Vimbobo (pork trotters )
Pork... I can barely stand it, especially the smell. But, I don't mind cooking it. Today's recipe is pork trotters AKA vimbombo . When cooked right, the meat should easily fall off the bone in a thick and gooey like gravy,yum yum😋. I feel these trotters should not be heavily spiced as they have a flavor of their own. They take quite a few hours to cook but easy to prepare.
I cook them quite differently from how they are normally cooked here in Zambia . How? You may ask, well, I first brown my trotters in a little oil then throw them in gravy and let them simmer away while I carry out my day.Simple😃 Lets see how it goes.
INGREDIENTS
1 pkt pork trotters
3 large tomatoes
1 large onion
Salt and pepper
Cooking oil
Pinch of cayenne pepper and paprika
2 TBSP tomato paste
UTENSILS
Thick bottomed pot
METHOD
Rinse your trotters under clean running water and Set aside to drain.
While they drain, grate tomatoes and cut onion into small cubes (if you have a blender just blend them together )
Season the trotters with salt and pepper
Heat up a little oil (about 20 mls ) in a thick bottomed pot /sauce pan on medium high heat
Make sure they are still not dripping with water
Place about 5-6 trotters in the oil at a time (to avoid the temperature of the oil to drop )
Brown all the sides of the trotters if you can
*NOTE: we are not frying the trotters but just giving them a nice brown colour on the outside. The inside is still raw
Once browned, remove from oil and place them in a separate bowl. Repeat the process with the other trotters
Ensure they don't burn. In case oil finishes, add a little more
Once all the trotters are brown, in the same sauce pan/pot, add a little more oil (about 50mls) and fry your onions till slightly brown (if you blended everything, add the puree to hot oil) add the grated tomatoes and tomato paste.
Throw in the browned trotters and all the liquid in the bowl.
Add 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring it to a boil then reduce heat and allow to simmer on low heat for about 5 hours or till tender. If you dont have time, boil on medium high heat(you'll need to be adding water often when it reduces and stirring every after 30 minutes).
Don't worry about the big chunks of onion. They'll disappear as the trotters stew
When the trotters are nearly ready, correct seasoning (salt and pepper )
And add a dash of cayenne pepper and paprika powder.
Enjoy!
*Chef Insight : You may be wondering why Brown the trotters first??
1. Add flavor to the stew.
2. You seal the pores of the trotter by browning them in hot oil, the juices are then released as they boil
3. Saves you time to do other stuff as you'll just be adding water during the cooking process if cooking on high heat.
4. Ensure your stir at least every 30 minutes or so to avoid it burning at the bottom if it's on medium high heat.
I cook them quite differently from how they are normally cooked here in Zambia . How? You may ask, well, I first brown my trotters in a little oil then throw them in gravy and let them simmer away while I carry out my day.Simple😃 Lets see how it goes.
INGREDIENTS
1 pkt pork trotters
3 large tomatoes
1 large onion
Salt and pepper
Cooking oil
Pinch of cayenne pepper and paprika
2 TBSP tomato paste
UTENSILS
Thick bottomed pot
METHOD
Rinse your trotters under clean running water and Set aside to drain.
While they drain, grate tomatoes and cut onion into small cubes (if you have a blender just blend them together )
Season the trotters with salt and pepper
Heat up a little oil (about 20 mls ) in a thick bottomed pot /sauce pan on medium high heat
Make sure they are still not dripping with water
Place about 5-6 trotters in the oil at a time (to avoid the temperature of the oil to drop )
Brown all the sides of the trotters if you can
*NOTE: we are not frying the trotters but just giving them a nice brown colour on the outside. The inside is still raw
Once browned, remove from oil and place them in a separate bowl. Repeat the process with the other trotters
Ensure they don't burn. In case oil finishes, add a little more
Once all the trotters are brown, in the same sauce pan/pot, add a little more oil (about 50mls) and fry your onions till slightly brown (if you blended everything, add the puree to hot oil) add the grated tomatoes and tomato paste.
Throw in the browned trotters and all the liquid in the bowl.
Add 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring it to a boil then reduce heat and allow to simmer on low heat for about 5 hours or till tender. If you dont have time, boil on medium high heat(you'll need to be adding water often when it reduces and stirring every after 30 minutes).
Don't worry about the big chunks of onion. They'll disappear as the trotters stew
When the trotters are nearly ready, correct seasoning (salt and pepper )
And add a dash of cayenne pepper and paprika powder.
Enjoy!
*Chef Insight : You may be wondering why Brown the trotters first??
1. Add flavor to the stew.
2. You seal the pores of the trotter by browning them in hot oil, the juices are then released as they boil
3. Saves you time to do other stuff as you'll just be adding water during the cooking process if cooking on high heat.
4. Ensure your stir at least every 30 minutes or so to avoid it burning at the bottom if it's on medium high heat.
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