For those who cook with ham hocks

If you cook the hock long enough, all the gelatin dissolves and the meat falls right off the bone.

Mine usually fall apart. I don't always use the meat in what I'm cooking. I might remove the hock and munch on it while I finish the dish. Depends on what I'm making.

i been very disappointed in hocks lately. Now they seem to be smoked ankles instead of hocks. They usta have a good bit of meat but lately they been bone and gristle

I find that hocks can quickly make a dish too salty if you aren’t on top of things.

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i been very disappointed in hocks lately. Now they seem to be smoked ankles instead of hocks. They usta have a good bit of meat but lately they been bone and gristle

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Order some hams from Benton's Country Hams, Ray. They're the real deal, made in Tennessee. Smoked, salt cured, and aged about a year. When you buy the ham, you can have them slice it up. They cut the hock off, cut it into quarters, take the skin off the ham, take the meat off the bone, slice the meat, and then send you the whole ham, all parted out.

I only ever use the pieces of the hocks for giant pots of red beans because their hams and bacon are INTENSE. For a pot of smothered vegetables, I just throw a piece of the skin in and that's all I need.