Recipes

Caramelised pork hock with chilli vinegar

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Ingredients

  • •
    Vegetable oil for deep-frying
  • •
    2 pork hocks
  • •
    1 quantity master stock (see below)
  • •
    Crisp-fried eschallots
  • •
    Coriander leaves
  • •
    Red chilli, julienned
  • •
    1⁄2 quantity chilli vinegar (see below)

Caramel

  • •
    500g palm sugar, crushed
  • •
    1 stick cassia bark
  • •
    1 star anise

Chilli Vinegar

  • •
    2 large red chillies, finely sliced into rounds
  • •
    200ml white rice vinegar

Master stock

  • •
    8 cloves garlic, peeled
  • •
    15 white peppercorns
  • •
    Vegetable oil
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    1⁄2 cup Chinese cooking wine
  • •
    1⁄2 cup thick sweet soy sauce
  • •
    1 cup oyster sauce
  • •
    1 stick cassia bark
  • •
    3 star anise
  • •
    1 cup light yellow bean soy
  • •
    8 cups chicken stock
  • •
    2 x 4 cm piece ginger, peeled and chopped

Method

  1. 1.
    Stock: Pound the garlic and peppercorns to a paste. Fry in a little oil until it smells crisp and nutty. Deglaze with the cooking wine, then add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to the boil, and skim off any scum and excess oil. Simmer for 20 minutes, then strain, discarding all the solids. You can now use the stock to cook your choice of meat or poultry.
  2. 2.
    Strain the stock after each use and refresh with more ginger and spices each time you use it. I find that the stock can get very strong after several uses, so feel free to start your stock from scratch again.
  3. 3.
    Chilli vinegar: Combine the chillies and vinegar and mix well.
  4. 4.
    Pork: Heat the oil in a wok until just smoking and deep-fry the pork hock, one at a time, until golden brown, 4-5 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain well on absorbent paper. Bring the master stock to the boil in a large heavy-based pan. Add the pork hocks and simmer for 11⁄2–2 hours over a medium heat. To test for readiness, the pork hocks should be quite soft to the touch. Remove the hocks from the stock and cool. Reserve 1 cup of the braising liquid for the sauce. When cool, grab the hock bone and twist – the whole bone should come out, leaving only the meat. Push the hock together to form a dense mass and refrigerate until set and firm, 3–4 hours.
  5. 5.
    Caramel: place the palm sugar in a heavy-based pot and add a splash of water to help it melt. Allow the sugar to caramelise, then stop the cooking by adding the reserved braising liquid, cassia bark and star anise to give it a good flavour. The caramel should be quite savoury and not too runny – a honey-like consistency. If too runny, keep reducing the stock until a sauce consistency. Check the seasoning: if it’s too sweet, add 100 ml (31⁄2 fl oz) of fish sauce to cut the sweetness. To serve, cut the pork hock into bite-sized pieces. Reheat the previous oil in a wok and deep-fry the meat until crisp and golden, 5–6 minutes. Drain on absorbent paper.
  6. 6.
    To serve: place in a bowl and pour over the warm caramel. Garnish with some crisp-fried eschallots, coriander and chilli. Serve with chilli vinegar on the side.