Making Traditional Sülze

    1. Some Ingredients for Sülze, 2. Making Sülze Stock, 3. Boiling Garnish in Stockpot, 4. Garnish for Sülze, 5. Sülze: hot meats, 6. Sülze: garnish, hot meats, parsley, 7. Clarifying Stock, 8. Stock after clarifying, 9. Sülze, 10. Sülze: turned-out, 11. Sülze, sliced, 12. Summer Food

    This takes 2 days to prepare. Here's a recipe from an earlier occasion:

    ½ pig’s head; 1 trotter (helps jelly to set); 1 onion; 2 sticks celery (better still: a thick slice of celeriac); 1 large carrot; good handful parsley (stalks are fine); 1 tsp each: coriander & lightly crushed pepper; pinch carraway seeds (if handy); 2 cloves; 2 bay leaves; 3 crushed juniper berries;
    Wash the head and trotter, cover with water (about 3 l) and bring to the boil. Pour off water, flush with cold water and rinse thoroughly. Shave off the bristles and trim obvious dirty and bristly bits between the trotter’s toes and from the head. Just cover with fresh water, bring to a lively simmer and skim repeatedly for the first 30 min. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Add the spices and roughly chopped stock vegetables and simmer for 4h.
    Drain and chill stock in a smaller pot (preferably in a water- or icebath). Discard the vegetables. Trim off and chill the meat (work quickly, leaving the meat whole—it cuts easier when cold. The skin and thick layer of fat on the cheek can be trimmed off separately: I add some of the skin to the meat and make crackling and lard with the fat).

    2-3 tbsp white wine (or cider) vinegar; 150 g lean gammon; 1 egg white; 2 gherkins; ½ jar mushrooms or 50g small button mushrooms steamed and marinated (this can simply be done in pickle juice); 2 tbsp finely chopped parsley
    Lift the fat off the stock. Poach the gammon in it for about 20 minutes and set aside. Lightly beat the eggwhite until it just holds air then stir into the stock and and reduce to just over ½ pint. The eggwhite will clarify the stock. Add the vinegar to taste and adjust seasoning. Pour through a fine metal sieve set over a colander with a double or tripple layer of muslin. Use immediately.
    While the stock is reducing, cut the cold meats into neat cubes. Finely slice the mushrooms and chop the gherkins. Mix with the parsley and a little white pepper.
    Prepare a suitable mold (a loaf tin is ideal). Lining the mold with clingfilm makes it easiest to lift out the finished product and also serves to keep it covered. Otherwise rub with a little oil; the Sülze can then be upended onto a plate after dipping the dish briefly into hot water. Loosely arrange the cubed meats and garnish, adding the clarified stock as you go. Chill quickly (best in an ice bath), cover with clingfilm and leave to set for 3h to overnight in the fridge. Eat within 2 days, served with gherkins, pickled onions, made mustard, flaky salt, white pepper and light rye bread or potato salad plus, of course, beer (or cider). Tip: use a large, heavy knife to slice. For neat results, dip the blade into hot water and apply gentle but firm pressure. An electric meat slicer is best for sandwich-thin slices.

    (Created with fd's Flickr Toys.)

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