Smoked Ham Hock Terrine

Difficulty:
1/5

Yield:  8 servings

Preparation time is 1 ½ hours, chilling time is 4 hours

Ingredients

  • 2 pieces of smoked ham hock (about 4 pounds, 2 kilograms)
  • 1 2-inch size piece of peeled ginger
  • 1 6 cloves of garlic
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 4 pieces star anise
  • 1 bay leaf
  • a few pieces of orange rind
  • 1 cup brown sugar (200 grams)
  • 1 cup soya sauce (250 millilitres)
  • 2 cups mirin wine (250 millilitres)
  • ¼ cup sherry vinegar (60 millilitres)
  • 5 sheets of gelatine
  • 1 cup pearl onions
  • 1 Granny Smith apple
  • 1 jalapeno chilli diced & seeded
  • a few drops champagne vinegar

Directions

  1. In a large non-reactive pot, put the ham hocks into enough cold water to cover. Bring the pan to a simmer over a medium heat and skim off any impurities that rise to surface. Cook the ham hock for ½ an hour, then add the ginger garlic, soya, mirin, sherry vinegar, cinnamon stick, star anise, brown sugar, bay leaf, orange peel and cook for a further 2 hours or until meat is tender. Remove the pan from the heat and set it aside.
  2. Remove the meat from the cooking liquid and then strain it. Transfer 2 cups of the strained broth into a small pot. Add the gelatine sheets and stir over a low heat until the gelatine dissolves. Once dissolved, remove the pan from the heat.
  3. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pearl onions for 2 minutes. Drain them, peel and cut in halves. Set aside
  4. Dice the apple and sauté it with the jalapeno in a small frying pan with butter until the mixture begins to caramelize, about 7 minutes. Add a few drops of champagne vinegar and set aside.
  5. Remove the tough skin from the ham hocks and discard it. Dice the meats and combine them with the apple mixture and the onions. Season the meat.
  6. Line a terrine mold with plastic wrap, put the meat mixture into the terrine, pressing it down. Then pour over the reserved gelatine broth and tap the terrine against a hard surface a few times to get rid of any air pockets. Put the terrine in the fridge and refrigerate it for at least 4 hours before serving. Serve with sauce Gribiche.