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THE PRACTICE OF COOKERY
CHAPTER VII - PORK


The names of the various pieces are –

In England.

Fore Quarter: - Spare Rib – Hand – Belly or Spring. Hind Quarter: - Fore Loin – Hind Loin, which, if too long, a spare rib may be cut off – Leg.

In Scotland.

Spare Rib – Breast and Shoulder – Sirloin – The Ham or Gigot.

The entrails are named the Liver, Crow, Kidney Skirts, sometimes called the Harslet, also the Chitterlings or Guts.

PREPARATORY REMARKS ON PORK.

Dairy-fed Pork is the best; the flesh should look white and smooth, and the fat be white and fine. In preparing a Hog for bacon, the ribs are cut, with a very little flesh on them, from the side, which has the fore and hind leg attached to it; the hind leg is then called a gammon of bacon, but it is generally reserved for a ham. On each side there is a large spare rib, which is usually divided into two, one called the sweet bone, the other the blade bone. There are also griskins, chine, or back bone.

Hog’s Lard is the inner fat of the bacon hog.

Porkers are not so old as Hogs; they make excellent pickled pork, but are chosen more particularly for roasting.

To roast a Leg, a small onion is minced together with three sage leaves, seasoned with pepper and salt, and put under the skin at the knuckle bone; the skin is cut into strips nearly half an inch apart, and rubbed over with a bit of butter. If weighing seven or eight pounds, it will require nearly three hours to roast.

A Spare Rib should be roasted, is basted with butter, and has sage leaves, dried, rubbed to a powder, and mixed with salt and pepper, sprinkled over it.

Both a Loin and Neck are jointed, the skin scored in narrow strips, and rubbed with butter. If weighing six or seven pounds, it will require rather more than two hours to roast.

A Chine is stuffed here and there with bread crumbs, mixed with a little butter, and seasoned with some finely-shred parsley, and thyme, some pepper and salt. The skin is cut into strips, and rubbed with butter; it is them roasted, and served with apple sauce, as are also the preceding roasts.

A Porker’s Head is stuffed like a sucking pig, sewed firmly, and hung on a string to roast.

The Shoulder may be roasted, but, being very fat, it is generally preferred pickled.

The Breast may be made into a pie, or broiled.

WESTPHALIA HAM.

Rub each ham well with an ounce and a half of pounded saltpetre, and an equal quantity of course brown sugar. The following day, boil, in a quart of strong stale beer or porter, a pound of bay salt, the same of common salt, half a pound of coarse brown sugar, of pounded black pepper and cloves an ounce each, and a small bit of sal prunella. Pour it boiling hot over the ham, and let it lie a fortnight, rubbing and turning it twice or thrice daily, when it should be smoked a fortnight.

TO CURE HAMS.

Sprinkle a ham, weighing eighteen pounds or upwards, with a little common salt, and let it lie a day; then rub it well with one ounce of ground black pepper, and one ounce of pounded saltpetre. Let it lie another day, then rub in a pound of bay, and a pound of common salt. In two hours, pour over it a pound of treacle, and let it lie for three weeks or a month, according to the size of the ham, turning and rubbing it daily. Let it lie in cold water for four-and-twenty hours, then hang it for a fortnight up a chimney where wood or turf is burnt.

ANOTHER WAY TO CURE HAMS.

To each ham allow the following ingredients, finely pounded: - One pound of bay, and half a pound of common salt, two ounces of saltpetre, and one ounce of black pepper. Rub the mixture well into the ham, turning it daily for four days, and then pour over it one pound and a half of treacle, and let it lie for four weeks, turning it daily, and basting it frequently with the pickle. Lay it for four-and-twenty hours into cold water. Smoke it for a fortnight, and bury it with malt dust in a box. It ought to be kept three or four months before it is used, and should not be soaked before boiling.

ANOTHER WAY TO CURE HAMS.

For two hams, weighing sixteen pounds each, allow one pound and a quarter of brown sugar, three ounces of powdered saltpetre, one pound of bay salt, the same of common salt, two or three heads of garlic pounded. Mix all together, and rub it into the hams; let them lie for three or four weeks, turning and rubbing them daily, when they may be dried in the kitchen, or smoked for a fortnight.

ANOTHER WAY TO CURE HAMS.

Pound two ounces of saltpetre, one ounce of black pepper, and one pound of bay salt. Rub it over the ham, and let it lie four days, turning it daily; then pour over it a pound and a half of treacle. Baste it daily for a month, then put it in cold water for twenty-four hours. Wipe it dry, and sew it in a piece of old linen. Hang it up in a chimney where wood is burnt.

ANOTHER WAY TO CURE HAMS.

For two hams, boil, in one quart of strong beer, one pound and a quarter of common salt, three ounces of saltpetre, one pound and a quarter of coarse brown sugar. When it is cold, pour it over the hams, rub them well daily, basting them more frequently. Let them remain for three weeks, and then smoke them.

When hams which have been hung up are not keeping well, they must be returned to their pickle, and allowed to remain till required for use.

HAM WITH MADEIRA.

Soak in water for two hours a Bayonne or any other fine ham; boil it for two hours, trim it quickly, and then put it into a stew-pan, with thin slices of veal at the bottom; add some carrots and parsley, and season with spices. Pour over the ham a pint of rich stock and a bottle of Madeira; let it boil for two hours, strain and skim the fat off the sauce, which, with the ham, must be served quite hot.

TO BOIL A HAM.

When the ham is not to be soaked, wash it well in warm water, and scrub it clean; pare off any rusty part, and trim it neatly. Put it on in a large pot, with plenty of lukewarm water, and let it simmer for four or five hours. Take off the skin as whole as possible; sift over the ham bread raspings and a very little pounded sugar, and set it before the fire for two or three minutes, and put a fringe of white paper round the knuckle. The skin may be laid over the ham, when cold, to keep it moist.

TO COLLAR A PIG’S CHEEK.

Strew over a pig’s face, and a neat’s or pig’s tongue, a little salt and saltpetre; let it stand eight or nine days, then boil them with two cow-heels, till all be sufficiently tender to admit of the bones being taken out; lay upon a dish a piece of strong cloth, put the cheek upon it with the rind downwards; season it highly with black and Jamaica pepper, cloves, and a little salt; add the tongue and cow-heels, with more seasoning; roll and sew it up firmly, put it into a jar and boil it for two hours, then press it with a heavy weight, and when cold take off the cloth. The cow-heel may be omitted, and both cheeks used.

TO POT PIG’S HEAD.

Split the head of a small pig, take out the brains, cut off the ears, and let it lie in cold water for one day; then boil it till all the bones come out; take off the skin, keeping it as whole as possible. Chop the tongue and all the meat while it is hot; season it highly with pepper, salt, and nutmeg; place part of the skin at the bottom of a potting-pan or bowl, lay in the chopped meat, and put the rest of the skin over the top; press it down hard, place a small plate upon it, put on that a heavy weight, which must not be taken off till it be perfectly cold. Boil up part of the liquor with some vinegar and salt, and keep the head in this pickle. It may be served for breakfast or luncheon, and is eaten with vinegar and mustard.

TO MAKE SAUSAGES.

Take a pound of the inward fat of the pig, and half a pound of lean pork; pick both clean from skin and sinews, mince them very finely, grate a large nutmeg, take its weight of pounded mace and cloves, and the largest proportion mace, the weight of all of black pepper, and twice the weight of the spices of salt; chop finely a few sage leaves and a little lemon thyme; mix all well together with two large table-spoonfuls of grated bread and the yolk of an egg beaten. It may be put into skins, or packed into a jar and tied closely with bladder. When to be used, moisten it with the yolk of an egg beaten, make it up in the form of sausages, flour them, and fry them in butter.

ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE SAUSAGES.

Chop together two pounds of lean pork, and one and a half of the inward fat of the pig, the crumb of a penny loaf cut into slices and soaked in cold water; season with pepper, salt, grated nutmeg, lemon thyme, and a little sage. Mix all the ingredients well, and half fill the skins; boil them half an hour.

SPEADBURY’S SAUSAGES.

Cut from the leg or griskin one pound of nice lean pork, free from sinews and skin; mince it very finely; mince one pound of the best beef suet, mix it with the pork, and pound it as finely as possible in a marble mortar; add two large table-spoonfuls of stale bread rubbed through a sieve, also a good deal of black pepper, salt, and a little finely-chopped sage; mix all together with the yolks of two eggs beaten up. It will keep for some time, if put into an earthen jar and pressed closely down. When it is to be used, make it into rolls, as thick as common sausages, and three or four inches long; dust them with a little flour; have ready a frying-pan made very hot, and fry them without any thing but their own fat, till they are done quite through, taking care not to make them too dry. By breaking one of them, the cook will know whether they are sufficiently done. They may be fried in lard or fresh beef dripping.

TO CURE PIG’S CHEEK.

Strew salt over it, and let it lie for two or three days, then pour over it the following mixture when it is cold: - Half a pound of bay salt, half an ounce of saltpetre, a quarter of a pound of coarse brown sugar, one handful of common salt, and a pennyworth of cochineal, boiled in a pint of strong beer or porter; let it lie in the pickle a fortnight, turning it daily, then hang it to smoke for a week. When it is to be dressed, put it into lukewarm water to soak for a night, and in dressing it, follow the directions given for boiling hams.

TO CURE PIGS’ TONGUES.

Cut off the root, and rub them well with brown sugar; the following day, rub into them a quarter of a pound of common salt, half an ounce of saltpetre, and two ounces of bay salt; turn them daily. In a week or ten days they may be used. This quantity will salt six or eight pigs’ tongues.

TO DRESS PIGS’ KIDNEYS AND SKIRTS.

Clean and wash them very nicely; cut the kidneys across, and the skirts into small square bits; fry them a light brown in beef dripping; brown a bit of butter the size of a walnut, required of gravy, and an onion minced small. Add the meat, a little pepper, salt, and mushroom catsup, and let it stew till tender.

TO COLLAR A SMALL ROASTING PIG.

Cut off the feet, head, and tail; bone and wash it well, and dry it in a cloth. Season it highly with a quantity of black pepper and salt; roll it up firmly, and bind it with a piece of linen; sew it tightly. Put it on in boiling water, with the bones, let it boil for an hour, then put it under a weight to press till it be cold, and take off the cloth.

HAM TOASTS.

Grate some lean ham; mix with it the beaten yolk of an egg, and some pepper; fry it in clarified butter, put it on square bits of toast, and brown it with a salamander.

SOUSED PIG’S HEAD AND FEET.

Clean them extremely well, and boil them; take for sauce part of the liquor, and add vinegar, lime or lemon juice, salt, cayenne, black and Jamaica pepper; put in, either cut down or whole, the head and feet; boil all together for an hour, and pour it into a deep dish. It is eaten cold with mustard and vinegar.

TO ROAST A SUCKING PIG.

To kill the pig, stick it just above the breast bone, running the knife into the heart; plunge it for a minute or two into cold water; rub it over with resin beaten exceedingly fine – it is sometimes rubbed with its blood before the resin is put on; dip it into a pail of scalding water, take it out and rub off all the hair as quickly as possible; if it should not all come off, repeat the scalding and rubbing with resin. When quite clean, wash it in warm, and frequently in cold water. Cut off the feet at the first joint; take out all the entrails; put the pettitoes, heart, liver, and lights together. Wash the pig well in cold water, and dry it thoroughly. Make a stuffing of grated bread, butter, a small onion, and three or four sage leaves minced; season with pepper and salt, put it inside and sew it up. The pig being made perfectly dry, put the well-beaten white of an egg all over it with a feather. Put it down to roast before a very quick fire, and under it a small basin to catch the gravy. Do not flour it, and be sure to cover it well with the egg, which will crisp it nicely, and make it of a delicate light brown. It will take from one to two hours to roast. When done, cut off the head; part it and the body down the middle; mix with the chopped brains a little finely-minced boiled sage and some melted butter, add to it the gravy that has run from the pig, also mix with the stuffing some melted butter. Lay the pig on the dish, placing the shoulder of the one side to the hind quarter of the other. Observe, in roasting the pig, to skewer the legs back, so that the under part may be crisp. A pig prepared as above may be baked.

HAM AND EGGS.

Cut some ham into thin slices, and broil them on a gridiron. Fry some eggs in butter. Serve it, laying an egg on each slice of ham.

PIG’S HARSLET.

Parboil the liver and light; slice and fry them along with thin bits of bacon. Garnish with fried parsley.

PICKLED LEG OF PORK.

Salt it eight or ten days; turn and rub it daily. Before being dressed, let it lie in cold water for half an hour; put in on in cold water; when it boils, take off the scum, and let it simmer till done. If weighing seven or eight pounds, it will take nearly three hours to boil. Serve with peas-pudding and boiled greens. About two or three pounds of pickled pork will require to be simmered for an hour and a half.

PORK STEAKS. 

Cut them off a neck or loin; trim them neatly, and pepper them; broil them over a clear fire, turning them frequently; they will take twenty minutes. Sprinkle them with a little salt before serving.

BLACK PUDDINGS.

Throw a little salt into the blood while it is warm, and stir it till it become cold; boil in milk, till quite tender, two quarts of half grits. When nearly cold, put in the inward fat of the pig cut into pieces the size of a small nutmeg; season with pepper, salt, cloves, and mace; of herbs, parsley, sweet marjoram, winter savory, pennyroyal, and leeks, all finely minced. Mix them with the grits and fat, and add a sufficiency of the blood to make it of a dark colour. The skins or guts must be very well washed, and when perfectly cleansed, laid into salt and water the night before. When they are to be filled, tie one end, and turn the inside out; half fill them; tie them of equal lengths or in rounds, put them into hot water, and when they have boiled five minutes, take them out, prick them with a large needle, and then boil them half an hour. When they are cold, hang them up in a cool dry place.

ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE BLACK PUDDINGS.

Prepare the blood as before directed, and to a pint and a half allow six ounces of rice boiled in a quart of milk till it be tender, and the grated crumb of a half-quartern loaf. Season with black pepper, salt, cloves, and mace; of herbs, parsley, savory, pennyroyal, a little sage and onion, all finely minced; one pound of beef suet chopped very fine, a small quantity of the inward fat of the pig finely cut, and four eggs well beaten and strained. Mix all these ingredients together, and stir in the blood. Divide it into three puddings, and boil them in pudding-cloths floured. When they are to be used, heat them whole in a Dutch oven, or cut them into slices, and broil them upon a gridiron; or they may be put into the skins.

TO DRESS THE BLOOD OF PIGS, CALVES, OR LAMBS WITHOUT SKINS.

Cut an onion in small dice, and put it into a sauce-pan on a stove, or on the fire, with a bit of butter or hog’s lard; when it is done, put in the blood, season it with pepper and salt, and stir gently on the fire as buttered eggs are done.

A COLLAR OF BRAWN.

Wash, crape, and clean very thoroughly a large pig’s head, feet, and ears; lay them into salt and water, with a little saltpetre, for three hours. To make the collar larger, boil two ox-heels, with the head, feet, and ears, till all the bones can be taken out easily; then put the head round the mould, and the feet and small pieces into the middle; put it together while hot, and press it with a heavy weight till it become cold. Boil for half an hour, in as much of the liquor as will cover the brawn, one handful of salt, one ounce of pepper, black and white mixed, and one or two bay leaves. When cold, pour it over the brawn.

MOCK BRAWN.

Take the blade bone out of the shoulder, and boil it gently two hours or more, according to the age of the boar. When it is cold, season it very highly with black pepper, cayenne, salt, a very little allspice, minced onion, and thyme. Let it lie a night in this seasoning; the following day, make a savoury forcemeat of pounded veal, ham, beef suet, minced parsley, thyme, and an onion, a little lemon-peel, salt, nutmeg, white pepper, and cayenne; bind it with an egg beaten, and stuff where the bone has been taken out. Put it into a deep pan with the brown side downwards, and lay under it twigs or small sticks, to keep it from sticking to the bottom; pour in a bottle of beer, and put it into the oven. When nearly done, take it out and clear off all the fat; add a bottle of Madeira and the juice of a large lemon, return it to the oven, and bake it till it become as tender as a jelly, so that a straw will pierce it easily. If the boar is an old one, it will require to be baked six or seven hours. This dish is eaten hot.

TO STEW PIGS’ FEET.

Clean them well, and boil them till they are tender. Brown some butter with flour, and add it to a quantity of gravy or water sufficient to stew the feet in. Season with a minced onion, three sage leaves, salt, and black and Jamaica pepper. Cut the feet into two, add them, and cover the pan closely; let them stew half an hour. A little before serving, mix in half a table-spoonful of lemon pickle or vinegar, and pick out the sage leaves.

PETTITOES.

Parboil them, with the liver, heart, and lights; mince the liver, heart, and lights small; simmer it in some gravy or a little of the water, with a bit of butter mixed with flour. Season with pepper, salt, and one or two sage leaves minced; and having split the feet into two, add them, and when they become tender, mix in a tea-spoonful of vinegar. Serve the mince with the pettitoes upon it, and garnish with sippets of bread.

PORK CHEESE.

Choose the head of a small pig which may weigh about twelve pounds the quarter. Sprinkle over it and the tongues of four little pigs, a little common salt and a very little saltpetre. Let them lie four days, wash them, and tie them in a clean cloth. Boil them until the bones will come easily out of the head; take off the skin as whole as possible, place a bowl in hot water and put in the head, cutting it into small pieces. In the bottom of a round tin, shaped like a small cheese, lay two strips of cloth across each other – they must be long enough to fold over the top when the shape is full; place the skin round the tin, and nearly half fill it with the meat, which has been highly seasoned with black pepper, cayenne, and salt; put in some tongue cut into slices, then the rest of the meat and the remainder of the tongue; draw the cloth tightly across the top, put on it a board or a plate that will fit into the shape, and place on it a heavy weight, which must not be taken off till it be quite cold. It is eaten with vinegar and mustard, and served for luncheon or supper.

TO STEW A HAM.

Soak the ham in lukewarm water for twelve hours; drain it, and scrape the rind; put it into a stew-pan with some slices of fat bacon round the sides, four quarts of weak stock, a good deal of parsley, a bunch of sweet herbs, six large onions, four carrots, a little allspice and black pepper, a pint of Madeira, and one of port wine. Cover the ham with slices of fat bacon, and put over it a sheet of white paper; stew it eight hours, or ten if it be a very large ham. Before serving, take off the rind, strain the sauce, skim it well, and boil it till reduced to a glaze, and it round the ham; or serve it with any other sauce that may be preferred.

TO PREPARE THE FAT OF BACON FOR LARDING.

Cut the fat from the pork; rub it with salt, allowing one pound of salt to every ten pounds of lard. Put it in a cellar on a board, laying one piece upon another, put a board on the top, and stones upon the board to firm the lard; when it has lain at least a fortnight in salt, hang it up in a dry place.

BACON.

For one side of a large pig, allow one pound of coarse common salt, the same quantity of coarse brown sugar, two ounces of saltpetre, and two of rock salt finely pounded. Mix them well, and rub it on both sides of the pork, and when all is rubbed in, then lay it upon a wooden table placed slopingly, and put on it a board and weight. Place under it a vessel to catch the brine. Turn it once in two or three days, and baste it with the brine. Let it remain in this way for three weeks, and then hang it up to smoke for twenty-four hours, which will be a sufficient length of time, if the smoke is powerful.


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