Soy-Braised Pork Trotter (Jokbal)
Blanch a cleaned front trotter, then simmer it slowly with soy sauce, doenjang, aromatics and spices.
- Prep
- 22 min
- Cook
- 145 min
Scale the recipe
Ingredients
- Cleaned front pork trotter Weight of uncured raw front trotter with bones and skin, hair and hoof removed
- 1,500 g
- Onion
- 140 g
- Apple Cored
- 120 g
- Large green onion (daepa)
- 60 g
- Whole garlic cloves
- 7 cloves
- Ginger Peeled
- 15 g
Seasonings
- Water for the braise
- 12 C
- Korean all-purpose soy sauce (jinganjang)
- 2/3 C
- Korean fermented soybean paste (doenjang)
- 2 T
- Light brown sugar
- 35 g
- Korean rice syrup (jocheong)
- 4 T
- Whole peppercorns
- 1/3 T
- Cinnamon
- 3 g
Level measures: 1 T (tablespoon) = 15 mL, 1 C (paper cup) = 180 mL. Household spoons and cups can vary in size.
Method
-
Prepare the trotter
Use a cleaned front trotter 1,500 g with the hoof and coarse hair removed. Wipe any specks from the skin or cut bone with damp paper towel. Wash everything that touched raw pork.
-
Blanch the trotter
Bring enough separate water to cover the trotter to a boil in a deep pot. Lower it in with tongs and blanch about 8 minutes once the water boils again.
-
Discard the blanching water
Move the trotter to a clean tray. Discard the water and wash the foam off the pot. Wipe away visible debris with paper towel.
-
Prepare aromatics and spices
Roughly cut the onion 140 g and cored apple 120 g. Cut the green onion 60 g into 4–5 cm lengths and thinly slice the peeled ginger 15 g. Put them in a stock bag with garlic 7 cloves, peppercorns 1/3 T and cinnamon 3 g.
-
Mix the braising broth
Put the braising water 12 C, all-purpose soy sauce 2/3 C, doenjang 2 T, light brown sugar 35 g and rice syrup 4 T in the pot. Stir until the color is even and no lumps of paste remain.
-
Add the trotter and stock bag
Once the broth boils, add the blanched trotter and stock bag. Leave room above the liquid and position the trotter so it does not wedge on the bottom.
-
Cover and simmer
When the broth returns to a boil, cover and maintain a steady simmer over medium heat. Turn the trotter with tongs after about 60 minutes and cook another 50–60 minutes. Add a little hot water if the bottom begins to dry.
-
Check temperature and tenderness
Check the thickest part without touching the bone. Hold the center at 75°C or above for 1 minute. If it is still tough, cook longer until a chopstick enters easily and the meat loosens around the joint.
-
Baste with the broth
Remove the stock bag and uncover. Cook about 10 minutes more, spooning brown broth over the skin. Turn off the heat when the skin shines.
-
Let the trotter cool slightly
Place on a clean tray and cool for about 10–15 minutes. Do not use utensils that touched raw pork on the cooked trotter.
-
Remove the bone and slice
Separate the meat and skin along the bone. Slice the meat with the skin on into about 7–10 mm thick slices and plate. Transfer leftover pork to shallow containers and refrigerate immediately.
