This method for braising pig trotters is incredibly simple, fragrant yet not greasy, and you can become a chef at home.
Hello everyone, I'm Qiang, who loves to cook. Follow Qiang, and you'll get different home-style recipes every day for your reference.
Many people love to eat braised pig feet, and I really love them. Braised pig feet are rich in collagen, have a fragrant and tender texture, and the more you eat, the better they taste. Plus, you don't have to worry about eating too much and gaining weight. However, the shortcoming of braised pig feet is that there is not much meat and a lot of bones, and the price is not cheap, usually around 20-30 RMB if you buy it outside.
Braised Pig Feet
Ingredients
Pig trotters, sugar, star anise, cinnamon stick, fennel seeds, cardamom, Szechuan peppercorns, Baihu (white melon seeds), salt, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce
Instructions
1. First, let's prepare two pig trotters. Fresh pig trotters taste better. Put the pig trotters on the stove and cook over the fire to remove the surface fur and eliminate the odor of the pig trotters. Continue cooking until the surface is golden brown, then put them in water and scrape off the dark-colored skin with a knife.
2. Put the pig trotters in cold water, add chopped green onions and ginger slices, add a little cooking wine to remove the fishy smell, open the fire and boil for 5 minutes.
3. Start a fire and heat up some oil. After the oil is hot, add sugar and slowly stir-fry until it caramelizes into a reddish-brown color. This step is called 'caramelizing sugar'.
4. After the sugar is caramelized, add a pot of boiling water, then add star anise, cinnamon stick, fennel seeds, Szechuan peppercorns, Baihu (white melon seeds), one spoonful of salt, three spoonfuls of light soy sauce, and half a spoonful of dark soy sauce.
5. Then put in the pig trotters. When the water in the pot boils, reduce the heat and cook for about 2 hours, or 40 minutes in a pressure cooker. When the time is up, turn off the heat and let it sit for a few minutes. Open the lid and the aroma will be amazing! This delicious and tender braised pig foot is ready!
How about it? It might be a little light the first few times you make it, which is normal. The more you make it, the deeper the color will become, just add more caramel color and dark soy sauce.
Cooking Tips
1. Braised pig feet are a typical traditional Chinese preserved meat product. Pig trotters are rich in nutrients and contain a variety of collagen. Eating them regularly is beneficial for beautifying and anti-aging. Adding to their excellent taste and unique flavor, they are loved by everyone. The protein in pig trotters hydrolyzes to produce cysteine, arginine, and 11 other amino acids, which are similar to those in tiger bone.
2. Pig trotters are best bought as front trotters, which have more meat and are better for braising. When selecting pig trotters, be sure to choose clean, few-haired ones, which will make processing easier.
3. When braising pig trotters for the first few times, you can prepare several pieces of pig skin and put them in the pot at the same time. Don't remove the pig skin, let it be fully braised, so that the braised pig foot looks shiny and oily, and tastes better.
Thank you for supporting Qiang, who loves to cook! I update a different home-style recipe every day, if you like cooking, don't forget to follow me, thank you everyone for watching!
