Schweinskopfsülze

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large stockpot, 8 to 10 litres
• •Fine sieve or cheesecloth
• •1.5 litre loaf tin or terrine mould
• •Sharp boning knife
• •Cold saucer for the gel test

Instructions

1. 1

   Rinse the head

   Rinse the pig's head and trotter under cold running water, checking for bone dust from the saw. Ask the butcher to split and clean the head; this is not the moment to prove anything with a kitchen knife. The skin, ear, cheek, and trotter are the valuable parts here because their collagen is what makes the Sülze, the aspic jelly, set.

2. 2

   Start the stock

   Put the head and trotter in a large stockpot with the halved onion, carrots, celeriac, leek, bay, peppercorns, juniper, allspice, cloves, salt, 75ml of the vinegar, and enough cold water to cover. Start cold because the collagen and blood proteins release gradually, which gives you a cleaner broth and a calmer pot. Bring it slowly to a bare simmer and skim the grey foam as it rises.

3. 3

   Simmer gently

   Keep the pot at a tremble, not a boil, for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the cheek meat pulls away easily and the skin is soft enough to cut with a spoon. Runter mit der Temperatur. A hard boil beats fat into the broth and gives you a cloudy, greasy jelly; a gentle simmer dissolves the collagen and leaves the fat where you can skim it.

4. 4

   Pick the meat

   Lift the head and trotter onto a tray and let them cool just enough to handle. Pick off the cheek meat, tongue if it is there, soft skin, and a little ear for bite, then cut everything into small dice. Discard bones, teeth, glands, and anything gristly that would be unpleasant cold. Weggeworfen wird nichts, but that doesn't mean every scrap belongs in the mould.

5. 5

   Strain and reduce

   Strain the broth through a fine sieve, then skim off every clear pool of fat from the surface. Boil the strained broth down to about 1.2 litres, because the jelly must be strong enough to hold the meat when it is sliced. Put a spoonful on a cold saucer and chill it for 10 minutes; if it wobbles firmly, it is ready, and if it slumps like soup, reduce it longer.

6. 6

   Season the jelly

   Stir in the remaining 75ml vinegar, the sugar, and black pepper, then taste hard. Cold dulls salt and acid, so the warm broth should taste a little sharper and saltier than you want the finished slice. Würzen, Fett, Salz zum Schluss: season after reduction, not before, or the pot decides the strength for you.

7. 7

   Pack the mould

   Rinse a 1.5 litre loaf tin or terrine mould with cold water. Put the diced onion in a sieve and pour a ladle of hot broth over it; that takes the raw burn off and makes the Sülze keep cleaner. Mix the diced pork with the scalded onion, gherkins, and parsley, then pack it loosely into the mould so the jelly can run between the pieces instead of trapping dry pockets.

8. 8

   Pour and chill

   Pour the hot seasoned broth over the meat until it is just covered, tapping the mould once or twice to release air bubbles. Cool it on the counter only until it stops being hot, no longer than an hour, then refrigerate it uncovered until fully cold and set, at least 8 hours. Cover it once cold. This is a chilled dish, not a shelf-stable preserve.

9. 9

   Slice and serve

   Dip the mould briefly in warm water, turn out the Sülze, and cut it with a thin sharp knife into thick slices. Serve it cold with dark rye bread and sharp mustard, or with Bratkartoffeln, fried potatoes, if you want a proper supper. The slice should hold cleanly, show pieces of pork, pickle, and onion in clear amber jelly, and taste bright enough that you reach for another bite.

Chef Tips

• •Tell the butcher what you are making and ask for the head split, cleaned, and left with skin and ear. A neat pile of lean meat will not set a Sülze; you need the collagen, so keep the trotter or ask for extra rind.
• •Do the cold-saucer test before you pour. A spoonful of broth should set into a firm wobble after 10 minutes in the refrigerator; if it doesn't, reduce the broth and test again. That is the whole insurance policy.
• •Skim the fat seriously. Fat trapped in the jelly turns the slice dull and greasy, and cold pork fat is not charming. Clear jelly is not vanity; it tastes cleaner.
• •Season the broth more sharply than seems polite while it is warm. Once chilled, the vinegar and salt soften, and a timid Sülze tastes like boiled pork trapped in silence.
• •Keep it refrigerated and eat it within 3 days. Vinegar helps the flavour and the old keeping logic, but this is not a sealed preserve.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the Sülze at least 1 day ahead; it needs a full night in the refrigerator to set cleanly enough for slicing.
• •For the clearest jelly, cook and strain the broth a day ahead, chill it, lift off the solid fat cap, then reheat, season, and assemble the mould.
• •Do not freeze it. Aspic weeps after thawing, and then you have wet pork and broken jelly, which is nobody's plan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 200g)