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A delicious, heady aroma filled the air as chef Jocelyn Deumie pan-seared a slice of foie gras at Emilie French Restaurant in South Jakarta.

The chef, a culinary adviser for French foie gras producer Rougie, diced and served the delicately prepared morsel fresh. The foie gras was plump, soft and lightly browned at the edges and melted in my mouth with rich, buttery flavors.

“It’s a pure delicacy,’’ said Thomas Pellegrini, general manager of Classic Fine Foods Indonesia. “So normally in Europe we eat it at Christmas, New Year’s and on special occasions. It’s a very festive product for us.’’

After having my first taste of the decadent dish, I was fascinated to learn exactly what foie gras was.

Thousands of years ago, Egyptians living along the Nile observed geese gorging themselves before migration, essentially storing fat in their livers to use as energy during their long, winter flight. The migrating birds developed enlarged, fatty livers, which the Egyptians found to be quite delicious.

Historians say the Egyptians were the first to develop the practice of overfeeding geese to produce the desired enlargement of the liver — a practice that continues to this day, though it is criticized by animal rights activists.

For centuries, southwestern France has been known as a center for farming geese and ducks for their plump livers. In the late 18th century, King Louis XVI happened across the rare delicacy in a crust pie made by French chef Jean-Pierre Clause, and proclaimed foie gras a royal dish.

“Foie gras is a jewel of haute cuisine,’’ said Mikael Robin, chef de cuisine at Jakarta’s Emilie Restaurant. “It’s also one of our best-selling products.’’

Emilie features foie gras in four of its dishes: Pan-seared foie gras, foie gras la terrine (a seaweed-crusted foie gras with yellow fin tuna), toasted scallops with foie gras sauce and beef rossini with truffle and foie gras sauce.

“It’s a high-demand product, especially the pan-seared foie gras,” Robin said. “It’s very appreciated by our Indonesian guests.”

Despite its elite reputation, foie gras is surprisingly simple to prepare.

The first step, of course, is finding a high-quality product at the store — fresh foie gras should look slightly shiny, without any bruising or discoloration.

“There should be no crystals on the package,” Deumie said. “If you see any crystals on it, the product may have gone through a temperature shock and might not be very good to eat.” The foie gras should be firm, leaving no finger marks where it has been touched.

You can keep foie gras in your freezer at a temperature between minus 15 to minus 18 degrees Celsius. Be sure to note the expiration date — frozen foie gras usually has a shelf life of between 18 and 24 months.

Before cooking, transfer the frozen foie gras to the refrigerator at a temperature of between two and five degrees Celsius for as long as 24 hours to defrost.

Foie gras must be de-veined before cooking. Let the portion sit out at room temperature for up to seven minutes to soften. The veins are usually about two centimeters below the surface. Cut along the middle of the lobe, but do not cut the actual veins.

You can use your fingers to dig into the foie gras and feel for the veins, then carefully remove the layer above them and gently pull the veins away. And just like that the foie gras is ready to cook. Cut a small portion — about 10 to 20 grams per person — for cooking, wrap the rest in plastic film and keep it chilled.

“Once you have moved the foie gras from the freezer to the chiller, you will have to prepare it within two to three days,’’ Deumie said.

Dip a knife into hot water and slice the foie gras into three-centimeter ovals.

To cook, heat a pan over medium-high heat for about five minutes and sear the sliced foie gras . About 30 to 40 seconds on each side will product a rare foie gras.

I asked the chef how healthy a rich delicacy like foie gras could be.

“People say that foie gras is a very rich and heavy food,’’ Deumie said. “This is not entirely true. In fact, foie gras is healthy and has a similar composition to olive oil.’’

According to the chef, foie gras is high in oleic acid, also found in olive oil, which provides a high-density lipoprotein — the “good” cholesterol.

In a demonstration, Deumie showed how he created his latest recipe, inspired by living in his wife’s home country of Japan: Foie gras terrine with nori (edible seaweed) and green lemon.

“It’s very important when you’re in a hot country to balance foie gras with a little bit of acidity,’’ he said. “It makes the dish lighter and more palatable.’’

So, is chef Deumie going to create a recipe for Indonesian-style foie gras as well? “Maybe,’’ he said. “If I stay long enough.’’

For Jakarta Globe readers, chef Jocelyn Deumie shared his Japanese-style foie gras terrine. Serves 10.

Foie Gras Terrine with Nori and Green Lemon

Ingredients:

1 portion foie gras

1 green lemon

250 grams mesclun (salad mix)

100 milliliters vinaigrette

4 nori leaves

10 centiliters gelatin

20 diced toasted bread

Cooking:

De-vein the foie gras, add the vinaigrette and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Cook it in a vacuum pack at 60 degrees for 60 minutes in steam oven, or in a bain-marie at 90 degrees for 45 minutes.

Once the terrine is cooked, cool and seal the foie gras in a vacuum pack to mature for two days.

Warm the gelatin and dice the foie gras and nori leaves. Stack the gelatin, nori and foie gras like a sandwich, producing four layers.

Season with a squeeze of lemon and garnish with mesclun salad.

Serve with toasted bread on the side.