How to Cook a Pork Knuckle with Crispy Skin: Methods and a Recipe
Culinary site Serious Eats explains how to get crisp skin and tender meat from the lower part of a pig's leg. A honey and cola glaze recipe is also included.
The pork knuckle, the lower part of a pig's leg corresponding to the ankle or calf area, can be cooked so that the skin turns crisp while the meat becomes tender enough to fall off the bone. According to the culinary outlet Serious Eats, the result depends on the cooking method and the accompaniments chosen. The material belongs to a section of recipes and cooking tips.
Why the cut is special
This part of the leg has little fat, but the meat becomes very soft because collagen breaks down during cooking. The whole piece is covered in skin, and the more skin there is, the better the result, the source says. When cooked, the skin puffs into bubbles and releases rich, fatty pork juices, while the muscle fibres held together by collagen separate easily with a fork.
Cooking methods
The most effective way to make the skin blister is to cook the whole piece in a large amount of oil, or deep-fry it. The leg is first simmered, which also yields pork stock. It is then fried in a wok, where the skin gets even heat and quickly turns crisp.
Alternatives are the oven grill setting or an outdoor grill. Neither makes the skin as crisp as oil frying, but the result is still described as tasty.
German and some Chinese restaurant chefs often call the cut "pork knuckle".
Accompaniments
A suggested side is cabbage sautéed in a pan with a little balsamic vinegar. It is spread on the bottom of the pan, where it caramelises and absorbs the rendered fat. The soft cabbage can also be used as a blanket over exposed areas of meat to keep them from drying out. A simple mustard sauce works as a dip.
Recipe with a Cherry Coke glaze
You need one country-style pork leg (4.5–6.8 kg), pre-soaked, plus one litre of Cherry Coke or Dr. Pepper, half a cup of honey, half a cup of brown sugar, a teaspoon of ground black pepper, and a quarter teaspoon each of ground cloves and cinnamon.
Heat the oven to 120 °C. Place the leg on a rack, fat side up, pour two cups of water and two cups of cola into the bottom of the roasting pan, and seal tightly with foil. Cook until the centre of the meat reaches 52 °C, about 3–4 hours. Simmer the remaining cola with the honey, sugar and spices for about 15 minutes until it becomes a thick syrup.
Score the fat in a diamond pattern about 2.5 cm apart and brush with a third of the glaze. Raise the oven to 200 °C and cook for 5 minutes, then add another third and cook for 10 minutes. Finally brush with the remaining glaze, cover with foil and rest for 30 minutes.
