Spiced Ginger Beer Ham Hocks

Cook Time 2 hours

Servings 4

Ingredients

2 ham hocks (around 800g each)

750ml (3 cups) ginger beer

3 tbsp dark soy sauce

2 × 5cm strips of orange zest, juice of 1 orange

3 tbsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tsp Chinese five spice

Soft bread rolls, butter, mustard pickles or piccalilli, to serve

Method

Place the ham hocks in a stockpot and add the ginger beer, dark soy sauce and orange peel and juice, mustard, vinegar and Chinese five-spice. Top with enough water to just cover the hocks. Bring to the boil, skimming off any impurities that rise to the surface. Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 1 1/2–2 hours until the meat just starts to fall easily away from the bone, but still holds its shape.

Remove the ham hocks from the ginger beer stock and set them aside; reserve the stock. Once the ham hocks are cool enough to handle, carefully remove and discard the skin, leaving the meat and bone intact. Place the ham hocks in a baking dish.

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

To make the glaze, pour two ladlefuls of ginger beer stock into a pan and bring to a boil. Cook until thick, glossy and reduced by half.

Pour 250 ml (1 cup) of the reserved stock around the ham hocks in the dish (this will keep them moist throughout the glazing process). Brush a thick coating of the glaze over the hocks and roast for 45 minutes, basting with the glaze every 20 minutes, until crisp and glistening.

I love to serve these hocks just like Christmas ham, with bread rolls, lashings of butter and mustard pickles or piccalilli.