Saucy and sticky, packed with collagen and all the good flavors of soy sauce, ginger, and spices! Whether you call it pig or pork, or use the front hands or back feet (trotters), this is a tasty braised dish best paired with a big bowl of rice. Enjoy this Braised Pigs Trotters recipe!
Braised pigs trotters (or braised pork trotter!) is a dish we grew up eating at grandma's house. We'd have dinner there every Saturday and this dish would make a frequent appearance.
It's a braised dish, a real labor of love, time and effort! It would take my grandma all day to prepare (and only now do I realize just how lucky we were).
After my grandma got older and stopped cooking, we just stoped eating this dish unless it was ordered from a restaurant.
But thanks to the Instant Pot we can now make this dish in two hours or less.
Whether you call it braised pigs trotters or braised pork trotter or braised pork feet, it's all references the same delicious dish. I made several versions of this dish and we loved the one adapted from the recipe by Omnivore's Cookbook - she really captured the flavors well.
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Ingredients
Here's what you'll need:
- Pig trotters/feet (or hands), cross-cut into 2-inch pieces
- Ginger, thinly sliced
- Shaoxing wine
- Light soy sauce
- Dark soy sauce
- Green onions
- Salt
- Rock sugar
- Dried chili peppers
- Star anise
- Cloves
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Let's get cooking!
Blanch the pig trotters.
Put the pig trotters and half of the ginger slices in a big pot. Add enough water to just cover the trotters. Place the lid on the pot and bring to a boil.
Once boiling, cook for another 5 minutes. Then turn off the heat and discard the liquid and ginger.
Cook in the Instant Pot.
Use tongs to move the pig trotters to the Instant Pot. Add 4 cups of water. Close and cook on High Pressure for 8 minutes. Let natural release for 10 minutes.
Braise over the stove.
Move the pork and the broth back to the original pot. Add Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, green onions, salt, Chinese chili peppers, star anise, and cloves. Stir to gently mix.
Put the lid on the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat to low. Remove the lid and cook for 30 minutes.
Cook down the sauce.
Then use tongs to remove the pig trotters to a plate/bowl. Remove all the aromatics from the liquid. Turn the heat to high and cook the liquid until it becomes thick and saucy.
Mix and eat.
Turn off the heat. Add the pig trotters back into the pot. Gently mix till the pig trotters are evenly coated in the sauce.
Carefully pour onto a serving dish/plate. Eat hot with a big bowl of rice and enjoy!
Equipment
We use an Instant Pot!
You can technically make this recipe without an Instant Pot (see instructions in the FAQ below), but using an Instant Pot will make the cooking process much faster.
Storage
The prepared dish will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Make sure to store in a sealed container. Reheat in the microwave in 30 second increments (be careful of splattering).
Or you can also reheat in a small pot over the stove. Add a little bit of water and reheat on medium heat.
Top Tip
Make a big batch! This dish freezes very well. Portion it out into individual servings, pack it well (either in containers or a zip top bag) and freeze. It'll keep for up to 2 months in the freezer.
For last minute meals, just reheat (microwave or stovetop) and eat with rice.
FAQ
No problem. Just make this dish in a big pot on the stove. Here's how:
At the end of Step 1 in the recipe below, discard the blanching water but keep the pig trotters in the pot.
Add 4 cups of fresh water to the pot along with all the other ingredients (Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, green onions, salt, Chinese chili peppers, star anise, and cloves).
Bring to a boil, then place the lid on the pot and simmer for about 2 hours. Stir the mixture every 20-30 minutes, and add more water if needed.
When the trotters are tender enough (do a taste test), turn the heat back up to high and cook down the liquid till it becomes a nice, thick and sticky sauce that coats the trotters. Enjoy!
Well you definitely need a big bowl of rice. That is a must.
And because this is a richer, slightly heavier dish, I love it paired with a simple and light vegetable side dish like Garlic and Fish Sauce Ong Choy (aka Chinese water spinach), Stir Fried Lettuce, Korean Bean Sprouts, Wood Ear Mushroom Salad, or Bean Sprouts Stir Fry.
Good question! Yes. Pig trotters are the same as pig feet.
When a recipe specifies pig hands, they want you to use the front two feet of the pig (which are technically the hands).
When a recipe says pig trotters or pig feet, you can use the front two feet or the back two feet.
Pigs Trotters Recipe
Pigs Trotters Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 pounds pig trotters/feet, cross-cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 3-inch knob ginger, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup Shaoxing wine
- 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 3 stalks green onions, cut into 3-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 piece rock sugar
- 8 whole dried chili peppers
- 3 whole star anise
- 8 whole cloves
Instructions
- Put the pig trotters and half of the ginger slices in a big pot. Add enough water to just cover the trotters. Place the lid on the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cook for another 5 minutes. Then turn off the heat and discard the liquid and ginger.
- Use tongs to move the pig trotters to the Instant Pot. Add 4 cups of water. Close and cook on High Pressure for 8 minutes. Let natural release for 10 minutes.
- Move the pork and the broth back to the original pot. Add Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, green onions, salt, Chinese chili peppers, star anise, and cloves. Stir to gently mix. Put the lid on the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat to low. Remove the lid and cook for 30 minutes.
- Then use tongs to remove the pig trotters to a plate/bowl. Remove all the aromatics from the liquid. Turn the heat to high and cook the liquid until it becomes thick and saucy.
- Turn off the heat. Add the pig trotters back into the pot. Gently mix till the pig trotters are evenly coated in the sauce. Pour onto a serving plate. Eat hot with a big bowl of rice and enjoy!
Notes
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Great recipe! just what I've been looking for. Real ONO!
Thanks for including how to prepare without an insta pot.
Question: How much is "1 piece rock sugar" ?
That would take the guesswork out for me.
Mahalo!
Hello. Thanks for the recipe. Why would we use only 1/2 of the ginger?