What to do with a Pig - The Victorian Way
From 'The Dictionary of Daily Wants' - 1859
PIG'S CHEEK. - To prepare pig's cheek for boiling, cut off the snout and
clean the head. Divide it, take out the eyes and the brains, sprinkle the head with salt,
and let it drain for twenty-four hours. Salt it with common salt and saltpetre: and simmer
it till it is tender.
PIG'S FEET AND EARS. - Clean them carefully, soak them for some hours, and
boil them till they are quite tender. Then take them out, and boil a little salt and
vinegar with some of the liquor, and pour it over them when cold. When to be dressed,
dry them, cut the feet in two, and slice the ears. Fry them and serve them with butter,
mustard, and vinegar. They may be either fried in batter, or simply floured. To fricassee
them cut the ears and flesh into neat pieces, and boil them in a little milk. Pour the
liquor from them, and simmer in a little veal broth, with a bit of onion, mace, and
lemon-peel. Before the dish is served upt add a little cream, butter, flour, and salt.
PIG'S FEET JELLY. - Clean the feet and ears very carefully, and soak them
for some hours. Then boil them in a very small quantity of water till every bone can be
taken out. Throw in half a handful of chopped sage, the same of parsley, and a seasoning
of pepper, salt, and mace in fine powder. Simmer till the herbs are scalded, and then
pour the whole into a mould, to remain till cold.
PIG'S HARSLET.- Wash and dry some liver, sweetbreads, and fat and lean
pieces of pork, beating the latter with a rolling-pin, to make them tender. Season with
pepper, salt, sage, and a little onion shred fine. When mixed, put all into a bladder,
and sew it up securely with a needle and thread. Roast it on a hanging jack, or by a
string. Serve with a sauce made of port wine and water, and just boiled up.
PIG'S HEAD COLLARED. - Scour the head and ears thoroughly, take off the
hair, and remove the snout, the eyes, and the brain. Soak the head in water for one
night, then drain it, salt it extremely well with common salt and saltpetre, and let it
lie for five days. Boil it sufficiently to allow of the bones being taken out, then lay
it on a dresser, turning the thick end of one side of the head towards the thin end of the
other, to make the roll of equal size. Sprinkle it well with salt and white pepper, and
roll it with the ears. The pig's feet may be also placed round the outside when boned,
or the thin parts of two cow-heels if approved. Put the whole into a cloth, bind it
with a broad tape, and boil it till quite tender. Place a heavy weight upon it, and do
not remove the covering till the meat is cold.
