Madalene Bonvini-Hamel''s Crispy Pig’s Head, Ham Scotch Egg, Piccalilli and Nasturtium

Dingley Dell's Flying Visits

Dingley Dell's Flying Visits

Standard Supplier 26th July 2012
Dingley Dell's Flying Visits

Madalene Bonvini-Hamel''s Crispy Pig’s Head, Ham Scotch Egg, Piccalilli and Nasturtium

Recipe for Crispy Pig’s Head, Ham Scotch Egg, Piccalilli and Nasturtium
Flying Visit Two – Host The Victoria, London
Author: Madalene Bonvini-Hamel - recipes from www.britishlarder.co.uk – © The British Larder 2012
Serves 10

Ingredients

  • For the Pig's Head Croquettes
  • 1 Freedom Food Dingley Dell pig's head
  • 1 celery stick, cut into 4 even size pieces
  • 1 carrot, cut into 4 even size pieces
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 2 onions
  • 1 tablespoon rapeseed oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 1/2 teaspoon ras-el-hanout
  • Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
  • 4 tablespoons chopped soft herbs (chives, chervil, tarragon and parsley)
  • 1 Freedom Food egg, beaten
  • 2 tablespoons plain flour
  • 100g breadcrumbs
  • 1 small jar Home Made Piccalilli (http://www.britishlarder.co.uk/cauliflower-and-shallot-piccalilli/#axzz1tw5tKy7V)
  • 1 handful nasturtium leaves
  • 300g cooked salsify, cut in 4cm batons
  • For the Smoked Ham Scotch Egg
  • 5 soft boiled quail’s eggs, peeled
  • 100g cooked smoked Freedom Food Dingley Dell ham knuckle meat, flaked
  • 100g Freedom Food Dingley Dell Cumberland sausage meat
  • Half teaspoon fennel seeds, ground
  • Half clove of garlic, crushed
  • Maldon sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1tablespoon mixed herbs such as parsley, chives and chervil, finely chopped
  • 25g flour
  • 1 whole raw Freedom Food egg, lightly whipped
  • 100g breadcrumbs

Method

Preparing the pig’s head. Remove any excess hairs from the pig's head using a razor or blowtorch. Place the head in a large saucepan, fill with cold water and bring to the boil over high heat. Once boiling remove any scum using a ladle, top the pan up with cold water and add the celery, carrot, bay leaves, thyme and one onion cut into quarters. Bring to a gentle simmer over low heat for 3 and a half hours, then top the water up at least once or twice, ensuring the head is covered at all times. Let the head cool in the stock for about 1 hour.
Drain the head from the stock, discard the stock and vegetables and flake the meat from the head.
You will end up with about 400g of flaked pig’s head meat. Let it cool completely in the fridge.
In the meantime, chop the remaining onion very finely, and in a medium saucepan over medium heat sweat the onion in the oil with the garlic, seasoning and ras-el-hanout for about 8 minutes until completely soft. Add to the flaked pig’s head and add the herbs, mixing well.
Shape 25g croquettes, then refrigerate for 2 hours to let them completely set.
Once the croquettes are set, then panée them: place the flour with seasoning in a small bowl, place the beaten egg in another bowl next to it, and finally the crumbs in another bowl. First roll each croquette in the flour, then the egg and finally roll in crumbs. Complete the process until all of the croquettes are coated.
Preparing the Scotch eggs. Mix the cooked flaked ham knuckle meat with the sausage meat, seasoning, crushed garlic, ground fennel seeds and the chopped herbs.
Pack the meat around the soft-boiled eggs, and leave them to set in the fridge.
Next panée the eggs: roll the Scotch egg in the flour, then the whipped egg and then lastly in the breadcrumbs.
When ready to serve, heat a medium frying pan over medium heat with 1 tablespoon unsalted butter and sauté the salsify until golden brown all over. Then season to taste, drain and keep warm.
Heat a deep fat fryer filled with oil according to manufacturer's instructions to 160 °C.
Deep-fry the croquettes in 2 batches for 5 minutes until each batch is golden brown and hot all the way through. Drain on kitchen paper and season the cooked croquettes with salt and keep them warm. Fry the Scotch eggs in 1 batch for 4 minutes, until golden brown and cooked, then drain and season with salt.
To serve. Cut the Scotch eggs in half, and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the piccalilli, 1 half of an egg and 1 croquette per plate, and garnish with the salsify and nasturtium leaves and serve immediately.

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