We all know ham hocks are Heaven’s gift to any BEAN recipe. But is there anything else you can use them for?

Turns out, they do have lots of uses and truly deserve greater consideration! Take a look at this list to see if there’s an idea here you weren’t aware of:

1. Split pea soup is always a perfect way to put ham hocks to use.
2. And lentil soups do extremely well with ham hock, also.
3. Consider your ham hock as part of a chicken carcass and boil it altogether for an intensely flavored stock.
4. Stew them with cabbage or sauerkraut and in the last hour of cooking, throw in some cubed potatoes or rice and a handful of fresh spinach that’s been sliced into very narrow strips (also known as a chiffonade…see information below).
5. Recipes from the American South make frequent use of ham hocks, including flavoring the braising liquid for greens (especially good for collards, kale, turnip greens, mustard greens, et. al.). Onion and some form of hot pepper are common to these recipes as well.




6. And speaking of cooking vegetables in ham hock liquid: The flavor from cured meats is water-soluble! This means you can simmer your bacon or ham hocks, chill the liquid, lift off the fat and then guiltlessly use the now fat-free liquid to cook your veggies in.
7. Ham hock liquid (with or without the fat) makes a terrific base for gravies and sauces.
8. Use it in a big minestrone soup filled with veggies (in place of the traditional pancetta). Just don’t add salt until you have tasted it near the end.
9. And speaking of pancetta: A big meaty cooked ham hock is less expensive than pancetta. So why not boil a few, reserve the liquid, and then use the shredded meat in your pasta recipes as a replacement for the pancetta?
10. And speaking of pasta: Macaroni and cheese rises to a whole new level with ham hock meat folded into it.




11. Along these same lines, how about adding the meat from ham hocks to your scrambled eggs?
12. And speaking of eggs: Why not poach your eggs in some of the ham hock broth? There’s a flavor boost for you!
13. Finally, clam chowder. One of the few defining features of chowder is the presence of cured pork. Most traditionally it’s salt pork or bacon. But ham hocks are a thing. While they work well in Manhattan clam chowder, they also work in corn or fish chowder as well. Cream or tomato based, doesn’t matter.

I’ll close with an explanation of the above-mentioned term, “chiffonade' .” Once mastered, you’ll want to use this approach when prepping all your fresh greens.

This is a slicing technique in which leafy green vegetables such as spinach, collards, sorrel, or Swiss chard, or a flat-leaved herb like basil, are cut into long, thin strips. This is accomplished by stacking leaves, rolling them tightly, then slicing the leaves perpendicular to the roll.

It’s a prepping technique worth cultivating, because the strips cook up in a pretty way. But it’s especially a wise approach when cutting fresh basil. You won't bruise the leaves (which causes browning and significant flavor loss). Unlike chopping, chiffonade requires very little rough handling, so the leaves generally stay bright green and beautiful.