the saga of the head cheese

We decided we should try to use as much of the pig as possible. The head is known as an excellent part in many European countries, as well as in Asia, so we repressed our squeamishness and decided to have a crack at making head cheese. (Ghastly name! The German name "Sülze" us a bit nicer.) It involves boiling the head in a big pot for about 3 hours, then cooling it and pulling all the meat off it, then returning the skull to the pot for another 8-15 hours more to get the maximum gelatine out of it, then pouring this stock over the meaty bits in a loaf tin, and pressing it to make a "meat in aspic" type loaf that can be sliced. We were ready to pour the stock over the meat, and then made the breathtaking discovery that James, our HelpXer, had thought it was a pot that was being soaked for cleaning, and tipped the lot out on the garden and cleaned it. Gaaaaah! Especially as all the truly icky and time consuming stages were behind us, but hey, it was good practice and at least we didn't have to eat it! Next year, though, we shall be braver.