Bringing Home the Bacon

Photography Deborah Jones

Step-by-Step photos for the Creation of Braised Stuffed Pigís Head with Sauce Gribiche excerpted from The French Laundry Cookbook

Utilizing the Entire Pig

As a traditionalist, "work" comes first, and no shortcuts are taken by Keller or his staff, as you can see by the photos of the "Bacon and Eggs" being prepared. Every inch of the pig's head and trotters are used, employing techniques that permit nothing to be wasted. Although the end result takes days to complete, Thomas whipped through these initial preparations, explaining the key essentials as he went along.

Chef Thomas Keller in his kitchen at his restaurant, The French Laundry, ready to start the demonstration

Just two hours in the kitchen with Thomas Keller, and you get to experience a man absorbed in his work, unaffected by the world that has discovered him."Take the skin off, just like a salmon. The skin is gelatinous. Lots of gelatin comes from skin. Roll the skin and tie it, like this. Braise it in anything, and it gives body."

Keller points out several times as he goes along that the recipe utilizes everything. Nothing is wasted. Additionally, this process creates viscosity, instead of the old method of using flour.

As he scores the meat with his Japanese Mac knife (it holds the sharpness more than any other knife he works with), he butterflies the cheek, pounds it into a square, all the while pointing out the different parts of the pigs head that are blending into the final piece. Finally, he ties the skin up tightly, seasons it with salt and freshly ground pepper, and begins the cooking process.

Before refrigerating for the night, Keller will sprinkle some pink nitrate on the meat. "The nitrate is pink so that it is not mistaken for salt. The nitrate is a cure, and prevents botulism."

These two separate preparations are both elaborate and each is enormously satisfying in its own way. The first uses the succulent fatty meat in a pig's head, wrapped around cooked pig's tongue, pig's ear, and sweetbreads, rolled tightly into a cylinder, and oven-poached all day. After it's cooled, it's sliced into medallions, sauteed, and served with a gribiche sauce. The pig's foot, or trotter, a classic French country preparation, is also stuffed and cooked over an extended period. Recipes from The French Laundry Cookbook

Braised Stuffed Pig's Head with Sauce Gribiche Recipe (Click here)