Pig Headed

Dear Blog-

I never thought I'd be writing this letter.  It all started out so innocently.  My local CSA contacted me with the option of purchasing a share of pork from a local pig rancher.  Once signed up, my boyfriend reminded me that we needed pigs ears to complete the next dinner menu in the recipe book I've been wanting to work through, David Tanis' Platter of Figs, which said boyfriend purchased for me for my  last birthday.  The pig lady informed me that she only had pigs ears attached to whole pig's heads......so in the spirit of culinary adventure....I decided to buy the whole damn head from her - 16lbs of pig face sat looking out at me  while it defrosted in the fridge.

What was I going to do with it?  I turned to the internets for ideas.  I landed on this wonderful video from local chef and lover of all things offal, Chris Costentino, where he debones the pig face to make porchetta di testa.  I contacted my little brother, the professional chef, who had many ideas.  Also out there is a wonderful blog by *chichi* summarizing her challenges removing the jaw from her pigs head and cooking down into coppa di testa, also known as head cheese.   I have to admit, the concept of head cheese is still a little 'challenging' for me.   So I decided on the following strategy:

- Debone the skull as directed in the Chris Costentino video

- Remove ears and snout for the fancy french salad recipe which started this whole mess.

- Remove one jowl for braising, to make banh min

- Roll the remaining face into a roulade, comparable to the Porchetta di Testa (minus snout)

- Roast and cook down remaining skull into broth for ramen 

First, I had to obtain a good boning knife.  None of my poorly sharpened knives were going to cut it.  As much as Sur La Table brings out a strange anger in me, I decided to go to the Ferry Building for 2 reasons.  1.)  Stop by Boccalone to taste their Porchetta di Testa sandwich so I had an idea of what I was trying to make  2.) See what an overpriced boning knife costs at Sur La Table and get the advice of the sales person with the plan to shop elsewhere.  Sur la Table always seems to be ridculously over priced to me.   Happily, not only did we get to taste the Porchetta di Testa, in a sandwich with pickles, carrots, and mint, similar to a banh min, we found an affordable and recommended boning knife for only $20, by Victorinox.  For those new to boning knives, you are looking for something sharp and slightly flexible to follow the curvature of the bone while you cut away the meat.  The Victorinox handled itself fine during this process, but seemed to dull by the very end.  Supposedly the higher end versions ~$85-$90 hold their edge better so its a question of how much you want to invest and/or sharpen your knives.    Finally, we picked up my propane blow torch and a hacksaw, just in case we needed to saw through any bone (I sterilized a clean blade with the propane torch)

First thing we cleared a large working space near the sink and laid out my tools.  

- Boning knife plus generic paring knife

- Cutting board (mine was too small ~11in x 17in, you really want something twice as big

- Safety Razors (for shaving the pig)

- Blow torch (for the hairs you can't reach with a razor)

- Hacksaw, sterilized (for sawing bones)

- Whiskey cocktail, administered as needed

- Theme appropriate music 

I watched several videos of the process on YouTube  several of which I'm listing below.  Chris Costentino's seems to be the master video as it most clearly explains what you are trying to do.  I won't try to retell what his video explains, but here are some points I'd like to add in case you are a novice like I am.

1.)  Shaving the pig may take awhile.  There was quite alot of whiskers left on mine and the ears were really gross.  I ended up removing the ears in order to really clean them.   Something I would recommend if possible as it seemed impossible to get completely clean when they were fully attached.

2.)  Burning the hair smells really gross.  Limit this as much as possible.  Not that much different then burning human hair, but you are already digging your hand deep into a dead animal.

3.)  The tongue was a little tricky for me.  I initially cut it out way to shallow.  In hindsight, I'd recognize the small kind of wishbone shaped bones in the back which make up the soft palate.  Use these as your guide for fishing the tongue out the back.

4.) Nosebleeds -  The pig will almost certainly bleed out the nose the first time you flip in over on its snout.....and the second time...and third..... .keep plenty of towels to clean up.  This isn't the best smelling part of the butchering process.

5.) There is a f*(k-ton of meat in the cheeks!  Even after watching the video I was suprised at the amount of meat I was peeling of the jaws.  It looks about like bacon with some more 'meaty' parts near the jaw.

6.)  The transition from upper jaw to cheekbone can be a little tricky.  It was pretty striaight -forward following both the upper and lower jaw bone, but I got a little confused once I needed to move up along the cheekbone.  I was also very conservative in cutting around the eyes.  Not sure what happens if you actually pierce an eyeball, but I didn't want to take any chances.  I cut a generous perimeter around the eyeball then, followed that along the cheekbone until I got my bearings.  Once I got a feel for the location of the cheekbones, it seemed to loosen up and make more sense.   Take your time and remember to cut away from yourself.

For the most part, I was able to follow the video compeletely and successfully removed the pig 'mask' from the skull.   Boyfriend and I agreed that we weren't ready to eat the brains yet, but we decided to try to open the skull in order to fish them out before trying to cook the skull down for ramen broth.  At this point, I was a little overstimulated and stopped for a cocktail break.  Cue the Primal Scream 'Exterminator' music and I look up to find the boyfriend going to town on the skull with my hacksaw.  He managed to saw the skull into 2 halves and removed the snout and lower jaw.  Brains were a disturbing pink slime which apologies to the purists, I am in no hurry to put on my plate or in my frying pan.   What suprised both of us was just how thick a pig skull is and what gnarly teeth they possess.   Hopefully I am never on the wrong side of an argument with a live pig.  I'm pretty sure he'd win.

So...  The face was divided up per plan and returned to the freezer.   The four pieces of skull bone were roasted in the over,  approximately 45 minutes at 250, then 15 min at 450 to get a dark color to the bones.   After roasting, I boiled the bones down for approx 20hrs with about a 1/4 cup of kosher salt.   Having cancelled dinner plans, this broth was strained and also placed in the freezer, to be used for a noodle night in the very near future.

Recipes to follow as I start cooking up everything.  I week ago, I had no plans of getting into this mess.  Now I have 36lbs of pork in my freezer.

- the Barb0bot, aka pigface

Meskin Cornbreads

preheat oven to 350F
preheat 8" skillet on stovetop or in stove, with 2T corn oil, shy of smoking, while you combine ingredients in a mixing bowl:

• 1C yellow cornmeal
• 1/2C AP flour
• 1T + 1t baking powder
• 1t salt

stir in:

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 C milk
• 1 small (7oz) can chiles plus liquid (we want the citric acid in lieu of buttermilk)
• 1T oil
• 1/2 C grated cheddar cheese (or more)
• Chopped onions, leftover corn, bacon bits, tootsie rolls, whatever you want to throw in so you can personalize it and re-post this recipe as your own.

Dump the batter into the hot oil in your skillet (this is how you get a nice crust). Make it a bit lower in the center and higher on the sides, it's gonna rise. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Loosen sides and turn it out onto a small plate, bottoms up. You'll notice there's no added sugar in this recipe. This was not an oversight. Don't go having people think poorly of you.

Cauliflower and Leek Gratin

This scratches the itch when I crave mac and cheese, but still want to eat my veggies.  You can play with various cheeses to get different flavors.  Tonight its gruyere and an aged gouda.

Roasted Cauliflower & Leek Gratin

Roasting the leeks and cauliflower (which you can do well ahead) brings out deeper flavor and a crisp-around-the edges texture. Serve as a side dish with roasted meat, or as a main course with salad and bread. If you don't feel like making the white sauce, gently warm 1 1/2 cups of cream in a saucepan until bubbles form around the edges, then stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper. Pour it over the vegetables.

• Roasted vegetables
• 2 small heads cauliflower, about 3 pounds untrimmed
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• -- Kosher salt and pepper to taste
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large leek
• Gratin
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups low-fat milk
• 1/2 cup (generous) grated Parmesan, gruyere or Manchego cheese
• -- Kosher salt and white or black pepper
• 1 teaspoon whole-grain Dijon mustard
• 1 to 2 ounces ham, cut into baton shapes (optional)
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs

To make the roasted vegetables: Preheat the oven to 400°.
Cut the cauliflower into florets that are 1 1/2 inches wide. In a large bowl, toss the florets with 3 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and spread out on a large rimmed baking sheet. Roast until tender with just a bit of bite and browned, 35-40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the garlic after 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, remove the coarse dark tops of the leek and cut lengthwise. Wash thoroughly, then cut each half into 2-inch lengths, discarding any more dark green ends and checking for hidden dirt.
Separate the layers and toss with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and some salt, then spread out on another large rimmed baking sheet and roast until crispy in some parts and thoroughly soft throughout, about 15 minutes. (You can roast the vegetables several hours ahead and refrigerate before completing the dish.)

To make the gratin: In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 3-5 minutes, taking care that it doesn't brown. Whisk in the milk until smooth, then bring to a simmer. Maintain the heat so it's bubbling gently; stir often until the sauce thickens and the flour cooks, about 15 minutes. Add 1/3 cup of the Parmesan and stir until just melted. Remove from the heat and season well with salt and pepper, then stir in the mustard.

Follow-Up Pizza Dough

The pizza experiments continue and I feel like I'm dialing in my technique.  Here is the basic recipe I'm working with, just slightly modified to the previous posted recipe.

4 1/2 cups flour -
1 3/4 teaspoon salt
1 heaping teaspoon active dry yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
1 3/4 cup ice cold water
semolina flour for dusting

 Notes
I use 4 cups King Arthur All purpose flour and 1/2 cup King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour which gives the dough a little 'bite' and flavor without tasting too 'wheat-y'.  I tried the super fine 00 flour but didn't get any better results than the all purpose stuff.  The purists believe in the 00 flour though...Also make sure your flour is fresh.  Yes flour goes rancid, especially whole grain, and especially if you live in warm climates.  I keep my flour in the freezer and try to only buy what I will use in the next 3-6 months.  If your dough tastes flat, try some fresh flour.

Don't scrimp on the salt or yeast, I'm always a little easy on the salt, but found you need both for full flavor.

Pay attention to the wetness of the dough.  It changes every time I mix it up.  I use an electric mixer with a dough hook.  As described in the initial recipe, the sides should not stick to the side of the bowl, but the bottom should.

 I split the recipe into 4 parts, putting 2 dough balls into plastic ziploc bags into which I'd previous poured a Tablespoon of olive oil.  The ziploc bags go into the freezer and the 2 remaining go into my magic wooden pizza box.

Wooden Box - So I got the idea for the wooden dough box from Tony's in North Beach, who make the best Margherita pizzas, hands down.  I asked the chef the other day and she told me the wood helps manage the moisture in the dough.  I found a guy on eBay who made poplar cigar boxes and ordered one on faith.  Three benefits I've found from my 'magic pizza box'   

       1.) The dough proofs up better, don't know why exactly, but it both tastes better and the stretch is easier to work with.

       2.) The cigar box size fits 2 dough balls perfectly for proofing and I can put the flour directly into the box for when I roll the crust before stretching.  This helps contain the flour mess.  Also the lid allows me to slide it into the fridge without taking up an entire shelf.

3.) The lid serves as my cutting board once the pizza cooks.  How's that for a pizza system?

A final note on cooking temperatures - get it as hot as you can, really.  My new favorite method for Margherita pizzas is to grill them on a gas grill.  After stretching the dough, toss down directly onto the grill, again make sure it is hot!  Pizza wants 800+F if possible.  The crust will crisp very quickly.  As soon as it is firm enough, flip the crust with a pair of tongs.  Then, carefully, and quickly, add toppings.  Close the lid and let the pie cook, usually no more than 6minutes.   

If I can't grill the pizza I still get good results with my gas oven set on broil and using the pizza stone.  I sprinkle sufficient semolina flour on my 'peel' which is really a flat cookie sheet and slide the pie directly onto the stone to cook.  My oven seems to get to about 600F on the broil setting which still gives perfectly good results.  Again, I've learned to be careful to not lose too much heat when opening and closing the oven.  Move quickly.  Enjoy!  Its taken me a while to get the hang of the dough, but it is now def worth it.

Oh Snap! Banana Pudding

While I'm still a fan of the straight-from-the-box, Nillas and Nanners, made with Cool-Whip and instant pudding, I decided to try something a little more classic. This supposedly was the original recipe on the back of the Nilla wafer box. Me I used some hippie whole wheat cookies, but they were actually better that way with a flavor crossed between a graham cracker and a nilla wafer, put none of that hydro-gee-nated vegetable oil.

3/4 c sugar
3 Tbls All Purpose flour
dash of salt
4 eggs
 2 c milk
1/2 t vanilla
vanilla wafers
5 or 6 fully ripe, medium bananas, sliced

Combine 1/2 c sugar, flour, and salt in top of dbl boiler. Mix in 1 whole egg and 3 egg yolks. Stir in milk. Cook uncovered over boiling water, stirring constantly, until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
Spread small amount in bottom of 1 1/2 qt casserole. top w/nilla wafer, layer of bananas. Pour about a 1/3 of custard over bananas. Continue to layer, ending with custard.
Make a meringue of the 3 egg whites beating them until dry before adding the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Pile on top of pudding covering entire surface.Bake in preheated 425 oven 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve warm or chilled.

Lamb Stroganoff(ish)

I made this recipe up, so forgive not staying true to any recipe here.

I had some lamb stew meat left over from the 1/2 lamb we purchased back in March. I wanted to cook the lamb up slow to get all the flavor out. I did note the flavor of the meat definitely improved the longer I cooked it (slowly mind you).

Slow cooked sauce:

3 large shallot bulbs, sliced into rings (~1/2 cup)
olive oil
1 cup lamb stew meat
1 carton of baby portabellas, sliced (~2 cups)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 fresh italian parsley, chopped.
1/2 cup heart red wine
1 cup chicken broth
water to keep sauce slow cooking
salt, paprika to taste

In a large saute pan, I browned the lamb bits on high for a few minutes with a little olive oil, then turned down to medium heat to saute the shallots and mushrooms. Once the shallots started to turn translucent, I tossed in the garlic and parsley, sauteing only about 30 seconds, then splash in the red wine, add the chicken broth and set the pan on low for 2-3 hours. I'd recommend not salting until the mixture cooks down a little, especially if your chicken broth is salted.
Add water if the sauce needs to cook longer and it has become too thick. You want to finish with something resembling the consistency of spaghetti sauce.

To brighten up the affair I decided to add extra veggies to the sauce at the end along with the pasta. English peas are in season so I added a bunch, snap peas would work if you can't get them.

olive oil
1 cup crimini mushrooms, sliced
i clove garlic, minced.
1 cup of English peas (shelled)

1 large dollop of sour cream.
1/4 cup fresh italian parsley, chopped
2/3 pound fettucine or parpadelle noodles
paprika to taste (see below)

Start the water boiling for pasta. When the water starts boil, start sauteing your mushrooms in the olive oil over medium heat and drop the pasta for cooking. (You can always cook the pasta in advance) When the mushrooms reach a nice texture (I sauteed about 5 minutes) add the garlic and cook an additional 30-60sec. Turn the heat down to low, add the sour cream, parsley,your initial lamb sauce, and peas to mixture. Add paprika to taste. NOTE: We had both smoked and spicy paprika, I used a little of both. The smokiness adds a rich flavor and just a little spice works well with the sweetness of the peas. The peas should only cook a few minutes. Taste them occasionally while cooking. They should be bright and tasty but not crunchy. Toss in the pasta once it is cooked and garnish with more italian parsley.

Serve with a hearty red wine.

Spaghetti with Lamb, Broccoli di Cicco and Cipollini

from Joseph Manzare of Globe in SF

This is a really amazing dish. I accidentally added to much spice, but my guests really enjoyed it that way. Also, I since this is a rich dish, I back off the pasta proportion at times to prevent putting everyone to sleep. Or just serve smaller portions.

1 pound spaghetti
1 pound ground lamb
1 1/2 pounds broccoli di cicco (cut into 1/2 inch pieces, use the stem and leaves too!)
1 clove smashed garlic
4 large red jalapeños or 1 large red bell pepper (roasted, peeled and julienned)
6 cipollini (quartered) or 1 large onion (chopped)
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons Capricious aged goat's milk cheese (grated) or parmesan
salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and add garlic. Cook slowly (about 3 minutes) to flavor the oil. When garlic is slightly golden brown, add cipollini and broccoli. Cook for about 5 minutes, until slightly tender. Add lamb and turn up heat to high. Season lamb with salt and pepper. When lamb becomes slightly brown and cooked through, add pepper and parsley. Mix together and let simmer for about 12 minutes or just long enough for your pasta to cook. Cook pasta in salted water. When pasta is done strain, and keep just a little of the pasta cooking liquid with the pasta. Toss the pasta into the skillet with the lamb. Add grated cheese and mix well. Eat.

My Pizza Fixation

Intial recipe comes from the artisan bread in 5 minutes folks.....Dough was okay, didn't stretch well and not alot of flavor

This is the current recipe I am playing with: (from Peter Reinhart)


4 1/2 cups (20.25 ounces) unbleached high-gluten, bread, or all-purpose flour, chilled
1 3/4 (.44 ounce) teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon (.11 ounce) instant yeast
1/4 cup (2 ounces) olive oil (optional)
1 3/4 cups (14 ounces) water, ice cold (40°F)
Semolina flour OR cornmeal for dusting

1. Stir together the flour, salt, and instant yeast in a 4-quart bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). With a large metal spoon, stir in the oil and the cold water until the flour is all absorbed (or mix on low speed with the paddle attachment), If you are mixing by hand, repeatedly dip one of your hands or the metal spoon into cold water and use it, much like a dough hook, to work the dough vigorously into a smooth mass while rotating the bowl in a circular motion with the other hand. Reverse the circular motion a few times to develop the gluten further. Do this for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are evenly distributed. If you are using an electric mixer, switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 5 to 7 minutes, or as long as it takes to create a smooth, sticky dough. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too wet and doesn't come off the sides of the bowl, sprinkle in some more flour just until it clears the sides. If it clears the bottom of the bowl, dribble in a tea- spoon or two of cold water. The finished dough will be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and register 50 to 55F.

2. Sprinkle flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Prepare a sheet pan by lining it with baking parchment and misting the parchment with spray oil (or lightly oil the parchment). Using a metal dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you are comfortable shaping large pizzas), You can dip the scraper into the water between cuts to keep the dough from sticking to it, Sprinkle flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Lift each piece and gently round it into a ball. If the dough sticks to your hands, dip your hands into the flour again. Transfer the dough balls to the sheet pan, Mist the dough generously with spray oil and slip the pan into a food-grade plastic bag.

3. Put the pan into the refrigerator overnight to rest the dough, or keep for up to 3 days. (Note: If you want to save some of the dough for future baking, you can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag. Dip each dough ball into a bowl that has a few tablespoons of oil in it, rolling the dough in the oil, and then put each ball into a separate bag. You can place the bags into the freezer for up to 3 months. Transfer them to the refrigerator the day before you plan to make pizza.)

4. On the day you plan to make the pizza, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator 2 hours before making the pizza. Before letting the dough rest at room temperature for 2 hours, dust the counter with flour, and then mist the counter with spray oil. Place the dough balls on top of the floured counter and sprinkle them with flour; dust your hands with flour. Gently press the dough into flat disks about 1/2 inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. Sprinkle the dough with flour, mist it again with spray oil, and cover the dough loosely with plastic wrap or a food-grade plastic bag. Now let rest for 2 hours.

5. At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone either on the floor of the oven (for gas ovens), or on a rack in the lower third of the oven. Heat the oven as hot as possible, up to 800F (most home ovens will go only to 500 to 550F, but some will go higher). If you do not have a baking stone, you can use the back of a sheet pan, but do not preheat the pan.

6. Generously dust a peel or the back of a sheet pan with semolina flour or cornmeal. Make the pizzas one at a time. Dip your hands, including the backs of your hands and knuckles, in flour and lift I piece of dough by getting under it with a pastry scraper. Very gently lay the dough across your fists and carefully stretch it by bouncing the dough in a circular motion on your hands, carefully giving it a little stretch with each bounce. If it begins to stick to your hands, lay it down on the floured counter and reflour your hands, then continue shaping it. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss as shown on page 208. If you have trouble tossing the dough, or if the dough keeps springing back, let it rest for 5 to 20 minutes so the gluten can relax, and try again. You can also resort to using a rolling pin, though this isn't as effective as the toss method.

7. When the dough is stretched out to your satisfaction (about 9 to 12 inches in diameter for a 6-ounce piece of dough), lay it on the peel or pan, making sure there is enough semolina flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide. Lightly top it with sauce and then with your other top- pings, remembering that the best pizzas are topped with a less-is-more philosophy. The American "kitchen sink" approach is counterproductive, as it makes the crust more difficult to bake. A few, usually no more than 3 or 4 toppings, including sauce and cheese is sufficient.

8. Slide the topped pizza onto the stone (or bake directly on the sheet pan) and close the door. Wait 2 minutes, then take a peek. If it needs to be rotated 180 degrees for even baking, do so. The pizza should take about 5 to 8 minutes to bake. If the top gets done before the bottom, you will need to move the stone to a lower self before the next round. if the bottom crisps before the cheese caramelizes, then you will need to raise the stone for subsequent bakes.

9. Remove the pizza from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Wait 3 to 5 minutes before slicing and serving, to allow the cheese to set slightly.