pigs feet

Tuna Steak Poached In Olive Oil

My friend Peter came over for lunch today. Usually, he is a big fan of down to earth home cooking, never getting enough meatloaf, pasta, potatoes, stews, pigs feet, tripe, and other offal.
However, right now he is on a strict diet, so he asked me to prepare something gluten-free, starch-free and sugar-free. This tuna steak with salad was the result of his request, which made him happy and content (or so he said).
I, on the other hand, feasted on some left-over pork belly with potatoes, which made me happy and content 🙂
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Bon Appétit ! Life is Good !
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1 cup EVO, 2 ea garlic confit, 2 ea scallion, kosher salt and fresh-cracked pepper to taste

5 ea grape tomatoes, 1 ea quintisho chile, 3 slices lemon; simmer slowly on low heat while basting with the oil until tuna is cooked to your preferred temperature; serve with a salad of your choice

Tuna Steak Poached In Olive Oil

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Pig’s Feet Souse ( Love It Or Hate It )

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Pig’s feet are not everybody’s cup of tea, but for those of us who love them, they are a special treat.
I prepare them quite often, in stews, steamed, braised, Asian style, Latin style, German style; any way is fine with me 🙂
The following dish is Caribbean Style Souse, as I enjoyed it many moon’s ago a couple of times in Trinidad, at the home of my friend Lyron’s mother.
Very spicy and lightly acidic, with lots of vegetables, it was the perfect food on a hot day by the beach, spend in wonderful company and washed down with a few bottles of Carib Beer – nothing else was needed in those moments to feel happy and content 🙂
These meals (and times) are now in the distant past; all that’s left are the happy memories, vividly recalled by preparing the meals we enjoyed together then – Lyron and his wife Dorsey, my wife Maria, myself and Lyron’s mother, whose name eludes me after all these years but whom I always remember when preparing this particular souse………….
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Bon Appétit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for more Souse on Chefsopinion
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Click here for Escabeche on ChefsOpinion
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Pig’s Feet Souse

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Preparation :
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: cut 1 large cucumber, 1 bunch chives, 2 large carrots, type and quantity of chilies of your choice, 5 ea red radishes, 1 large onion; make a dressing of 1 cup water, 4 small bay leaves, 1/2 cup white balsamic vinegar, kosher salt, grated ginger, maggi seasoning and garlic paste to taste, mix all except the carrots and bay leaves, set aside

: rinse 4 lbs pigs feet , cut into large pieces, cover with cold water, season with 1 cup white balsamic vinegar (or vinegar of your choice), 2 tplsp garlic paste, kosher salt and hot sauce to taste, simmer until tender but not falling apart, about two hours, add the sliced carrots and bay leaves, let cool to room temperature; drain the broth, add the vegetables with the dressing and serve either cold, at room temperature or hot; serves 4

: Pig’s Feet Souse

: Pig’s Feet Souse

: Pig’s Feet Souse

: Pig’s Feet Souse

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Crispy Pata

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This super tasty and crispy dish is one of my all-time favorite Pinoy dishes. Usually it is made with a whole pork leg, but I also like it just the way I was introduced to it many years ago while living in the Philippines, with the cheapest cut of the leg, the feet.
The first time I had this dish was in Manila, when the maid I employed offered to share some of the food she cooked for herself and her husband that day. She was a bit shy to offer, since she thought the food might not be good enough for me, what with all the bones and stuff. She also used only the Feet, since she could not afford to buy the whole pork leg. I remember how happy and proud she was when I loved her cooking. After that, I had her cook for me this and other local specialties often, which we usually shared on the rooftop terrace which was a big deal for her and her husband. (This was in the early 80’s – a maid used to make $20-$30 a month, even less in the countryside. My maid’s husband was the caretaker at our apartment-building of 6 apartments, he made about the same salary. But, to their luck, they were allowed to sleep under the staircase on the ground floor, which they closed off with cardboard and a curtain and therefore considered them self fairly safe, comfortable and overall lucky with their living accommodations.)
Thankfully, times have changed, but there is still way too much poverty around the world and too many people must endure this kind of poverty or, sadly, worse 😦
But thinking about food should be a happy occasion, so back to the present and our Crispy Pata. While it is easy to prepare, you might want to do the frying outside if you can (think deep-fried turkey) In any case,be extremely careful when frying the feet or the whole leg in deep fat, because the moist meat tend’s to splatter a lot. A covered fryer will give some protection but still – use the utmost care !!!
Serve with atchara or avocado.
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Bon Appetit ! Kainan na !
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Click here for Atchara
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More Crispy Pata on ChefsOpinion
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More Pigs Feet on ChefsOpinion
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P.S.
Don’t even think about discarding the pork stock! It will make a very flavorful soup, as you can see below.
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Crispy Pata

Pork Soup With Pasta, Corn And Egg

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Preparation :
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: pigs feet

: score the skin

: simmer the feet with kosher salt, chili flakes, a dash of lime juice and lots of garlic paste

: meanwhile, mix chopped chilies, garlic paste, chopped onions and chopped cilantro with kosher salt and white vinegar

: chili-vinegar dipping sauce

: chili-vinegar dipping sauce

: skim the scum and most of the fat during simmering

: strain the stock, check / adjust the seasoning, add pasta, kernel corn, scallions and egg yolk to serve as an appetizer to the crispy pata

: when the feet are very ! tender but NOT falling apart, remove the feet from the stock, let dry for at least one hour

: fry in 375F oil until the skin is very crisp and the meat is still moist and juicy

: serve with atchara or avocado

: douse liberally with the chili-vinegar sauce

: Crispy Pata

: Crispy Pata

: Pork Soup With Pasta, Corn And Egg

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Executioners Stew

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Of course you will wonder what possessed me to name this stew Executioners Stew – well, my thinking goes that if I would have one last meal before the executioner would step in, this would be the last supper I would request. While there are many things I would like to have for that macabre occasion, this one combines five of my favorite foods in one single dish :
Soup, chili-peppers, chicken-gizzards, pigs-feet and ox-tripe.
Certainly not worth dying for, but as a last supper – yes sir, please !
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Anyway, here is to many more years of living the Good Life 🙂
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Link to Green Sofrito Recipe
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All about Sofrito
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Link to Pa Amb TomÃ Quet (Tomato Bread)
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Executioners Stew With “Pa Amb TomÃ Quet”

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Preparation :
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: add the pigs feet to cold water, bring to a boil

: strain the pigs feet, rinse

: add the o-tripe to cold, vinegared water, bring to a boil, strain, rinse, repeat two more times, third time cook until tender

: a thing of beauty

: add pigs-feet to cold, salted water, bring to a simmer, cook until tender but not falling apart

: during simmering, remove all impurities that rise to the surface with a small mesh-strainer

: when pigs-feet are almost tender, add chicken gizzards, simmer until gizzards are tender but still possess a bit of a bite

: add green sofrito, cayenne pepper, garlic paste

: add chillies, carrot julienne, white cabbage and chorizo, simmer for three more minutes

: add diced tomatoes, sliced cooke potatoes, cooked white beans and plenty of chopped cilantro

: check / adjust seasoning

: Executioners Stew With “Pa Amb TomÃ Quet”

: Executioners Stew With “Pa Amb TomÃ Quet”

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Pied De Cochon

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ANYTHING sounds better in french ?! 🙂
I used to call my wife “Mon Petit Chou”, which sounds perfectly sweet and romantic in french. Translated, it’s “My Little Cabbage” :-(. Not as sweet and romantic, no doubt.
Same with my dinner today : “Pied De Cochon – which translates into “Pig’s Trotters”, one of my all time favorite second cuts.
Pigs trotters are very versatile, they are great fried, steamed, braised, and pickled.
The following dish was created today in my kitchen and, I must say, it was absolutely delicious (and pretty to look at, to boost).
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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More “Pig’s Goodies” on ChefsOpinion
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Wiki on Pigs Trotters
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More about Pigs Trotters
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Pied De Cochon

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Preparation :
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: poach pigs feet in salted water, drain, rinse, cover with salted water, simmer until very tender but NOT falling apart (about two hours)

: meanwhile, blanch baby bok choy

: shock in ice water

: drain

: after 1 1/2 hours, add kosher salt, chili paste, garlic paste, grated ginger, sliced onions to the soup

: after 2 hours, add fresh shiitake mushrooms

: also add blanched, rinsed sliced rice cakes and blanched, sliced lotus roots

: simmer slowly until pigs feed are done,, check / adjust seasoning

: add bok choy and chili paste (optional) to serving plate

: add pigs feet, rice cake and lotus roots

: ladle soup over all ingredients

: Pied De Cochon

: Pied De Cochon

: Pied De Cochon

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Pigs Trotter In Fermented Bean Sauce

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Pig’s Feet. Patitas. Manos de cerdo.
Pigs Trotters. Schweine fuesse.
Prepared in a stew, pickled, boiled, in a aspic, hot, cold.
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You name it, I love it. On the weekend I have increased my repertoire by yet another version, this one being my new favorite. The preparation is minimal and the final outcome is easily controlled by your final adjustment (or lack thereof) of seasoning. Blanch trotters in salted water. In a good sized pot, add the trotters, water, soy sauce, sriracha, oyster sauce, fermented black bean sauce and sesame oil, diced chilis, diced onions. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and cook until trotters are very soft but not falling apart. Remove trotters. The cooking liquid should have reduced and slightly thickened. If still too liquid, reduce further until desired texture is achieved. Strain. Add some more diced chilis for color and simmer for two minutes. Adjust seasoning to your liking. Return trotters to sauce and reheat. To serve, sprinkle with sliced scallions.
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