Ham Hock Stock

Stock is very important. It’s the base for soups and stews. It can be made from pretty much anything, poultry, meat or vegetables. In this particular recipe, I’ll make ham hock stock.

If you read some of my other recipes, you’ll notice I use a lot of stock. Well, why not? Liquid is a major ingredient in a lot of cooking. So let that liquid bring some flavors to the dish. Making stock is not complicated nor is it time consuming, so with very little effort a rich flavorful stock to add to anything can be created. I usually use a slow cooker however a stock pot (a large saucepan for making stock) works fine.

The Hock

The hock is the joint where the pigs foot attaches to the upper leg. It can be either front or rear. Now, I’m sure you’ve heard hocks and shanks and wondered if they’re the same. Well, wonder no more, I’ll tell you. They’re actually different, not by much though. The hock is the joint where the leg meets the foot. It’s mostly bone and sinew, however it contains cartilage which is good for stock. The shank is from the lower section of the shoulder in the front or the leg in the rear. It has more meat than a hock. Now you know.

When making a good stock using a joint with cartilage, or a thick bone with marrow is important. The marrow and the cartilage gives the stock that gelatin consistency when cooled. It will give the stock body and flavor. The hock is a part that requires a long slow cook to make it palatable. However has a very distinctive flavor, and is a staple of southern cooking. And in some places is also the main ingredient in a dish. The Germans love their hocks. Depending on where you are, they either braise them or roast them, serving with potatoes and sauerkraut.

The Stock

In this particular case I’m making ham stock to add to my Hoppin John stew, a classic southern stew usually served at new year for luck. However you need stock for Jambalaya, Gumbo and many other dishes too. It has a relatively short storage life in the fridge, but can be frozen easily for later use

For this recipe I’ll use two ham hocks. The process is quite simple, add the ham hocks to water and seasonings, bring to a boil, and simmer for a few hours. Well, as with most things there’s a process, and I’m going to cover that now. Remember, when handling raw meat to make sure to wash hands and utensils, safe food prep is very important

When first boiling the water with the hocks they’ll release some impurities when boiling. These are just residue from the processing plant. Not poisonous. There are two schools of thought about how to deal with this. Either bring them to a boil before adding the spices and scoop off anything that rises to the top, usually about 10 minutes. Then add the spices, put a lid on it, turn to its lowest setting and come back in 6 hrs. The other way is to boil the hock about 10 minutes, drain the water, put in fresh water with the spices and when boiling put on the lowest heat and leave simmer 6 hrs. I usually do the first one, I want to capture as much of the flavor as possible.

So, what seasonings to add. Well, there’s more choices. Whatever you use cannot overtake the stock, just make a well rounded flavor. Now you can buy a seasoning pack at the store. Basically the same thing Mum used to use, basic herbs wrapped up in a muslin pouch and dropped into the water. I usually just take some garlic cloves, drop them in whole, cut a medium onion into quarters, add a bay leaf, some whole peppercorns and a little salt, just enough stuff to make a little flavor. The ham is definitely king of this party.

I simmer the stock for at least 6 hrs. I really want to get all the flavor out. That’s about it, rich flavorful ham hock stock. When it’s done just let it cool, strain off the liquid, and separate the hocks. As I had mentioned earlier, I’m making this for my Hoppin’ John stew, so the stock and the ham will get used. If you’re making it to store, then, once the stock is cool, put it in freezer proof containers and freeze it. As for the ham, well, save that, it will go nicely in a split pea and ham soup, but that’s for another post