Winter is here in Brisbane, so warming stews are in season, or maybe you are just looking for one of the best bowls of comfort food going! Either way, I'm all about this delicious bowl of warming ham hock stew, and you should too 😉
sponsored by Laithwaites Wines
Why I Love This Recipe
- comforting
- easy to make
- reminds me of home
- hearty & heartwarming
- feeds a crowd
These are just a few reasons why I LOVE this dish! Ham hocks are often something people shy away from as they require a little bit of work to cook and remove from the bone but TRUST ME when I say they are totally worth the effort. Sitting with some crusty bread to dunk into this bowl of goodness, sipping a glass of wine - I can't think of anything better!
Wine Pairing
For this cracking bowl of hearty ham hock stew, I've gone with a Chardy! You may think it odd that I'm talking about it being winter and mentioning comfort food and curling up on the couch in front of the fire, or if you are Mrs AnotherFoodBlogger, then it's a blanket, 3 layers of clothes and the fire on too! But, just like a nice glass of red in summer, I can't not enjoy a good glass of Chardy in winter too!
The Scarpantoni Chardy is one I picked up from my good friends over at Laithwaites here in Australia. This cracking little white from Mclaren Vale is exactly what I needed when I made this ham hock stew. I was looking for something light but with a bit of body to hold up the smokey undertones from the smoked ham hocks. Scarpantoni & Laithwaites hit the nail on the head!
It's crisp, clean and super easy to drink. Notes of melon, peaches & lychees come through and let's just say a 2nd bottle may have been opened 😉
Alternative Stews
Right - you have made this delicious ham hock stew and are craving more comfort food, don't stress cause below are a few of my favourite bowls of stew to curl up with!
Happy Cooking & Happy Eating Friends!
Ingredients
- 2 kg ham hocks
- 1 can cannellini beans
- ½ brown onion diced
- 2 bunches dutch carrots roughly chopped
- 1 stick celery diced
- ½ cup peas
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- ¼ tsp chilli flakes
Other
- parsley for garnish
- crusty bread
- 10 peppercorns
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ brown onion
- 1 carrot
Essential Tools
- Chef Knives
- Chopping board
- measuring/weighing utensils
- large saucepan
- Large casserole dish
- sieve
Instructions
Ham Hock
- Place the ham hock, peppercorns, bay leaf, ½ onion & 1 chopped carrot into a large pot and cover with water
- Simmer for approx. 90 minutes or until the ham is falling from the bone
- Remove ham and shred off the bone
- With the ham water aka ham stock, skim off the fat and strain through a sieve keeping reserved stock for later
Stew
- In a large casserole dish- fry onion, garlic, celery & chilli flakes on medium-high heat for approx. 4mins
- Add 3 cups of reserved stock, beans, ham & carrots. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10mins
- Add peas and cook for a further minute
- Top with chopped parsley and serve with crusty bread
Notes
Tips/Tricks
- the ham will be hot when shredding, so I wore gloves and put food-safe gloves over to handle the ham. Alternatively, wait to cool before handling
- skim some of the fat off during the cooking process to speed things up a little
- you can reduce the stock/sauce more if you want a thicker stew, but I like a little extra crusty bread to dip in!
- you can make this in advance and reheat it before serving
- ham stew will freeze just fine – don’t add the peas or parsley in until just before serving
smoked ham hocks - so much nicer than raw ones :=)
this does look very hearty and warming on a cool brissie night! 'Twill be 8C tonight - brrr. I used to make pea and ham soup with smoked ham hocks but one day i accidentally bought an uncooked one. Oh my - what a fatty horrid mess it made - eek.