Ingredients
Serves 44 x 700g smoked pork hocks
1 onion, quartered
1 carrot, cut into chunks
2 sticks celery, cut into chunks
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
4 cloves
Peel of 1 orange
Glaze:
¼ cup Marsala
200g softened butter
¼ cup raw sugar
Splash of brandy
Method
The hock is the lower part of a pig's front leg. It often doesn't look to be more than a big bone covered in lots of tough skin. But like other tough tasty cuts, the hock cooks to a lovely juicy tenderness, and all that skin connective tissue renders down to add plenty of gelatine and flavour.
Hocks are sometimes sold fresh, but you're more likely to find them smoked. The following recipe is a wonderful way to cook smoked hocks as the s sticky glaze is brilliant against the rich smoky flavours and is just the thing on a cold winter night.
The secret to this dish is to cook the hocks just long enough so that they becomes meltingly tender, but not completely falling off the bone. You have plenty of delicious stock left over, which you can strain and freeze, use for making soups, or for braising beans or lentils with some vegies and a slug of wine.
Ask your butcher to remove the knuckle end of the hocks and to 'French' them for a neat presentation.
Put them in a stockpot or large casserole dish with the remaining ingredients and cover generously with cold water. Bring to the boil, skimming away any impurities that rise to the surface, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered for 1½ hours. The meat needs to be very soft, but not falling from the bones. Remove the pan from the heat and leave the hocks to cool in the stock.
When the hocks are completely cold, lift them out of the stock (which you strain and re-use), and pat dry. Remove the skin and trim away any thick fatty bits (they'll make a great treat for your dog).
Preheat the oven to 190°C. Use a fork to beat the Marsala into the butter. Smear it all over the hocks and sprinkle them with sugar. Arrange the hocks in a deep roasting tin and pour in reserved stock to a depth of about 2 cm. This stops the hocks from sticking to the tin, keeps them moist and reduces down to make a lovely sauce. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, until the butter and sugar form a shiny dark glaze.
Remove the hocks from the roasting tin and keep warm while you make a quick sauce. Add a splash of brandy to the roasting tin and bubble vigorously over a high heat. Serve the glazed hocks with the sauce and heaps of mashed potato.