Pig's trotter

A pig's trotter, also known as a pettitoe,^[1] is the culinary term for a pig's foot. It is used as a cut of pork in various dishes around the world, and experienced a resurgence in the late 2000s.^[2]

A pig's trotter in front of carrots and onions

Description

Pigs' trotters, sold as Irish-style crubeens in Illinois

Wonton noodles with pigs' trotters braised with nam yu (fermented bean curd)

Before sale, the trotters are cleaned and typically have the hairs pulled with a hot tank and beaters.^[3] They are often used in cooking to make stocks, as they add thickness to gravy, although they are also served as a normal cut of meat.^[3] In Puerto Rico, a tomato-based stew of pigs' trotters with chickpeas is called patitas de cerdo. Sometimes potatoes or butternut are added. British chef Marco Pierre White has long served trotters at his restaurants,^[4] based on the original recipe of mentor Pierre Koffmann.^[5]

Following the Great Recession, there was a boom in popularity of pigs' trotters in the United Kingdom as a revival in cheap meat recipes occurred.^[2] In 2008, British supermarket Waitrose reintroduced trotters to its stores,^[4] and found that they quickly became popular.^[2]

In Norwegian tradition, pigs' feet are salted and boiled and served as syltelabb. This is a pre-Christmas dish because the pig was slaughtered before Christmas, and everything was used. Today syltelabb is for enthusiasts.^[6]

Recipes and combinations

Pigs' trotters on rice

Korean jokbal sold at Namdaemun Market

• Bean crock (les pais au fou) in Jersey, Channel Islands
• Batsoà from the Piedmont region of Italy
• Cappello da prete in Modena, Italy
• Chispalhada in Portugal: trotter with chickpeas or beans^[7]
• Cotechino in Modena, Italy
• Zampone in Modena, Italy
• Körömpörkölt in Hungary
• Crubeens in Ireland
• Pied de cochon in Sainte-Menehould, France
• Tebichi in Okinawa, Japan
• Tom tin moo in Laos
• Crispy pata, Paksiw na pata, and patatim in the Philippines
• Manitas de cerdo in Spain
• Jokbal in Korea
• Patitas de cerdo en escabeche and manitas de cerdo en salsa verde o salsa roja in Mexico
• Souse in Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines
• Spitzbein or Pfoten in German, known as golonka in Polish
• Syltelabb, a traditional Norwegian dish
• Inkokta grisfötter, a traditional Swedish dish similar to syltelabb
• Kha mu, literally "pigs' feet" in Thai, influenced by Chinese stewed pork
• Patitas con maní and Sarza de patitas in Peru^[8][9][10]
• Peus de porc in Catalonia

See also

• Cow's trotters
• Sheep's trotters
• Offal
• Pickled pigs' feet
• Pork