Figatell Valenciano

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Digital kitchen scale
• •Meat grinder with 6 to 8mm plate, or a heavy chef's knife
• •Mixing bowl
• •Charcoal grill, plancha, or cast-iron pan
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the caul

   Put the caul fat in a bowl of cold water for 20 minutes, then rinse it gently and spread it on a board. Cut eight rough squares, about 14cm across, and keep them cold. If a piece tears, overlap two smaller pieces. It melts around the meat and forgives small untidiness.

   Caul fat should smell clean and mild. If it smells sour or strong, don't use it. Sourcing wins before technique ever begins.
2. 2

   Mince the meat

   Keep the pork shoulder, belly, and liver very cold. Pass them once through a coarse grinder, 6 to 8mm, or chop them with a heavy knife until finely minced but not pasted. The liver should season the pork and soften the texture, not turn the whole mixture into a smear.

3. 3

   Season and rest

   Add the garlic, parsley, pine nuts, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and clove. Mix with cold hands for about 1 minute, just until the mince turns tacky and holds together. Fry a teaspoonful in a small pan and taste it before shaping. Pésalo, no lo adivines: the salt and spice are small amounts, but they decide the figatell. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.

4. 4

   Wrap the figatells

   Divide the chilled mixture into 8 portions, about 105 to 110g each. Shape each one into a squat oval, about 9cm long and 5cm wide. Set one portion on a square of caul, fold the sides over, then roll it closed with the seam underneath. Do not pull the caul tight; it shrinks as it cooks.

5. 5

   Grill steady

   Heat a charcoal grill, plancha, or cast-iron pan to medium. Oil the surface lightly only if the figatells threaten to stick. Cook them seam-side down first, then turn every few minutes until the caul has rendered into a lacy browned skin and the centre reaches 71C, about 12 to 16 minutes. This is the method that decides it: heat too fierce and the caul burns before the liver cooks; heat too low and the filling sits there leaking. Cook it through, not dry.

6. 6

   Rest and serve

   Rest the figatells for 5 minutes. Split the rolls, spread with allioli if you're using it, and tuck in one or two figatells while the bread can still catch the juices. If you have no thermometer, cut one open: the centre should be set and juicy, with no raw liver paste. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.

Chef Tips

• •Ask the butcher for pork caul fat, tela, reda, or lace fat, and say you need it for wrapping small patties. It freezes well, so buy extra when you find it.
• •Use fresh pork liver, not lamb liver and not cured sausage. Don't add chorizo to make it louder. Figatell is Valencian; the flavour is pork liver, parsley, pine nuts, and caul fat rendering around it.
• •Pine nuts go rancid quickly. Taste one before it goes into the bowl. If it tastes bitter or stale, leave it out rather than spoiling the whole batch.
• •A meat grinder gives the best texture, but a sharp knife works if you keep everything cold and chop patiently. A food processor can turn liver pasty in seconds, so use short pulses if that's all you have.
• •For a proper bocadillo, use bread with a firm crust and enough chew to hold the juices. Soft sandwich bread collapses, and nobody asked for that.

Advance Preparation

• •The seasoned mixture can be made up to 24 hours ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Wrap in caul the day you cook if you want the neatest shape.
• •Wrapped raw figatells can be frozen on a tray, then bagged for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before cooking.
• •Allioli can be made 1 day ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Bring it out 10 minutes before serving so it spreads cleanly on the bread.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 330g)