Foie gras is a great example of a food that’s more appetizing if you don’t know how it’s made. To get the best goose liver, farmers force-feed geese through a process called gavage—which includes using a tube into the protesting animals’ open mouths.
Is There a Good Foie Gras Alternative?
India, Australia, Israel, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, among others have all banned foie gras production. French law claims that foie gras is part of France’s cultural and gastronomic heritage, however. If you love the taste, but hate the cruelty, is there a path forward? At TABLE, we wondered: is there a good foie gras alternative out there?
Meat Alternatives to Foie Gras
There are a couple of approaches to an alternative foie gras. First, while my country of heritage, Switzerland, has banned foie gras, they also get a lot of French tourists. So, they had to come up with some alternatives, and plant-based isn’t a very popular option in Central Europe. Happy Foie out of Switzerland produces geese liver very similar in texture to foie gras, but without the cruelty of force-feeding.
Additionally, Foie Fin is goose liver without the exaggerated fat concentration, significantly less expensive but similar in texture. This is another Swiss innovation, sold at the Swiss grocery chain Migros.
An infused chicken liver is another route to go, suggested by chefs in the state of California, which banned foie gras.
Plant-Based Foie Gras
If you want a plant-based foie gras alternative, Voie Gras is a limited release, plant-based version from Nestlé, made using miso paste. “Faux gras” is a French recipe made of tempeh. Full Plants has a recipe with raw cashews, cocoa butter, nutritional yeast, and Cognac. Nuts and mushrooms mimic the fatty texture and rich flavor of foie gras…and no geese are involved.
Is there cruelty in the harvesting of cashews or the production of cocoa butter? Whatever the mean factor of those activities might be, it’s better than geese with feeding tubes. It’s also likely better for your health. If you really can’t live without foie gras, it’s worth it to know that alternatives are out there.
Story by Emma Riva
Photo courtesy of Four Paws International
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