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Rub head with sea salt, white pepper, red pepper and 1 tablespoon herbs de Provence. Let cure, refrigerated, for two days. Rinse head, remove the tongue and refrigerate for later use, and then place the head in a large soup pot. Add wine, herbs de Provence, vegetables and then water to cover. Bring to a boil, and then simmer several hours until the meat is fork tender.

Remove head from pot and let it cool. Strain and reserve the poaching liquid. When the head is cool enough to handle, separate it into fat and meat from the jowls, ears and other parts. Roughly chop the meat and ears, and then take the gelatinous fat and pulse it briefly in a food processor until it is almost creamy in texture. It might require two batches, depending on the size of your head.

Meanwhile, poach the tongue and the diced red pepper in some of the braising liquid until the tongue is cooked through. Roughly chop the tongue. Then place all ingredients — meat, pulsed fat, tongue, cornichons and vinegar — together in a large bowl, adding just enough braising liquid to cover the mix. You may also add a few of the carrots from the braising liquid, roughly chopped as well for color. Mix well with a spatula and season with salt, pepper and more vinegar to taste.