Try this Pata Tim recipe for melt-in-your-mouth succulent meat with a perfect sweet-savory sauce that goes with it.
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Pata Tim (Braised Pork Hocks)
INGREDIENTS
- 3 pounds whole pork leg (ham hock)
FOR THE BRINE
- 4 cups water
- ¼ cup salt
- 3 pieces star anise
- 3 pieces bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon peppercorn
FOR BRAISE
- 3 tablespoons oil - - for searing
- 3 cups water
- ½ head garlic - - cut into half, crosswise
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 3 pieces star anise
- 3 pieces bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon peppercorn
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- ¼ cup water
INSTRUCTIONS
- Pour 4 cups of water into a pot. Add salt, star anise, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Bring to a simmer until salt is dissolved. Let it cool down to room temperature.Place pork hock in a large bowl or a Ziploc bag. Pour the brine solution over the pork hock and cover. Place in the fridge overnight (or up to 3 days). Remove from brine and pat the pork hock dry.
- In a pot just large enough to fit the whole pork hock, heat oil over medium-high heat. Sear all sides until golden about 3 minutes each side.
- Pour 3 cups of water and add the garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, star anise, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Cover the pot with the lid and bring to a boil.
- Once it starts to boil, turn down the heat to low and cook for at least 3 hours or until the skin and meat are so tender they easily separate from the bone. Remember to turn the meat every other 30 minutes. You may have to add more water until the meat reached the desired tenderness.Make sure also that by that time, you still have at least 1 cup (up to 1.5 cups) of the liquids remaining.
- Gently remove the pork hock and transfer to a serving dish. Run the remaining liquids through a strainer or a sieve to remove the chunky pieces. Return the liquids to the pot and turn heat to low.
- Dissolve the cornstarch in ¼ cup of water and gradually pour this mixture into the pot with liquids while continuously stirring to form a thick sauce.
- Pour sauce over the pork leg and serve. This is usually eaten with steamed rice. You may also add some steamed bok choi for sides.
What is Pata Tim?
Pata Tim or Patatim is a popular Filipino-Chinese dish of braised pork leg or hock that is cooked long and slow until the meat becomes so tender it literally falls out of the bones. The whole pork leg (pata) is cooked in a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, spices like garlic, bay leaves, star anise, and peppercorns. Other spices that can also be used or added are hoisin sauce, cinnamon, rice wine, and five-spice powder. It is also common to add shiitake mushrooms and blanched pak choi.
The truth is, I was not a big fan of Pata Tim. I find them usually cooked a bit too sweet for my liking. I do not even remember the last time I had it because obviously, it is not a favorite. But a recent event changed my mind.
Just a few days ago my family and I went out to celebrate my Mama's birthday. We went to a favorite local buffet restaurant for lunch, Tabehoudai. It is clearly a Japanese restaurant just by looking at the name but they also serve food of various cuisines. Armin and I especially enjoy their sushi table where we can have all the sushi and sashimi we can eat. This time though I noticed my Mama came back with a small plate of this tender looking pork meat cuts. I just could not resist trying it and the moment it touched my mouth it was pure heaven.
Unbelievably soft meat that almost seems like they melt away on your tongue and it tastes soooo darn good. I was thinking to myself this can't be...."Pata Tim" my Mama, however, confirmed. Now I am converted.
It is not just the tenderness of the meat that made me rethink my position about this dish. Also how they were able to make the perfect balance of seasoning. What I really liked is that it was not as sweet as the Pata Tim I know of and the flavors have seeped so deep into the meat but never overpowering the flavor of the pork itself.
I know that no self-respecting restaurant will ever divulge their secret recipes. So I tried to make a copycat of their Pata Tim by comparing some recipes and making some changes. I came up with this recipe here.
I brought the finished product to my parents for a final taste test. It passed with flying colors! Almost like the one in Tabehoudai my Papa said.
Tips on cooking the best Pata Tim
This dish is normally cooked using uncut pork leg. If cooking for a bigger crowd and you do not have a really big pot to fit the length of the leg, just take two smaller sizes. Get the ones without the trotters (feet), they do not have meat in them anyway.
I see a lot of other recipes that do not brine their pork leg. I highly suggest not to skip this part. Letting the meat soak at least overnight (upto 3 days) in a brine solution will give you flavors that go beyond the surface of the meat. This is especially true with big chunks of meat.
Patatim is known also for its savory-sweet thick sauce. If the meat is already tender but there is still too many liquids, remove the meat from the pot and continue to simmer to reduce the sauce to at least a cup. A cornstarch slurry is added to thicken it. It also enables the sauce cling to the meat when poured into it preventing it from drying out and bringing with it all the flavors.
You can also add Shaoxing wine to the braising liquid to give it an extra rich flavor.
Other similar Pork recipes to try:
Adobo |
Pata Tim |
Bistek |
Hamonado |
Hi Ben's! I have smoked pork hocks uncured (natural, hickory, cherry smoked). Can I use those for Pata tim? Thanks!!
Hi Cat, I haven't use smoked pork hocks for this recipe before but you can try it. No need to soak in brine it in this case.
Hi Bebs! I've looked at many different recipes for pata tim and yours is by far the best one. I made it twice and it really tastes delicious. My only concern is that the skin always breaks after a few minutes in the pressure cooker. What can I possibly do to avoid this?
Hi Alyzza, thanks for the great review. The skin/rind breaking is common as it shrinks when as it cooks. I guess more so when using a pressure cooker as it heats faster. Searing the skin first in some oil should lessen the shrinkage. You can also make some cuts across the skin so it will at least look better or just cut along in one side so that the other side would remain whole.
I made this but instead of pork I used lamb. To make this more quicker, I used pressure cooker! Without compromising the taste, I manage to save time, gas and money! My kids love them!
That's great Daryll. Glad you and the family loved it!
I made this a few nights ago and it was sooo tender and delicious. It was a bit salty but with the rice and unsalted gai-lan and shitakes it balanced out. Next time I will desalinate. I used fennel seeds instead of star anise because that was what I had. I will try star anise next time. The gravy it made was amazing.
Thanks for the great review, Ana. Fennel seeds should work as they have a similar taste profile. Thanks for the tip!
Hi, Can I use turkey for this recipe? Thanks!
Rosemarie
Sure you can Rosemarie.
I have my pork hocks in the brine for a couple of days now and plan on them for dinner tomorrow. Im so excited about this recipe and will let you know how it turns out!
Hi Catherine, you said a couple of days of brining...I would not go for more than 3 days with this salt-water ratio. If it is too salty, soak it in clean water for 10-12 hours to desalinate before cooking. Please do share how it goes...
I prepared this Pata Tim following the recipe. Delicious.
Thatis great Bert! Thanks for the stars...
I cooked this pata tim recipe last nite and the sauce was too salty. I used kosher salt. Should I use a fine salt for this recipe? and should add more brown sugar to counter the saltiness?
Hi Rosemarie, there should be no salt in the sauce. I used salt only for the brine for soaking the meat, but this is not used for the sauce itself and thrown away after it is used.
Sorry, I did not explain well. I did not put salt in the sauce as I followed the recipe to the letter but I still fin it salty so I put a little brown sugar to even it. Nevertheless, it turned out good cause my guests were delighted with this dish. Thanks for sharing this recipe and will do it again someday 🙂
I see, yes, of course, different kind of salt has a different level of saltiness. You just reduce it next time and make a note. Glad it still turned out well for your guests. 🙂
Hi. This looks amazing. I just wonder, what would be the difference in the taste if I use a pressure cooker?
This looks so tender and tasty! Can't wait to try your recipe esepcially the brining.
Can you do this in a pressure cooker?
Sure Leah, especially if you brined the meat already. You may need to reduce the sauce on stove-top afterwards.
your dishes are fabulous
Thanks Marilyn..