OK, here's my funny story re: cooking today. I have ham hocks! Super cheap at the store

B

barb_b

Well-known member
My previous experience using them resulted in an extra, extra salty soup. I was very disapointed and it completely ruined my soup. So, this time, I asked my FIL for his thoughts, as he is a ham hock eater. He suggested coooking them low and slow w/ a few hungarian spices and then add them to the soup.

I followed his advice, thinking that the ham hocks would kind of shred like ham or bacon, etc.

Anyway, I had my beans going, (soaked, then seasoned, added home made stock, etc) then went to add the ham "shreds" and have subsequently learned, it is just fat!!!

Now I know why FIL enjoys them. I can picture him eating them congealed w/ bread.

So, needless to say, I did not add the hocks, and now have a bunch of cooked ham hocks and the cooresponding broth, which I have not used.

Learn something new everyday! What to do?

 
I use ham hocks all the time and I haven't ever had that problem

with the salt but I go about my beans very differently than you. My favorite beans are pinto and I soak over night like you but I just add the beans and hocks, fill with cold water and add large diced onion and lots of chopped garlic and black pepper. No salt until the beans are completely cooked. Many, many years ago my friend who was married to a Mexican told me to add brown sugar. Not a lot, maybe a 1/4 cup to a very large pot but it really add a great flavor to the soup. I cook them all day on a low simmer and then add salt and pepper at the end to taste. I break up the ham hock at the end and pull out the small chunks of meat. I don't use them for the meat though, just the flavor.

 
I think what your method accomplishes is the transfer of salt from the hocks...

...to the beans, and the beans slowly absorb the seasoning, which tends to lessen the amount of salt present in the liquid.

This is a good thing in my book. Beans will absorb a great deal of salt and taste just fine in the end. But if all the salt is concentrated in the stock, it will be salty.

I like the advice given by Rick Bayless. He sorts, rinses and then cooks the beans without soaking. I've done this and don't have any problems getting great results. The key is, once the beans come up to a simmer, reduce the heat to super-low so the liquid just barely bubbles. A very, very slow simmer is what you are after.

The beans come out perfectly cooked, not excessively broken or burst, and the liquid is delicious.

I just did a batch with 2 pounds of dry pintos, a big sprig of fresh epazote and 4 tablespoons of homemade pork lard. Oh, so good!

Michael

 
I don't always soak them either in fact I didn't just a couple of

weeks ago when I made them. If I have had the beans on my shelf for a long time then I do but if I use a new bag from the store then I don't. I read one time that the older the beans are the longer they take. I think that might be true. When we were in Saudi I soaked the beans over night and then cooked them (just like you) all day and hoped they would be done in time for dinner. Sometimes they weren't and would have to have more cooking the next day. I'm pretty sure that they had been in warehouses for a very long time. Life is so much easier here....

 
Oh, Lord. This is like my father-in-law. And aunt-in-law. They eat it on bread, too. smileys/wink.gif

FOR BREAKFAST.

I always want to ask, "So...do you have a will written yet?"

 
If you pull the hocks apart you can find some scraps of meat to chop and add to the soup.

Or, you now have the base for a big pot of collard greens.

 
I had that heart-stopping moment...do I click the link or not...turns out it was ok smileys/smile.gif

 
I think of it like how salt is to everything and sugar is to tomato

based recipes or even Worcestershire/soy. It enhances the flavors some how. All I know is it's important

 
I was just thinking: There are ham *hocks* and ham *shanks* and. . .

ham hocks around here tend to be less meaty than the ham shanks.

I use the less meaty ones; they are cheaper and still lend a good flavor to the beans. If I want meaty beans, I will look for some ham shanks or will throw some ham in the pot along with the hocks.

 
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