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Pork hock stewed in balsamic-pineapple sauce

Pork hock stewed in balsamic-pineapple sauce

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Inspired by the Filipino paksiw na pata, this sweet and sour pork hock stew is fruity and spicy with the addition of pineapples, ginger and chilies.
Note that the cooking time depends a lot on the age of the hog from which the hock was taken. The younger the animal, the shorter the cooking time.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Accidental
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 4 people
Author Connie Veneracion

Ingredients

  • 1 pork hock cut into one-inch slices (or about 1.2 kilos of pork chops or pork steaks)
  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • 6 cloves garlic peeled and lightly pounded
  • 1 two-inch knob ginger peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 onion peeled and thinly sliced
  • 3 cups unsweetened pineapple juice
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • 2 bird's eye chilies chopped
  • 2 pairs kaffir lime leaves thinly sliced
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
  • fish sauce or salt, to taste
  • 3 cups unsweetened pineapple juice
  • 2 cups pineapple chunks
  • ¼ cup pickle slices

Instructions

  • Pat the pork hock slices dry with paper towels.
  • Heat the cooking oil in a wide, flat-bottomed pan. Swirl to coat the entire bottom.
  • Brown the pork on both sides, in batches if necessary.
  • Scoop out the pork and move to a plate.
  • In the remaining oil, saute the garlic, ginger and onion. Pour in about a quarter cup of pineapple juice to deglaze. Scrape off any browned bits stuck on the bottom of the pan to get all the flavor into the sauce that you're building.
  • Stir in the brown sugar, chopped chilies, kaffir lime leaves and paprika.
  • Add the pork back into the pan.
  • Pour in the balsamic vinegar, a tablespoon of fish sauce and the rest of of the pineapple juice.
  • Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for an hour or until the pork is tender and the sauce has thickened and reduced to about a cup. Taste the sauce occasionally during cooking and add more fish sauce, as needed.
  • Scoop out the pork and arrange on a platter or shallow bowl.
  • Add the pickle slices and pineapple chunks to the sauce and boil for about a minute.
  • Ladle the sauce, with pineapple chunks and pickle slices, over the pork.
  • Optionally, garnish the pork stew with balsamic-pineapple sauce with more thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves (scallions will do too) before serving.