Why isn't there pork stock?
In the world of broths, stocks and bouillon, why isn't there ever pork???
Let's see, there is beef, chicken, fish, lobster, vegetable, mushroom, turkey, lamb, clam, etc... but no pork??? Why is this??? I never even see recipes to make homemade pork stock like I do the other flavors. There must be a reason, but what is it?
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14 Comments:
Pork stock certainly appears in Mexican cuisine.
Cathy at 2:18PM on 03/10/08
Actually I remember seeing this item right here at SE a few months ago about Pork Stock.
It also makes frequent appearance in Asian cooking, and turns up in Southern dishes (greens, beans, etc.), where it's often made with bones from smoked pork (ham hocks, necks, etc.). I myself usually make it when I do a bean soup with ham hocks.
But, I agree... for some reason it doesn't seem to show up much in "classical" cooking (e.g., French, American, etc.).
BTW, if you google "pork stock" you will get a bunch of leads.
LoCo at 2:39PM on 03/10/08
I don't know why it is not as commonly used as chicken veal or beef stock, but pork stock is something that is used occasionally in French cooking. As noted above, it is very common in Asian cooking, such as Chinese, Vietnamese and Japanese. This is a very interesting question though. Any food historians in the house?
seyo at 4:46PM on 03/10/08
This recipe for example calls for making a pork stock, in order to later make a sauce for the pork to be served:
http://bonappetitbiensur.france3.fr/recettes.php3?id_article=787
seyo at 4:48PM on 03/10/08
Penzey Spices sells a pork base. If you download their catalog (pdf file) it will give you more information
http://www.penzeys.com/images/B08.pdf
VegeGoddess at 5:23PM on 03/10/08
I've tried Minor's Pork Base, but it's not as "porky" as Beef Base is "beefy", or Chicken Base "chickeny"(?), so I'll generally use either the Chicken or Vegetable Base with pork.
srhcb at 6:37PM on 03/10/08
The only time I ever use pork stock is for an old tomato soup recipe my mother used to make, and she always used pork neckbones. Er, the recipe is old, not that it's a recipe that uses old tomatoes.
Other than that, chicken stock is usually in my freezer, because roasted chicken bones and leftover bits are pretty common here. Beef or veal stock, I don't use much. Ham stock happens after I've cooked a ham. I seldom buy a ham shank just for stock.
I think one reason chicken stock is so common is that you can add it to other stuff and it adds a richness without it being overwhelming. If you added beef or turkey stock to a chicken recipe, it probably wouldn't work as well. Veal would probably be fine, but honestly I don't see a lot of veal in any form at the stores these days.
Chicken's also cheap enough, and there are bits that have little other value than for stock, so it's cheap and easy to make at home.
dbcurrie at 7:11PM on 03/10/08
I think it's pretty common to make a stock from a ham bone, especially for bean soup.
cooking monster
DaveFaris at 11:26PM on 03/10/08
I've got another question for you. Why isn't there pig milk? And therefore pig cheese and so on.
MichaelNatkin at 12:22AM on 03/11/08
pork stock is assertive, so it is not as versatile as chicken or veal, which are more neutral-tasting. I make stock from wild boar bones and while it's fabulous, I would not want to put it in a dish I did not want to taste "porky."
HunterAnglerGardenerCook at 11:02AM on 03/11/08
in spain i've seen stock made from jamon (ham), either crudo ("normal" ham) or serrano (iberian / cured ham)...
portuguesegirl at 12:06PM on 03/11/08
pig milk ... turns out it's just way too fatty (twice the fat than in normal cow's milk), and it's not economical, because pigs don't produce enough of it.
DaveFaris at 1:15PM on 03/11/08
Except for the occasional chicken stock, I make pork stock almost exclusively. I use it interchangably in recipes calling for either beef or chicken stock. Reduction time is the only variable for me. Many of the pork cuts I end up with are to fatty for my uses so I invariably boil/render them before use in a recipe. After cooling and a little refrigeration, the fat is easy to skim and I end up with about 2-3 qts. of stock per week. I freeze it in old jogurt containers (one cup portions) and use it in almost everything... BTW, in my lexicon, I'm really talking about broth not stock.
czken at 9:00PM on 03/11/08
I believe I have seen ham stock - perhaps Kitchen Basics? Why not pork? I've never tried it, but it seems like it would need a lot of skimming or an overnight cooling to enable you to remove the congealed fat. Has anyone done pork stock using a combination of pork/bones and another meat (veal, beef)?
frederika at 11:27PM on 03/11/08