I was on a mission to look for pig feet. I’ve seen it at the Korean supermarkets but I think they were chopped up in half and in small pieces. I wanted trotters in bigger chunks.
The Chinese supermarket near me had an impressive selection of feet. Beef, duck, chicken and pig feet! And because I love to gross out my readers I took some pictures. Scroll down to the bottom of post if you are curious; I put it at the end so you can skip it if you are squeamish. They look a little yucky to me too.
They had pig feet in small chunks (left, photo below) and also part of the hock with trotters. In the end I selected the small pieces. I wasn’t sure I could use a whole leg.
And if you think I’m weird wanting pig trotters, did you recently have ham? Ham, by the way, is an extension of that part, just inches away! These pictures actually look better because the meat’s still frozen. After it defrosted, even I didn’t dare look too close. Again, photo’s at the bottom.
Why the search? I needed the pig feet for the full month birthday of my beautiful grandbaby Aiden! Cantonese celebrate this auspicious day–called moon yuet, or full month–with a huge 10-course banquet for family and friends. During that week, we make Pig Trotters with Ginger and Vinegar and pass portions of it to close friends and family. We also color hard boiled eggs red and gift them to friends.
Traditionally Pig Feet with Black Vinegar and Ginger, Ju Keok Cho, is made for the post natal mother. It is believed that the vinegar will help expel the “wind” absorbed during birth. Today doctors in Singapore warn new mothers against eating this. Something about affecting the mother’s milk and jaundice.
Nonetheless we still keep the tradition. I thought I should too. Even though my daughter is four hours away. Even if only two people I know here in Fairfax, Va will eat it. Vinegared pork feet is just not as tempting as, say, barbecued ribs.
We don’t eat this too often but during moon yuet we do enjoy this treat. I won’t typically run out to grab porky’s trotters, but when my mother made Ju Keok Cho I’d have seconds. It’s an acquired taste.
The slow braising of the pork is a labor of love, taking hours to do. Braised in sweet, black vinegar the meat and skin becomes soft, tender, full-flavored and slightly sweet. Pig feet is liked for its fatty skin and fat under it. It’s super rich in collagen. We love to eat around bone, joints and cartilage. The vinegar makes it less greasy in taste, (kind of like eastern North Carolina barbecue with added vinegar in its fatty pork.)
We also put in hard boiled eggs. They are braised along with the pork until the egg becomes really hard, almost rubbery. (Yes, rubbery. We really do have varied tastes for texture.) The egg is delicious with the vinegar.
I’ve seen Mum make this so I thought I could wing it. Friends at the A&J Restaurant in Annandale, Va confirmed what I remembered. One recommended Koon Chun’s Sweetened Black Vinegar (see below). Mum favored a particular brand of vinegar but I had forgotten the name.
Mum also used both old and young ginger. The old ginger is for flavoring and the young ginger for eating. But I’ve rarely seen young ginger for sale here so I just used whatever they had.
Then out of the blue, I recalled that Mum cooked it in a huge, green enamel pot. I remember her avoiding some pots. Traditionally this dish is cooked in Chinese clay pots. This is because vinegar should not be cooked in reactive pots like aluminum and copper. Stainless steel is okay but in the end I decided on my ceramic slow cooker, which let it braise slowly. Perfect!
Heat control
I wasn’t sure about the proportions to get the flavor I remembered last enjoying 30 years ago. I was going to jump right in and trust my instincts. I bought two pounds of feet, for $3! If I failed I can just throw everything out; it’s not prime rib. Mine was a tiny amount compared to what my Popo would have made in her day. I think mum usually bought four or five whole hocks and trotters.
I skinned and smashed one pound of ginger, which I browned in some hot oil. Then I poured one bottle of vinegar, added some sugar and kept tasting to check. The stew is supposed to be sweet but not too sweet.
Ginger gives it heat, a slight burning taste. I wanted to be careful not to make it too pungent. The sugar I added made it a tad too sweet. Then I added the pork.
When I poured everything into my slow cooker I thought there wasn’t enough liquid. The best part of this dish is eating the egg with a generous dribble of the vinegar sauce. So I dumped in another half bottle of vinegar. That should take care of the sweetness.
Soon after my stomach felt funny . Then it occurred to me that it must be that vinegar and ginger combination which gives your insides a warm feeling. This is what the Cantonese call heng or heatiness, the burning sensation that dispels wind. (Please, not to be confused with gas!) It’s the same burning sensation you get when you ingest sarabat, a warm ginger drink. It wasn’t a stomach ache, it’s dispelling wind. Hmm…this is potent stuff.
Afraid of more burning, I retrieved some of the ginger from the stew before starting the braise. It cooked for almost 8 hours but I thought the taste came out close to what I remember it to be.
If you want to try this, you could substitute pigs trotters with pork belly.
Pig Feet With Black Vinegar and Ginger
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 4 hours (stove top); 6-8 hours (slow cooker)
2 pounds pig feet, cut into pieces
¾ pound ginger, skinned and smashed
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon oil
1½ bottles sweetened black vinegar (30 fluid ounce)
1 dozen hard-boiled eggs, peeled
In a 4-quart pot, bring 3 quarts of water to boil. Carefully add in pig feet and bring water back to a boil. Remove pork from water and set aside. Drain pork and discard water.
Heat wok, or pot, and add oil. When oil is shimmering, add ginger. Lower heat and lightly brown ginger on each side.
Add vinegar and sugar and stir to dissolve sugar. Add pork and bring to a boil.
IF COOKING ON STOVE TOP: Transfer all ingredients to a stainless steel pot, add eggs, cover and simmer on low for 3-4 hours until pork is tender.
IF USING SLOW COOKER: Transfer contents into slow cooker, add eggs, and cook on high for 6-8 hours until pork is tender.
NOTES
–Sweetened Black Vinegar
For more on this, click here.
Here, in order of appearance, is my interesting find! Beef feet, duck feet (look closely and you’ll see the web!) and chicken feet.
A closer look at the pork feet! At first I thought I made a mistake because the feet looked boney and we’ll have nothing to eat. Turns out it was quite fleshy.
