Ham & Parsley Terrine

I’ve been wanting to make this for the boy for ages. It looks so elegant. It’s like a terrine, except the ham is in pieces, rather than minced. It’s traditionally made in France for Easter, but better late than never.

1kg really decent ham

1 onion

4 cloves

2 pigs trotters

2 carrots

1 leek

1 celery stick

125g parsley leaves, finely chopped, stalks reserved

1 bay leaf

2 fresh thyme sprigs

1 bottle chardonnay, preferably French

3 shallots, finely chopped

6 cloves garlic. Finely chopped

Black pepper

The boy is out and I’m deliberately making this while he isn’t home. He will love it but I don’t want him to see me putting in the pigs’ trotters. They’re easy to find these days. Our supermarket has them and they are unbelievably cheap.

Cover the ham in water, in a deep casserole dish  and cook for 30 minutes. Drain it and rinse it. This will get excess salt out.  I’m thinking Verdi’s Falstaff will bring the right amount of happy heartedness to this dish, so on the CD Player it goes. Put the ham back in the casserole and add the trotters, carrots, leek, celery, parsley stalks, thyme, bay and wine. Season well.

Simmer for up to two hours, until the meat is very tender. Remove the ham and cut it into large pieces, about finger sized. Bring the stock back up to the boil and reduce it down to just over half a litre. Strain it and let it cool. This is where the magic happens, as it starts to become jelly. Mix the shallots, garlic and parsley in a bowl. The finer it’s chopped, the better.

I was about to throw the pigs trotters out, but the boy’s cat has been waiting patiently and is now purring majestically. He wins. I think only a cat could navigate all those bones. He’s in heaven. The boy doesn’t notice that his cat isn’t interested in his dinner when the time comes. It’s our secret.

In an oiled loaf tin, place a layer of ham, followed by the shallot and parsley mix. Add some of the carrot from the ham’s cooking water, finely diced, Layer it up. Ham/Parsley mix/Ham/Parsley mix.

Pour over the cooled stock. Refrigerate for 48 hours so the ham is suspended in parsley-green gelatine.  The boy will be amazed something so elegant can be cooked at home. Its white and green layers do look good. Cut into thick slices with a very sharp knife. Traditionally this would be served with a mustard vinaigrette spooned over.  This is how we’re having it, along with a radish salad and  some crusty French bread and Breton butter. He doesn’t seem curious about how the jelly was made. Just as well, as I really don’t want to tell him about the trotters.