Who Has Made Head Cheese?

Making this for the first time on Sunday with a friend. Any tips and/or tricks?

Jason

Jason, what type are you making? We make Ricotta all the time, but I’m assuming you are talking about something more substantial. Sounds like you need to bring some to the next EWG.

It ain’t Ricotta, that’s for sure. We are using a whole pigs head. If its good I’ll bring some to an EWG.

This stuff really needs a different name.

J

First, I use the name “Soppressata di Toscano” because it sounds better than “head cheese”.

Otherwise things to focus on in my experience (aka, my mistakes) are:

• Keep the flame low and simmer for longer than you think the head needs it so it is easy to pull apart and a lot of natural gelatin has been released. The jaw being very loose is a good sign.

• Definitely use a hog’s foot too. It has a little meat but the main contribution is a lot of gelatin.

• Ears are more trouble than they are worth, imo. I toss them after they are cooked.

• Every recipe I’ve seen calls for skinning the tongue. I have not found that to be necessary and it is a pain. I loose too much meat in the process.

• Be meticulous about separating the meat from the bone and fat. There are some surprisingly large muscles in the there. Some are kind of flat and covered in fat so you can easily miss them if you don’t look closely and use your fingers to find them.

• Look out for and remove any glands. They don’t taste good.

• Once I’ve got the meat separated. I strain the broth thoroughly through a strainer then a tea towel and bring it to a light simmer. Then I toss the meat back into the broth for a while for 2 reasons. First, it is an extra measure of safety to heat up the meat again because it is probably at room temp by the time you’re done pulling things apart. Second, it renders more of the small amounts of fat that are still attached to the meat.

• After I fish out the meat and put it in molds, I pour the broth through a strainer and tea towel again and then use a fat separator to remove as much of the liquified fat as possible. Solid fat looks bad when soppressata is cool or at room temperature when served.

• Once the broth is strained and de-fatted, you can crank up the heat to reduce it quickly. The flavor and gelatin should be highly concentrated so it tastes awesome and has the strength to hold things together in the molds.

• Don’t be shy about the seasoning. Flavors are suppressed when foods are cool. What tastes right when it is warm may not taste seasoned enough cool or at room temp.

• The first time is really a hassle. Plan things out as much as possible so everything ready when you need it. It can go pretty quickly without much mess if you are well prepared.

• I really like serving it with dried fruit mostarda instead of mustard, pickles, or whatever. Dried fruit mostarda is basically a chutney, so it you don’t want to make your own, a mild Indian fruit chutney will work.

It is a labor of love!

Enjoy!

sorry, missed the “head” part. My grandfather used to make it regularly, but I’ve got no tips.

One more thing for your dog if you have one.

Save the brains, boil them in a little water, and mix it into your dog’s food. They love the stuff!

great tips Patrick! I learned a lot.

I’ll also add, I like to quickly poach then toss that water to remove some blood.

Happy to contribute, Paul.

I’ve processed 4 hogs’ heads in the last 2 years.

I always wonder why I’m going to the trouble while I’m doing it but am always glad I did when I eat the products. If the head is big enough and butchered right, I get a couple nice pieces of guanciale (the prize, imo), one or two terrines of “soppressatta”, a couple risotto recipes worth of tasty pork broth, and my greyhounds can get in touch with their “inner zombies”.

Let us know how it turned out, Jason!

I just vomited!