I have been wanting to make porchetta di testa for awhile now.  I finally decided to go for it last week. I followed Chef Chris Cosentino video and recipe on the process. Video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nByH6yPWYj8.

Pig Head

After removing the meat from the head, roast the skull in the oven to make a rich flavorful stock.

Pig face

Tuck the fat part of the tongue under the snout.  Fold ears through the eye holes. Season heavily with salt, and spices.  Place in fridge over night.

All tied up

Vacuumed sealed and ready for it’s 14hr water bath at 87.5c

14# pig head just fits inside the sous vide supreme.  After its finished cooking submerge in ice bath and let cool.  Place in fridge for 1day to let fat congeal and for porchetta to set.

Remove from bag and carefully peal gelatin and fat away.  After you get as much off as you can with your hands, rinse under water and pat dry. You are now ready to slice.  This is something that needs to be sliced very thin so a slicer is much needed but it can be done by hand.

The finished results were good but not where I want them to be.  I’m going to give it another try in the next few weeks with a new plan of attack.  After deboning I am going to brine the meat overnight in a pork brine. I will then season it more heavily than this time, roll and tie and let it sit in the fridge for two days before finally cooking it sous vide at 87.5c for 14hrs.  I think that the brine and longer dry cure is going to help build the intense flavors you want and expect from a porchetta.