CookEat Recipe
Fried Bread Bites with Chicken Liver and Sweetbreads
Small crustless bread squares generously topped on one side with a finely chopped liver and sweetbread mixture, soaked with egg and fried filling-side first.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 2 chicken livers, about 80 g total, professionally trimmed; 2 or 3 small lamb sweetbreads, about 80 g total, professionally prepared for human consumption; About 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion; About 20 g prosciutto, finely chopped; About 20 g butter; A little salt and black pepper; A small pinch of grated nutmeg; 1 scant teaspoon plain flour, about 3 g, for the filling; About 100 ml unsalted meat juices or broth; 1 whole egg, beaten, for the filling; A small pinch grated Parmesan, about 1 teaspoon; About 120 g firm stale bread, cut into 20 small crustless squares just under 1 cm thick and about 2.5 cm across; About 20 g additional plain flour for the filling surface; About 2 additional whole eggs, beaten, to soak and coat the bread; About 700 ml suitable frying oil, or enough for the pan.
Step 2
Finely chop the prepared chicken livers and lamb sweetbreads with a knife or mezzaluna. Put them in a saucepan with the finely chopped onion and prosciutto, butter, a little salt and pepper and the nutmeg. Cook over moderate heat, stirring, until the mixture begins to sizzle.
Step 3
Sprinkle in the scant teaspoon of flour and stir it through. Add the meat juices or broth and simmer, stirring, until the organs are fully cooked to 74°C, about 8–12 minutes or longer as required. Gradually pour in the one beaten filling egg, stirring constantly, and cook until the mixture firms and again reaches 74°C. Take off the heat and stir in the Parmesan. Spread in a shallow dish, cool promptly and refrigerate until cold.
Step 4
Spread a generous layer of the cold filling on one side of each crustless bread square. About 30 minutes before frying, dust only the filling side with the additional flour and arrange the pieces filling-side up on a shallow tray. Pour the two additional beaten eggs generously over them so the bread absorbs egg and the filling stays fully covered. Keep this half-hour soak refrigerated.
Step 5
Heat the frying oil to about 170°C. Carefully lower the pieces into the oil filling-side first. Fry in small batches, turning once, for roughly 3–5 minutes until golden, with a completely cooked egg coating and filling reheated to 74°C. Drain and serve hot. This is the single reheating after chilling the filling; prepare only the amount to be served.
Step 6
For the optional gizzard, use one professionally emptied and trimmed chicken or turkey gizzard, about 40–60 g. Simmer separately in water until fully cooked to 74°C and reasonably tender, about 40–60 minutes or longer for a turkey gizzard. Remove any remaining tough tissue, chop finely and transfer directly while hot into the initial liver and sweetbread mixture. Continue through the filling, one chilling stage, refrigerated egg soak and final frying above. Completing the preliminary boiling replaces the source half-cooking.
Step 7
The sweetbreads may be omitted, as the source allows; use the same two livers and the optional prepared gizzard, making fewer bites or a slightly thinner filling layer as needed. A few finely chopped truffle shavings, about 3–5 g, may be stirred into the filling instead of leaving it plain. A pinch of mixed spice can replace the nutmeg. These additions are optional and are not all required together.
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