Calf's Head Cheese
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the meat
Boil a calf's head in water enough to cover it until the meat leaves the bones.
Skim the head with a skimmer and transfer it to a wooden bowl or tray.
Remove every particle of bone from the meat.
Chop the meat small.
Season the meat with pepper and salt; use a heaping tablespoonful of salt and a teaspoonful of pepper.
If desired, add a tablespoonful of finely chopped sweet herbs.
Press and serve
Place the minced meat in a cloth in a colander.
Fold the cloth closely over the meat.
Lay a plate over the cloth and apply a gentle weight.
When the mixture is cold, slice thin for supper or sandwiches.
Spread each slice with made mustard.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 2 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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. See the original page.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Calf's head meat (in the method)
- Forms the body of the cheese, setting into a sliceable mass as it cools.
- Salt
- Seasons the meat and helps draw out flavour and firm the texture of the mixture.
- Pepper
- Adds a sharp, aromatic bite that balances the rich meat.
- Sweet herbs
- Add aroma and a fresh, green flavour to the meat.
The step that matters
Pressing the cold mixture. The meat must be pressed under gentle weight in a cloth while it cools, so the pieces bind together. Pressing too hard squeezes out the juices and leaves a dry, crumbly texture; too little leaves it loose and hard to slice.
“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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