Wild Duck Terrine in Aspic, after Escoffier’s Rouen Duckling

Known Ground reconstruction — not personally tested

Escoffier's historical formula specifies Rouen duckling. The practical version below is a Known Ground wild-waterfowl reconstruction; it is not presented as Escoffier's wild-duck formula.

The source specifies a partially boned Rouen duckling. Two large wild ducks provide enough skin and meat for a compact terrine; fully cooking the liver stuffing and using measured gelatin replace the historical merely stiffened livers and naturally gelatinous stock.

Instructions

1. Cook diced bacon and butter until the fat renders. Add seasoned duck livers, onion, thyme, and bay; cook the livers fully, cool, and purée smooth.

2. Season the partially boned ducks, fill them with the liver mixture, and arrange snugly in a lidded terrine. Add brandy and cover with bacon slices.

3. Bake covered in a 325°F water bath until the center reaches 165°F (74°C).

4. Make aspic with stock and gelatin. Pour enough hot aspic over the cooked terrine to cover, cool rapidly, and refrigerate overnight. Remove surface fat and serve cold in slices.

Historical formula

Escoffier heats three ounces each fat bacon and butter, merely stiffens six seasoned duck livers with onion, thyme, and bay, cools and sieves them, then stuffs a partly boned Rouen duckling. He adds brandy, covers with bacon, cooks the covered terrine in a water bath for forty minutes, and covers it with aspic made from the carcass and strong veal stock before chilling.

Source note

Source-preserving summary from Auguste Escoffier, *A Guide to Modern Cookery* (1907), a public-domain English edition. Source location: No. 1772, pp. 545–546; 1903 pp. 882–883.

Historical source vs. current safety guidance

Escoffier only stiffens the duck livers before stuffing and gives a fixed forty-minute bake. The reconstruction cooks the finished terrine center to 165°F (74°C), then chills it promptly.