Thoroughly clean the pig's feet and knock off the horny part with a
hatchet. Pour boiling water over them twice and pour it off, then put them
on to cook in plenty of water. Do not salt the water. Boil until very
tender, then take out the feet, pack in a jar, sprinkle each layer with
salt, whole pepper and whole cloves, and cover with equal portions of
vinegar and the broth in which the feet were boiled. Put a plate over the
top with a weight to keep the souse under the vinegar. If there remains
any portion of the broth, strain it and let stand until cold, remove the
fat and clarify the broth with a beaten white of egg. It will be then
ready for blancmange or lemon jelly and is very delicate.
_Scrapple._
Take hog's tongue, heart, liver, all bones and refuse trimmings (some use
ears, snout and lights, I do not), soak all bloody pieces and wash them
carefully, use also all clean skins, trimmed from lard. Put into a kettle
and cover with water, boil until tender and bones drop loose, then cut in
sausage cutter while hot, strain liquor in which it was boiled, and
thicken with good corn mush meal, boil it well, stirring carefully to
prevent scorching. This mush must be well cooked and quite stiff, so that
a stick will stand in it. When no raw taste is left, stir in the chopped
meat and season to taste with salt, pepper and herb, sage or sweet
marjoram, or anything preferred. When the meat is thoroughly mixed all
through the mush, and seasoning is satisfactory, dip out into pans of
convenient size, to cool. Better lift off fire and stir carefully lest it
scorch. When cold, serve in slices like cheese, or fry like mush (crisp
both sides) for breakfast, serving it with nice tomato catsup. It tastes
very much like fried oysters. Some prefer half buckwheat meal and half
corn. To keep it, do not let it freeze, and if not covered with grease
melt some lard and pour over, or it will mold. This ought to be sweet and
good for a month or more in winter, but will crumble and fry soft if it
freezes.--[Mrs. R. E. Griffith.
_Head Cheese._
Have the head split down the face, remove the skin, ears, eyes and brains,
and cut off the snout; wash thoroughly and soak all day in cold salted
water; change the water and soak over night, then put on to cook in cold
water to cover. Skim carefully and when done so the bones will slip out,
remove to a hot pan, take out every bone and bit of gristle, and chop the
meat with a sharp knife as quickly as possible, to keep the fat from
settling in it. For 6 lbs. meat allow 2 tablespoons salt, 1 teaspoon black
pepper, a little cayenne, 1/4 teaspoon clove and 2 tablespoons sage. Stir
the meat and seasoning well together and put into a perforated mold or tie
in a coarse cloth, put a heavy weight on it and let it stand till cold and
firm. The broth in which the meat was cooked may be used for pea soup, and
the fat, if clarified, may be used for lard.--[R. W.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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