To Collar Pig’s Head
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Scour the head and ears thoroughly.
Remove the hair, snout, eyes, and brain.
Soak the head in water overnight, then drain.
Cure
Salt the head generously with coarse sea salt and saltpetre.
Let it sit for five days.
Cook and set
Boil the head until the bones can be removed.
Shape the head into a roll, turning the thick end of one side towards the thin end of the other.
Sprinkle the roll with salt and white pepper.
Roll the head with the ears.
Wrap the head in a cloth.
Bind it with broad tape.
Boil until tender.
Place a weight on it.
Leave it covered until cold.
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
- Provides the meat, and skin and connective tissue that turn gelatinous and firm up when cooled.
- Coarse sea salt
- Draws moisture out of the meat and seasons it, slowing spoilage during curing.
- Saltpetre
- Acts as a curing agent that helps preserve the meat and gives it a pink colour.
- White pepper
- Adds a mild, sharp aroma and heat to the surface of the roll.
The step that matters
Salting and resting for five days. Salt and curing agents must penetrate deep into the thick parts of the head to preserve it and season it evenly. Rushing this stage leaves uncured or unevenly seasoned centres, so the full resting time matters.
“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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