The production of foie gras (the liver of a duck or a goose that has been specially fattened) involves the controversial force-feeding of birds with more food than they would eat in the wild, and more than they would voluntarily eat domestically. The feed, usually corn boiled with fat (to facilitate ingestion), deposits large amounts of fat in the liver, thereby producing the buttery consistency sought by some gastronomes.
Famous quotes containing the words foie gras, foie and/or controversy:
“My idea of heaven is eating paté de foie gras to the sound of trumpets.”
—Sydney Smith (1771–1845)
“My idea of heaven is eating paté de foie gras to the sound of trumpets.”
—Sydney Smith (1771–1845)
“Ours was a highly activist administration, with a lot of controversy involved ... but I’m not sure that it would be inconsistent with my own political nature to do it differently if I had it to do all over again.”
—Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.)