Calf's liver with herb crust

Prep: 45 mins

Cook: 20 mins

Full of strong flavour, this is a truly showstopping dish.

50g stale bread, coarsely chopped

250g butter, softened
1 bunch of parsley, leaves picked
1 bunch of tarragon, leaves picked
1 French shallot, finely chopped

Salt and pepper
700g kipfler (fingerling) potatoes, scrubbed and dried
2 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves
3 garlic cloves
6 bulb spring onions (scallions), trimmed and halved lengthways
100g smoked lardons, cut into 1 cm (1⁄2 inch) thick strips
6 thick slices of calf’s liver (about 750 g/1 lb 10 oz)

(If you can’t get smoked lardons, speck or pancetta work equally well.)

Preheat the oven grill (broiler) to medium–high.

Finely chop the bread,150g of the butter and the parsley and tarragon leaves in a food processor to make a good thick paste.

Stir in the shallot by hand and season with salt and pepper.

Roll out the herb paste between two sheets of baking paper to a thickness of 5 mm (1⁄4 inch).

Transfer to a baking tray and chill for 1 hour.

Cook the potatoes in boiling water for 8 minutes, or until almost tender.

Rinse with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Cut in half.

Put 50g of the butter, the olive oil, bay leaves, garlic, spring onions, lardons and potato halves in a large frying pan.

Cook, stirring occasionally, over a low heat, for 3 minutes, or until the butter has melted. Cover with foil to keep warm.

Put the remaining butter in a large clean frying pan and place over a medium–high heat until melted.

Add the slices of liver and cook for 2 minutes on each side, until browned.

Arrange the liver on a baking tray. Cover each slice with the herb crust and place under the grill for 3 minutes, or until the herb crust has softened.

Serve immediately, accompanied by the potatoes.

Serves
6

Preparation Time
45 minutes

Cooking Time
20 minutes

Main ingredients
Dairy, Beef, Vegetables

Recipe Type
Dinner, Entertaining, Family Dinners

Level of Difficulty
Easy

Recipe and images from Stéphane Reynaud’s Book of Tripe. Published by Murdoch Books. Photographed by Marie-Pierre Morel.