Ham Hocks & Beans

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Stevie

Cook
Joined
Sep 16, 2004
Messages
98
Location
USA,Texas
I saw a chef today on PBS named Daisy Martinez. She specialized in Puerto Rican cuisine. I was very impressed by several of her dishes but really caught notice of a ham hock she put in her black beans. I live in the D/FW area in Texas and if anybody knows where I can find ham hocks that big and meaty please let me know. The one's I find in grocery stores are small and mostly fat or the sliced bacon strip type. Neither type gives up much meat.
 
I LOVE Daisy! I really wanted to watch that episode about the beans today ... but I got too engrossed in the Ranger's game and forgot about it ... DRAT!

Technically - a ham hock is the lower portion of a pig's hind leg (generally it's from just above the knee on down) - it's not going to be very meaty - it's used for flavor and it's connective tissue (gelatin) - not for big chunks of meat.

I've watched Daisy before - and what she sometimes calls a ham hock appears to be the hock end of a ham.

I use smoked ham hocks (from Albertsons) to cook my beans - and if I want more meat - I toss in some smoked ham. You should be able to get these at your local grocery store since we live in the same general area.
 
And sometimes you just luck up on some really big ones at the grocery store. There's not very much meat in them like Michael said but what IS there is tasty as long as it's cooked long enough.
 
LOL ... piggy with fat knees?

Trick I learned to get the most flavor ... put the hocks into a pot of COLD water, bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer for about 1-2 hours. Wash and add the beans - bring to a boil and cut the heat off and let steep for an hour or so. Then add additional water as needed and cook.
 
;) thanks y'all. I like Daisy too Michael, they played her for a few hours yesterday. I had never heard of her before then. Yea, the best part of beans to me is the ham hock. :pig: lol
 

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