Pork Knuckle

 

Ingredients

  • 4 fresh pork knuckles
  • 500ml chicken stock
  • 250ml dark beer or stout
  • 2 onions, cut into wedges
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1tsp tomato paste
  • 1 twig fresh thyme
  • 3 fresh sage leaves
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp ground pepper
  • 1 tsp fresh marjoram (oregano is a close substitute)
  • 1 tsp fresh rosemary
  • 1 Tbls rice bran oil, for searing
  • 1 tsp corn starch
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

 

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 170°C.
  1. Wash knuckles under cold running water and dry with paper towels.
  1. Make a spice mix by grinding salt, pepper, marjoram and rosemary in a pestle and mortar.
  1. Rub knuckles thoroughly with spice mix.
  1. Sear knuckles in a roasting tray. Take out of tray and set aside.
  1. Roast onions and garlic in same tray until golden brown, add tomato paste and stir to dissolve.
  1. Add beer, stock, sage, thyme and stir to combine. Return knuckles to the tray, meat-side down.
  1. Roast for 2.5 hours, constantly basting knuckles with roasting liquid from pan.
  1. Raise oven temperature to 220°C for the last 15 minutes, to crisp knuckle skin. 
  1. Take knuckles out of tray and rest for 10 minutes.

 

Beer sauce

  • To make beer sauce, strain liquid from tray into a small pot, bring to boil.
  • Thicken with corn starch.
  • Season with salt and pepper.

 

To serve

Serve knuckles with beer sauce, sauerkraut and mashed potato.