Ham hock stew

Approx. Cost: £3

Preparation: 10 mins

Cooking Time: 2 ½ Hours

Serves: 2

Ham hocks are really cheap at around £1.50 each, but may require a trip to the butcher as you probably won’t find them in the supermarket! By cooking the meat this way the end result is tender meat that falls from the bone.

Recipe:

1 x Ham hock, soaked in cold water overnight.
1 x Baking potato, peeled and cut into 8 pieces
1 x Large carrot, sliced into ½ cm thick slices
1 x Leek, washed and sliced as above
1 x Large onion, peeled and cut into 8 wedges
Large Handful of Frozen Peas
Chopped Parsley
Black Pepper

Method
1. Place the ham hock in a large saucepan and cover with water, bring to the boil, cook for 10 minutes and remove the ham. Discard the water, clean the pan, then place the ham back in the pan with enough water to cover.

2. Add the potato, carrot, leek and onion. Simmer on a gentle heat for 2 ½ hours or until the meat is falling from the bone.

3. Turn off the heat to the pan. Remove the ham carefully from the hot stock and put to one side. Add the peas and parsley to the stock.

4. Pick all the meat from the bones and add to the stock and vegetables. Add black pepper to taste (No salt as the stock will be salty enough from the ham!) and serve with chunks of bread!