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Head Cheese Formula and Test

A preserved meat mixture of boiled pig heads, beef cheekmeat, and ham skins set in gelatin.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Pepper and coriander match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,949 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. The science ↓

Head Cheese Formula and Test

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Combine the boiled and boned pigs' heads, boiled beef cheekmeat, and boiled ham skins in a large mixing container.

  2. Add the settled cooking water, skimming off any grease, to achieve the proper consistency.

  3. Mix in the ground black pepper and ground coriander thoroughly.

  4. Ensure the mixture is well-chopped and evenly distributed before sealing.

Pack and store

  1. Pack the mixture into 60 six-pound tins and twenty-two 20-pound wooden pails.

  2. Store in a cool place until ready to sell.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Pepper + coriandertop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,949 recipes

    Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

  2. Beef + peppertop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,971 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  3. Beef + hamtop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,729 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

  4. Beef + coriandertop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,016 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

  5. Ham + peppertop 23% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together6,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Pickled pigs' heads
Provide the main meat and body of the dish.
Pickled beef cheekmeat
Adds meaty bulk and flavour to the mixture.
Boiling ham skins
Release natural gelatin that helps the mixture set when cooled.
Cooking water
Supplies gelatin and moisture so the chopped meat binds and sets firm.
Ground black pepper
Adds sharp, aromatic heat that seasons the meat.
Ground coriander
Adds warm, citrusy aroma that complements the pork.

The step that matters

Adding the cooking water. The water must be settled and grease skimmed off, because fat left on the surface prevents a clean set. Enough gelatin-rich liquid is needed so the chopped meat binds into a firm, sliceable jelly once cooled.

Swap the coriander

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, ham, gelatin, pepper):

  1. Celeryfits better
  2. Tarragonfits better
  3. Clovefits better
  4. Corianderthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, ham, gelatin, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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