Fish Terrine
Pastel de Pescado
Editor's Note: This recipe, introductory text, and author's tips are excerpted from Marina Chang's book Tastes of the Pyrenees. We've also added some tips of our own below.
For a complete guide to Basque cuisine, click here.
This Basque dish is essentially a fish pâté or pudding, called budíns in Spain. The food writer Pepita Aris notes that there was a "budinmania" when la nueva cocina vasca became popular in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Inspired by la nouvelle cuisine in France, it readily took root in the Basque Country partly due to this region's abundant use of butter and cream, which is unique in Spain. This recipe is based on one by Karlos Arguiñano, talented chef and head of the Academia de Cocina in Zarautz, Spain. Serving this with the "salsa rosa" or the tartar sauce included here, while not part of the ancient recipe, is a contemporary Basque addition.
• Piment d'Espelette is a small, pleasantly spicy red pepper that is usually used dried and ground in French Basque cooking. It is available from spanishtable.com. • If you cannot find fresh hake, try tilapia (a farm-raised fish with a firm texture), cod, or snapper. • For the wine in the terrine, choose something slightly dry, fresh, and sprightly. A white Irouléguy from the French Pyrenees would be perfect. Or substitute a Picpoul de Pinet from the Languedoc.
