Ham Hock Scotch Egg & Black Baked Beans

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

Ham Hocks Scotch Eggs
2 smoked ham hocks
2 bottles of beer
2 1⁄2 pt / 1.5 L of chicken stock
2 celery stalks
2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, roughly chopped
1 star anise
4 whole cloves
1 bunch of coriander root
1 bunch of spring onion root
2 tbs of gelatine
31⁄2 fl oz/100 ml of warm water
4 eggs
2 1⁄2–4 oz / 60–110 g of panko crumbs
5oz / 150 g of flour, seasoned with salt & pepper
3 eggs, dash of milk, whisked for an egg wash to crumb
1 3⁄4 pt / 1 L of canola oil, for frying

Black baked beans
2 x 151⁄2 oz/440 g of black beans, undrained
2 tbs of olive oil
2 onion, diced fine
5 cloves of garlic minced
11⁄4 in / 3 cm knob of ginger, minced / grated
2 tsp of Dijon mustard
5 oz / 150 g of brown sugar
1 bottle of beer
12 fl oz/350 ml of BBQ sauce Salt & black pepper
1⁄2 bunch of parsley, chopped

METHOD

For the Ham Hock
1 In a very large pot, place hocks, celery, onions, carrots, spices and roots together with the stock and slowly braise on the stove top with a gentle simmer for 3 to 4 hours.
2 Drain and preserve stock. Allow to cool until it is no longer hot to touch.
3 Mix the warm water and gelatine together and add to stock, whisk until thickened.
4 Pull all meat off bones and chop into small pieces.
5 Combine the meat together with some of the stock. It should be quite wet.
6 Place in a processor and blitz until a smooth paste, this should be sticky to touch.
7 Spread the mixture out onto sheets of baking paper.

For the eggs
1 Place your eggs in a pot of boiling water and allow to boil for 6 minutes, remove from heat, rinse under cold water and while still hot peel, be careful as they will be very soft to touch and runny in the middle – this is what you need.
2 Carefully place the egg onto the hock mixture and wrap up until egg is fully covered. Place in fridge to set – for at least one hour.
3 Remove the eggs from the fridge then flour, egg wash and crumb. Put aside and allow them to set while you make the baked beans

For the Baked Beans
1 In a large pot, add some olive oil and bring to high heat, add onions and cook for 3 minutes, add garlic, ginger and cook until soft.
2 Then add mustard and the beans, stir well.
3 Add the BBQ sauce, brown sugar and let it simmer on the stove top for up to 50 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4 Once your beans are done, heat the canola oil in a large pot or prepare your deep fryer.
5 Fry your scotch eggs until golden. The middle of this egg will still be runny.
6 Serve with your black baked beans and a sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley.

 Here’s another recipe from ‘Meat & Sweet’:

Roasted Peaches & Mascarpone On Toasted Brioche