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Whose wants to Pate?

GregSVanGregSVan
in General Training Discussions

Okay, I have a question that google cant seem to answer.

Is pate, as in liver with herbs and wine mixed in, good or bad for you. I have recently discovered a store selling some locally, and its pretty darn yummy to me. This is strange as I despise liver by itself. I just want to make sure Im not eating a solid block of fat or something. Thanks!

 

Greg

Comments

  • Tom GlynnTom Glynn
    There are lots of varieties of pate. All the good ones are solid fat image. Spread across a loaf of french bread and drunk with a really good red wine will of course lower the percentage of fat in the total meal image. If you are counting calories, you've picked the wrong meal.

    Here is a cut and paste from the internet:

    There are 240 Calories in an average serving, along with 23g Total Fat, 8g Saturated Fat, 0g Trans Fat, 78mg Cholesterol, 362mg Sodium, 2g Total Carbohydrates, 0g Dietary Fiber, 0g Sugar, and 6g Protein. It also provides 35% Vitamin A, 0% Vitamin C, 4% Calcium, and 16% Iron.

    Happy dining!

    tom
  • Linda PatchLinda Patch

    Pate is mostly fat. I believe ~ 50 calories out of 60 per Tbsp are from fat.

    Many people object to how pate is made since it involves force feeding with a plastic or metal tube to fill a bird's esophagus with high-cal food such as corn at least twice a day for the last several weeks of its life. The practice causes the liver to grow as much as 10x its normal size, creating great pain for the birds, making it difficult for them to walk, and subjecting them to serious injuries caused by inserting the feeding tube. There currently a bill in Congress to outlaw the practice. 10 other countries - including the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Turkey and most regions of Austria - forbid the force feeding.

    I am not a vegetarian, and I think pate is delicious, but I don't want to eat anything that creates that much cruelty. I feel the same way about factory farming, and will only eat the meat I get from my CSA. It's a small bit of rebellion, but it's what I do.

  • GregSVanGregSVan

    Thanks for all the input guys.  I myself am very much an animal rights person. I was under the impression that not all pate is created in that way, but maybe I am misinformed. Well, anyway, with the fat content, it will become a special ocassion thing and not an after work snack.

    GV

  • rpc733rpc733

    I may be wrong here because I don't have time to go double check it, but I believe that what Linda is refering to is Foie Gras, which is indeed as she described. It is also a pretty expensive delicacy that most would probably not "waste" on putting in pate. You'll find it on a menu in a lot of fancy French restaurants in particular, I believe. Pate on the other hand is made from liver from chickens, veal, beef, etc. I have made it myself on several occasions from what is readily available from an ordinary animal that has been processed and is available in the grocery or butcher store. My own experience is that pate is simply a way to make liver palatable! IOW - the more cognac and butter you add the better it tastes image! As pointed out above though I don't think there is any way to describe it as good for you - unless you need a huge shot of Iron and if that's the case there are plenty of other good alternatives - IMHO.
  • rpc733rpc733

     

    This goes to prove that I should not type answers before doing my due diligence as I am sure many of you thought as you read my post above! That is even more true before I am fully caffeinated. I got to thinking about this more as I drove the kids to school today and found this website on the subject which seems to give a lot of answers. http://www.gourmetfoodstore.com/foi...e-gras.asp. Hope it helps.

     

     

  • KitbooKitboo
    Classic pate de foie gras is made of goose and/or duck liver with other meats. As everyone else has said, it's a solid block of fat (most of that fat--saturated animal fat) which is why it is unspeakably delicious. I ate my weight in pate, foie gras, and other cured meats when I was in Paris 3 years ago. It is a miracle that I did not require coronary artery stenting after that binge.

    I've seen other pates that are vegetarian and "low-fat". They can be okay. But if you'd had the real stuff, it will certainly not be as yummy.
  • ArnoArno

    Please do not call Foie Gras paté in front of a Frenchman. Foie Gras is liver period. It can be found raw or already cooked. Paté is a mix of grounded meats, fats and spices.

    Venison patés are pretty tasty . Rabbit and boar are my favorite. You have some variants like mousses (liver only) or rillettes.

  • Linda PatchLinda Patch
    Posted By Arnaud Glacet on 05 Jan 2010 03:25 PM

    Please do not call Foie Gras paté in front of a Frenchman. Fois Gras is liver period.

    HA! Lesson taken! image

     

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