliversisdueto
anunusualbutharmlessaccumulationoffat,
aboutdoubletheamountinanormalredliver
(8%insteadof4%).
FoieGras

Ofthevariousanimalinnardsthatcookshave
puttogooduse,onedeservesspecialmention,
becauseitisinawaytheultimatemeat,the
epitomeofanimalfleshanditsessential
appeal.Foiegrasisthe“fatliver”offorce-


fedgeeseandducks.Ithasbeenmadeand
appreciatedsinceRomantimesandprobably
longbefore;theforce-feedingofgeeseis
clearlyrepresentedinEgyptianartfrom2500
BCE.It’sakindoflivingpâté,ingeniously
preparedinthegrowingbirdbeforeit’s
slaughtered.Constantovernourishmentcauses
thenormallysmall,lean,redorgantogrowto

10timesitsnormalsizeandreachafat
contentof50to65%.Thefatisdispersedin
insensiblyfinedropletswithinthelivercells,
andcreatesanincomparablyintegrated,
delicateblendofsmoothness,richness,and
savoriness.
Preparing Foie GrasA good-quality liver is
recognized by its unblemished appearance,
palethankstotheminutefatdroplets,andby
its consistency. The liver tissue itself is firm
butpliable(likechickenliver),whilethefatis
only semisolid at cool room temperature.
Whencoolandpressedwiththefinger,agood