HOG HEAD CHEESE - SOUSE - DOWN HOME RECIPE

Hog Head Cheese - Souse - Down Home Recipe image

I come from a family of farmers. My Grandparent's used almost every part of the hog that they butchered including the head and ears.This is the closest recipe that I could find that resembles my grandmother "Bigmamma's' old family favorite Hog Head Cheese or Souse.

Provided by @MakeItYours

Number Of Ingredients 17

Ingredients

2 Pig's Tongues
4 Pig's Ears
2 Pig's Feet
4 Vidalia Onions, chopped
2T Salt
1t Ground Black Pepper
15 Whole Black Peppercorns
3T Dried Sage
15 Whole Cloves
4 Bay Leaves
2T Pickling Spice
1/2t Garlic Powder
3C Distilled White Vinegar
6 Pepperoncini peppers, chopped
4T Dill Pickle relish
5T Unflavored gelatin
1c Water

Steps:

Using a large stock pot; place tongues, pig's ears, pig's feet, chopped onions and cover with water. 2. Add salt, pepper, peppercorns, sage, cloves, bay leaves, pickling spice, garlic powder and vinegar. 3. Bring to a boil. Cook 2 1/2 hours until meat is cooked. 4. Remove meat from the pot and set aside. 6. Strain the broth. Measure 8 cups into another pot. Return broth to stove, and let simmer.7. Peel skin from ears, leaving the ear as intact as possible. Place the ears aside. 8. Remove gristle and fat from pig's feet, and combine with ear trimmings. 9. Cut off a large portion of tongue and set aside. Trim loose meat from remainder of tongue, and combine with other trimmings. 10. Put trimmings through a coarse meat grinder, then stir into broth; continue to simmer.11. Slice tongues into thin strips, and place lengthwise into 2 glass loaf pans, 9x5x3 inches. 12. Slice ears into thin strips, then cut the strips into 1/2 inch pieces. Arrange the ear pieces among the tongue strips. 13. Chop and divide the pepperoncini between the two molds. Sprinkle with pickle relish.Option: You can also add chopped Piemiento if you want to. 14. Dissolve gelatin in 1 cup water and stir into the simmering broth. 15. Carefully ladle enough broth into each mold to completely cover the meat. 16. Mix well. Let stand 15 minutes.17. Cover with remaining broth and allow to cool at room temperature for 2-3 hours until it starts to jell. 18. Refrigerate for 8 to 10 hours.19. When set, remove any fat from the surface. 20. Run a thin knife around the sides of the mold to release the Hog Head Cheese. Enjoy!!Yield 2 loaves