To Make the Stock
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the foot
Cut the foot or feet into four pieces, splitting the hoof piece into two.
Wash and scrape the pieces well in warm water, cutting away any discolored parts.
Remove all marrow from the bones with a skewer.
Cut away the fat from between the claws.
Blanch and simmer
Put the pieces into a lined saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil.
Pour the water away and rinse the pieces in clean cold water.
Return them to the saucepan, cover again with cold water, and simmer slowly for 6 to 7 hours until reduced by half.
Strain and set
Strain through a hair sieve or cloth into a basin and allow to cool until it forms a stiff jelly.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Ox foot or calf's feet
- Bones and connective tissue release gelatin, which sets the stock into a stiff jelly as it cools.
- Cold water
- Extracts gelatin and flavour from the feet during long, slow simmering.
The step that matters
Simmer slowly without a rolling boil. A gentle simmer extracts gelatin and flavour while keeping the stock clear. A hard boil emulsifies fat and clouds the liquid, and it can also make the stock taste harsher.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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