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To Collar Pig’s Head

A preserved pig head prepared by salting, boiling, and rolling with ears.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 7 ingredients
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To Collar Pig’s Head

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the head

  1. Scour the head and ears thoroughly, removing hair and snout.

  2. Take out the eyes and brain, then soak in water overnight.

  3. Drain and salt the head generously with coarse sea salt and saltpetre; let it sit for five days.

Cook and shape

  1. Boil the head until the bones can be removed.

  2. Shape the head into a roll, turning the thick end towards the thin end for even size.

  3. Sprinkle with salt and white pepper, then roll with the ears.

  4. Optionally, add boned pig's feet or thin parts of cow-heels around the outside.

  5. Wrap in a cloth, bind with broad tape, and boil until tender.

  6. Place a weight on top and leave covered until cold.

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

What each ingredient does

Pig's head
Forms the main body of the roll, providing meat and gelatinous texture once cooked.
Coarse sea salt
Draws out moisture and seasons the meat, helping preserve it during the five-day salting.
Saltpetre
Helps preserve the meat and gives it a pink cured colour.
Pig's ears
Add cartilage and collagen that help the rolled head hold together and set.

The step that matters

Boiling the wrapped roll until tender. The roll must be cooked long enough for connective tissue to soften and bind, but not so hard that it falls apart. Keeping it tightly wrapped and evenly shaped helps it set into a firm, even roll once cold.

“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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