So this dish doesn’t have a very creative name, and it’s a short list of ingredients, but it’s some tasty home cookin’! I bet some of y’all are wondering if I ever eat low calorie meals! Well, I recently had a baby, so not a whole lot. But I wanted to incorporate some more healthier and simpler meals into our weekly rotation, and this one is pretty good! If you’re burned out on roast beef but want to do something along the same lines, this is a good alternate. My hubby said he’d eat this over roast any day! It smells delicious and is quite comforting.
One note – my butcher didn’t have a ham hock. He had a smoked pork shank, which is basically the same thing, but with a little more meat on it and a slightly smokier flavor (they come from different parts of the leg). I thought the extra smokiness was nice, but I’ve read that some people like to soak the shanks in water for 30 minutes to an hour to tame it a bit. Just in case you’ve ever wondered about such things…
Recipe:
2 lb. ham hock (or smoked pork shank)
2-3 large russet potatoes, peeled (these get a little mushy, so you might also try the little golden ones).
green beans, fresh or frozen (I used about a pound, fresh)
Instructions:
Cover your ham hocks with water in a crock pot Set to high and leave alone for 5 hours.
Remove the meat and bones from the crock pot. Discard the bones and fat, and return the meat to the pot.
2 hours before you’re ready to serve, add the green beans and potatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve with yummy bread or crackers!
Recipe brought to you by Good in the Simple.
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