What is soused hog's face?

Question

In a scene in the film Master and Commander, Killick shouts the name of the dish into Captain Aubrey's deafened ear. It sounds like some kind of pork or boar dish, but what actually is it?

Answer 1

In Danish that's simply called "Sylte" - which is a word of doubble meaning. It's slang for head, but also means "to pickle".

This is how it's made:

Ingredients for 6 servings

A hog's head

4 chalott onions

4 TBsp fine salt

10 whole peppercorns

4 whole laurel leaves

2 twigs of fresh thyme

Later:

2 large onions

5 peppercorns - freshly ground

Cover a whole hog's head with water, add chalott onions, salt, peppercorns, whole laurel leaves and fresh thyme, bring to a boil, and let simmer until the meat is easily picked off the bones. Take the head out of the soup, pick off the meat, and let cool.

Meanwhile sift the soup, return to the pot, and reduce over high heat to about 6 cups.

Cut the meat in small cubes, chop the onions, and mix both with freshly ground pepper.

Put in 1 or 2 bread baking-pans (depending on size), and pour the reduced soup over the meat and onions. Allow to cool, before refrigerating for at least 12 hours. The gelatine from the head should make it stiff enough.

One doesn't have to boil a hog's head ... one can use pure meat from the start - if so, it must boil for about 3 hours with onion, pepper, salt, laurel leaves and thyme in about 2 litres of water, and gelatine must be added to the final soup, before pouring into the baking-pans.

Answer 2

Salutations,

Think of Head cheese in a bowl, but believe it or not, it's yummie. Great Movie by the way.Cheers

Answer 3

It is basically a boiled pigs head.