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A great alternative to cooking a whole ham, these ham hocks are fab as part of a Boxing Day cold spread, along with my Christmas Slaw and a potato side.
Plus of course the obligatory pickles and cheese! They can be cooked up to 3 days in advance and so won’t interfere with all your other Christmas prep.
The Ham Hocks do need to be soaked to remove the saltiness & take nearly 4 hours in the oven so you need to be semi organised but otherwise this recipe requires minimal effort.
The hams steam cook for 3 hours under foil with bay, star anise & the clementines, so your kitchen will smell amazing! They’re then finished off uncovered with the pomegranate glaze.
INGREDIENTS
for 4-6
- 2 Ham Hocks, rind removed
- 1 tsp All Spice
- 4 clementines halved
- 6 star anise
- 4 bay leaves
- 4 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
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Remove the rind if it hasn’t already been done for you. Place the Ham Hocks in a large pan or bowl & cover with water. Leave overnight.
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Remove the ham hocks and dry with kitchen towel. Place them in a roasting tray and sprinkle with the All Spice, salt and pepper.
Surround the hams with the clementines, bay and star anise.
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Pour in 200ml water, cover tightly with foil and put in an oven at 160 degrees for 3 hours.
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Combine the sugar & molasses in a pan & warm until the sugar melts.
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Remove the tray from the oven. Squeeze the juices from the clementines into the pan with the sugar & molasses. Combine to make a glaze.
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Turn the oven up to 180. Pour the water out of the tray. Spoon half the glaze over the ham hocks & return to the oven for 30 mins uncovered. Half way through turn the hams and spoon over the remaining glaze.