Ham Hock Recipes

[Carolyn1124]

Hi

I have too many hocks in the freezer. They always seem to get left behind when we keep 1/2 a porker back for ourselves.

I'm going to brine cure them using this recipe I found after delving around on this forum:
1kg hock.
I made a brine of:
500ml cider
500ml water
126 gm Salt
126 gm Sugar
6 gm Saltpetre.

(Leave for about a week?)

Does anyone have any good recipes to deal with the hocks once they've been brined?

Many thanks
Carolyn

[johnfb]

Hi Carolyn
Is 6 grm of saltpetre correct?
Seems very very high to me

[wheels]

John

That cure should be fine for a pumped (injected) cure giving 477 PPM Potassium Nitrate.

If not pumping - now there lies a problem as I see it. If it reaches equilibrium it will have 2657 or so PPM. Far too much - it is unlikely, in my opinion, that it will reach equilibrium in a week, but hey, how far will it go and how much Nitrate will it absorb? That's anyone's guess (but almost certainly will be above safe levels given the short curing time).

Another problem is that the saltpetre (NitrAte) has to convert to NitrIte before it works - the usual advice with Saltpetre is to cure at least 10 - 14 days minimum.

Carolyn doesn't say whether she is just brining or pumping. I assume that she wants to just brine the meat. I don't use this method personally. If I was to, for a 1kg hock, say 500g meat, I would use 0.6g Saltpetre and cure for 15 - 20 days.

Be interested in seeing what others think.

Phil

[Carolyn1124]

Hi
Only that cut and paste recipe was a bad choice
In that case my question is now 2-fold:
Can you recommend a brine recipe? (simple submersion in the fridge
Can you recommend a recipe for the brined hocks once cured?


Thanks
Carolyn

[Richierich]

This is not a suggestion for cured hock usage, but for an uncured hock.

Might be better waiting till the cooler evenings when you need a bit of hearty comfort food.

Boil up the hock for about an hour in nothing but water, do not throw the water out but use it to make up some of those soak overnight marrowfat mushy peas (not to soak them, they should have been soaked with the tablet already), this gives the peas a lovely meaty, taste. Serve over an oven baked pork pie, salt and white pepper with some mint sauce. For added meat slowly roast the boiled hock and have that on the side as well. That will certainly line your ribs.

It's what in our family we call Yorkshire Pie & Peas.

[Carolyn1124]

Having spent the last hour reaching a million different conflicting brine recipes and techniques I might be tempted to go for an un-cured hock!

Thanks

[johnfb]

Why not try the German way as in
EISBEIN

http://www.kitchenproject.com/german/re ... isBein.htm


http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1627,12 ... 94,00.html



THis is for knuckle of pork but would work with any part really.
This is fab and the best way to eat it

[Big Guy]

Once the hocks are brined I smoke them. I then use them to flavour baked beans. for uncured hocks try this

Ragout Pattes de Cochon

6 Pork hocks
1 large onion
salt and pepper to taste

Meat balls
� tsp. Cinnamon
� tsp. Allspice
1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. Ground pork
salt and pepper to taste

Thickener
2 cups flour browned

Add water to cover hocks in large pot. Add � of the onion. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer 2-3 hrs until meat falls from bones.
Make meat balls with pork and beef mixture, spices and some chopped onion .
Remove fat and bones return the broth to a boil, add the meatballs and simmer for 1 hr.
Brown flour in a frying pan with a little fat, add to meat and broth to thicken. Cook for 30 minutes at simmer.

[wheels]

Can you recommend a brine recipe? (simple submersion in the fridge

Carolyn
Sorry, I was replying to John rather than your initial post which was somewhat rude of me. I should have given a clearer explanation for your benefit.

Many of us on this forum cure meat using US standards/specifications (adobe pdf file)- the US research seems so much more available to all.

The US standards set safe levels of curing agents. The standards for dry curing and injection curing are clear, but those for pure brine curing aren't.

In this type of curing it all depends whether the meat will reach an equilibrium with the brine. That is, the stage where the meat will not absorb anything else from the brine regardless of the amount of time it is left in it. This level is reached in smaller pieces of meat, like your hock, quicker than larger pieces.

Cures for equilibrium curing are calculated for the individual weight of the meat being cured, there isn't 'one cure for all'. As your recipe uses Saltpetre (Potassium NitrAte), which needs time to do its work, the chance of reaching the 'equilibrium' stage is increased. Hence it is difficult to give a definitive answer to your question.

In theory, if your hock contains 600g of meat (not bones/fat), to reach approximately the same level of cure in the meat as in the above recipe (which has a level of 477 Parts Per Million Saltpetre), I would use .9 of a gram of saltpetre and cure for 15 - 20 days. This, obviously, requires very accurate scales to measure - they can be obtained via ebay at quite reasonable prices.

As I said before though, mine is only my opinion, I know that there are others on this site who cure using more traditional techniques and don't share my views. Hopefully one of them will reply to you soon.

I hope this explains more fully and has not put you off what is a fascinating pastime/hobby.

As for the cooking:
Pea and Ham soup.
An addition to: Boston Baked Beans
Ham hock & lentils
Ham hock with cider, apples and mustard
Pig's trotter and ham hock terrine
also see:
Ham Hock Terrine Masterclass - downloadable adobe pdf file
or even,
Foie gras and ham hock terrine

Hope this helps
Phil

[Fallow Buck]

I used Franco's Old English Cure on a couple of hocks ant then boiled them to make the stock. In the stock I just put a load of vegetables, like savoy cabbage, potatoes carrots etc. It was absolutely superb.

Jamie Oliver did a similar thing yesterday on the TV, butI have also used the flaked ham in a terrine which again is very good especially when mixed with some game like pheasant or partridges. These add to the stock too.

FB

[Carolyn1124]

Thanks guys. In the end I boiled/roasted them as per johnfb's links. They were very good.

I have more in the freezer. I'm slowly digesting the contents of wheel's pdf document. So next time I'll go for the ham hock instead of the pork hock. Then I can have another go at some of the great recipes here.

Thanks
Carolyn

edited to correct spelling mistakes