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Soused Pigs Feet, or Pics Pettitoes

Soused pig feet are simmered, seasoned, then stored in vinegar and spices.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Clove and allspice match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,874 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Soused Pigs Feet, or Pics Pettitoes

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the feet

  1. Cover the pigs' feet with cold water and bring to a boil.

  2. Cook gently until the feet are tender enough to easily remove the bones.

  3. Remove the feet from the liquid and sprinkle a little coarse sea salt over them.

  4. Allow the feet to cool.

Pickle

  1. Place the cooled feet in a crock.

  2. Skim the cooking liquid.

  3. Add one quart of vinegar to the liquid.

  4. Boil the mixture with whole peppers, cloves, and allspice for a few minutes.

  5. Pour the boiling liquid over the feet, ensuring they are fully covered.

  6. Cover the crock and store in a cool place.

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. Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together7,874 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  3. Pepper + allspicetop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together6,395 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  4. Vinegar + allspicetop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,548 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyl acetate (fruit).

  5. Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,814 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

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

What each ingredient does

Pigs' feet
Provide the meat and gelatin that give the soused dish its body and texture.
Vinegar
Acidity that preserves the feet and gives the dish its sharp, tangy flavour.
Whole peppers
Add pungent aroma and heat that flavour the pickling liquid.

The step that matters

Pour the boiling liquid over the feet, fully covered. The feet must stay submerged in the hot vinegar liquid. Exposed pieces are not protected by the acid and can spoil, and the hot liquid helps the flavours penetrate evenly.

“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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