I suspect that some are daunted by the sight of a gammon or bacon hock but have no fear. Cooking-wise you really would be hard pushed to go wrong, it’s a case of overnight soaking in cold water followed by a change of water and a slow poaching (2 - 2 ½ hours) to render it tender and easy to shred from the bone.
I confess to thinking comforting soup and pulses when gammon hock comes up but it does lend itself well to picnic food and salads. This dish should convince you of its summer credentials.
Ingredients - serves 4
1 gammon hock/knuckle
200g fine beans, trimmed
100g young broad beans (podded weight)
1 shallot, very finely chopped
1 tbsp small capers, drained
1 tbsp chopped chervil
salt, pepper
mixed salad leaves |
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for the salad dressing:
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp sunflower oil
1 clove garlic, crushed |
Method
1 Soak the hock overnight in cold water, drain and transfer to a saucepan. Cover with water and bring to the boil, removing any scum that rises to the surface with a spoon. Making sure that the hock/knuckle remains covered throughout cooking, lower to a bare simmer for 2 - 2 ½ hours until the meat is tender. Turn off and allow to cool in the cooking liquid.
2 Place all the dressing ingredients in a screw-top jar and shake to an emulsion. Stand at room temperature while the meat cools giving the garlic time to infuse the dressing. Once cooled, pull away the meat and cut into chunks or shred with a fork, set aside.
3 Cook the broad and fine beans together in boiling salted water for 3-5 minutes to barely cooked, drain and cool. Toss beans, shredded meat, shallot, chervil and capers together with some seasoning and a little of the dressing. Finally, fold into mixed salad leaves and serve immediately with crusty French stick |
