A pilgrimage to the Mecca of foie gras

MANILA, Philippines - I’m one of the truly fortunate ones who get paid to do what I love. Just this October, I was invited by Rougie to Pau, France for a foie gras immersion training in the Rougie School of Foie Gras. Founded in 1875 and based in the medieval town of Sarlat in the beautiful Perigord region of France, Rougie is the world’s #1 producer of foie gras and moulard duck specialties, with farms located in France and Canada.

Foie gras is technically the liver of a fattened goose or duck achieved by force-feeding with corn. Foie gras is deeply entrenched in the DNA of French cuisine and fine dining the world over. The tradition can be traced back to the ancient Egyptians. The special method of feeding by gavage, a feeding contraption with a tube, result in the foie gras’ rich yet delicate and buttery flavor. Recognized by French law, “foie gras belongs to the protected cultural and gastronomical heritage of France” – rightly so, I might add.

If I were to extol the virtues of foie gras, it is one of the most wonderfully versatile products you can use. If treated right, it has the ability to elevate any dish into the sublime. Being invited for a foie gras training is comparable to a chef’s Mecca, to where I have to do a pilgrimage at least once in my lifetime to be enlightened, inspired and to pay homage to something that has brought pleasure and bliss to many discerning diners around the world.

Pau is located in the southwest of France, not very far from the Spanish border. It is a beautiful and quaint city in the Pyrenees. I am met by Chef Jean Caillé, Foie Gras School Techincal Deputy Manager, who is my guru and mentor for this foie gras journey.

My immersion begins with a visit to the Rougie plant in Maubourguet. In the plant I was introduced to the whole process of foie gras production: from the butchery stage wherein the moulard duck is fabricated, to the various methods and techniques utilized for their product line such as sous vide cooking, curing, confit, smoking. I witnessed the whole process all the way to the packaging and canning, until it’s ready to be shipped and delivered to the countless chefs waiting to get their hands on the foie gras and work their magic.

It was a pity that for the plant visit, photo-taking was strictly forbidden. The expertise and care by which they handle the product at all stages is truly awe-inspiring. I had to wear sanitized head gear, face mask and boots to get in. And in transit to each sector, we needed to pass through what I could only describe as a human car wash, where I walk through and my boots get mechanically brushed with a disinfectant solution. Every sector has stringent quality controls and, though aided by machinery, most of the work done is by human hands, from the extraction of the liver, to the butchery of the duck breasts and legs, deveining, portioning and some packaging and canning. After all, no machine can replace the love and pride a skilled worker’s hands can produce.

Next stop was the duck farm in Béarn. The farm is located among rolling hills where the ducks, before they are ready for gavage, roam freely in meadows. Here, they have a barn that houses the ducklings. They are fed and kept in the barn until they are big enough to roam and graze in the meadows. Once they’re mature enough to be fed by gavage, they’re moved to another barn where this is done.

Before entering the feeding barn, I was cautioned by the farmer to be quiet so as not to disturb the ducks. The ducks, to my surprise, are very pampered. The feeding barn is a very controlled environment: there are temperature and light controls, and as I’ve been instructed, noise control. This is to ensure the ducks are not stressed and agitated. It was quite surprising that when the farmer opened the doors and the ducks caught sight of him, they all excitedly opened their beaks, as if looking forward to be fed! Despite what animal activists may say, based on what I saw, the ducks weren’t really complaining.

The gavage used to feed the ducks is computerized, to be able to give the precise amount of food per feeding. Also, the precise recipe of corn feed and vitamins are controlled by the high-tech contraption. It reminded me of stories of how kobe cows are treated: massaged, dimmed lights with music and fed with beer. If I were an animal, it’s not too shabby at all! So with the ducks that are treated with much care and respect by the farmer. Indeed, I could very well say these animals are even better off than some humans.

With this renewed sense of respect for the product, we moved on to the next and the best phase of my training: the cooking! I believe it is invaluable for a chef to see the product in its original state, and all the things it goes through, and all the care and loving hands that it has passed through, before you get it nicely packed, ready for you to cook in the kitchen. The most important factor in cooking a product is having a profound respect and understanding of it. Only then are you able to handle, prepare and cook it in a way that validates and gives justice to the ingredient. Only then are you able to serve it and let your diners enjoy it with the integrity that it deserves.

I was pleasantly surprised when I showed up in school: I was expecting a class of chefs or students. But for the next few days it was a one-on-one training with Chef Jean Caillé. It was a training made in heaven. Chef Jean is a master at what he does, and he travels all over Europe to share with chefs like me the infinite things we could do with foie gras.

I had access to unlimited foie gras, duck and other Rougie products to play with. Chef Jean taught me the classical techniques and methods, as well as the more modern approaches and flavor combinations and possibilities for foie gras. In the morning, we would go to the market to get our ingredients, and think of what we could do with the foie gras with the produce we got for the day. All day for the next few days, we would be working together making various terrines, torchon and dishes with foie gras. The most fun is when, with the finished product, we interpreted the plating and presentation each in our own way. So we have identical products, but each plate would reveal a lot about our own style, personality and individuality. We chefs are, after all, artists in a sense.

While in France, foie gras is most often enjoyed in its cold preparations, it is a tad frustrating that in my experience here in Southeast Asia, the most commonly known and preferred rendition of foie gras is pan-seared. In fact, if I may be so candid, it horrifies me when guests request for a “well-done” foie gras. It offends my sensibilities, even before but more so now, to ruin the delicacy of foie gras to have to serve it that way, especially after so much tradition, expertise and care has gone into fattening up that liver.

By no means am I a foie gras snoot. But sometimes, in my horrified mind, I silently think, if you prefer your foie gras “well-done,” you don’t deserve to eat it! Foie gras has a very high percentage of fat, and all that silky buttery goodness is lost after you’ve rendered all the fat to get it “well-done.” All the ducks’ suffering would have been for naught.

However, we still do need to  acknowledge and please different palates and preferences. I just hope slowly but surely, Asians and Filipinos will open up to the many wonderful possibilities that is foie gras!

Being one of the biggest consumers of foie gras in the Philippines (over a ton in 2013!), I am hoping to explore and share its many wonders with our guests in Spiral, Sofitel.

The author is Sofitel Philippine Plaza’s restaurant operations chef.