Terrine of Pork Trotter, Baby Kale, Spinach & Chard, Pickled Ramps, Shaved Pickled Carrot, Pickled Mustard Seed, Crisped Bread, Powdered Pork Fat
I've been known to go off sometimes about the fact that too many people don't seem to understand that dead animals include more than loins, chops and bacon. I tout the virtues of using as much of an animal carcass as possible as to not waste a life. If you're going to take advantage of the "glamor cuts" you should also utilize the less desirable, it's the right thing to do. But as I was thinking about how to introduce this post I realized that I'm kind of a hypocrite. Sure I bought some pig's feet. I don't know too many other people that can say this on a regular basis. But I only bought two out of the four that this particular pig almost certainly had. I also didn't purchase it's head, tail, liver or neck. Plus these particular pig's feet, purchased from an Asian butcher, almost certainly would not have gone to waste anyways. So I've come to the realization that I am not a hero, at least not for buying a couple of pork trotters. I am not really doing the food world a gigantic service. I do not deserve an award for overcoming a language barrier to purchase something that would not have gone to waste had I not intervened. So let me just admit then that I just like pig feet. I used them here because they make a great terrine with an interesting texture, great flavor and loads of natural gelatin to hold it all together. I'm not a hero.
I placed two whole pork trotters into a pot and covered them with cold water. I placed the pot on the stove and added bay leaf, fennel, star anise, onion, garlic, ginger, peppercorns and juniper berries. I cooked the trotters at a low simmer for about 4 hours when the skin was easily pierced with my finger. I removed them from the pot and strained the liquid. Once cooled I removed all of the meat, skin, fat and cartilage and roughly chopped it. I seasoned the meat with salt and pepper and mixed in some of the reserved cooking liquid. I placed the trotter meat into a terrine mold and covered it with a thin layer of pork lard. I chilled the terrine overnight before slicing it to serve.
I made the pickles pretty much the same way I've made pickles in previous posts, the ramps and carrots being from last season. The baby greens were plated undressed. I made the powder by mixing pork fat with tapioca maltodextin to create an interesting textural component.
I placed two whole pork trotters into a pot and covered them with cold water. I placed the pot on the stove and added bay leaf, fennel, star anise, onion, garlic, ginger, peppercorns and juniper berries. I cooked the trotters at a low simmer for about 4 hours when the skin was easily pierced with my finger. I removed them from the pot and strained the liquid. Once cooled I removed all of the meat, skin, fat and cartilage and roughly chopped it. I seasoned the meat with salt and pepper and mixed in some of the reserved cooking liquid. I placed the trotter meat into a terrine mold and covered it with a thin layer of pork lard. I chilled the terrine overnight before slicing it to serve.
I made the pickles pretty much the same way I've made pickles in previous posts, the ramps and carrots being from last season. The baby greens were plated undressed. I made the powder by mixing pork fat with tapioca maltodextin to create an interesting textural component.