Crispy Pata (Deep-fried Pork Knuckle)

Ingredients:

Pork

• One pork leg weighing 1.3–1.8 kg with hoof
• 1 cup sugarcane vinegar
• 0.5 cups chopped garlic
• 0.5 cup fish sauce
• 1/4 cup coarse salt
• 60 g baking powder
• 2 tablespoons black peppercorns
• 5 bay leaves
• 2 lemongrass stalks, cut into 5cm pieces.
• Savsavan sauce, see recipe below
• Green Chili Tinimtim, recipe below
• Quick Cabbage Kimchi, recipe below

Savsavan sauce

• 1 cup soy sauce
• 1 cup cane vinegar
• 1 cup of spiced vinegar
• 60 g chopped green onions
• 45 g fish sauce
• 1 tbsp garlic
• A pinch of Hawaiian salt
• 3 whole Hawaiian red chili peppers, chopped

Tinimtim with green chili

• 30 g salad oil (any light oil, such as corn oil, soybean oil, safflower oil, canola oil, or peanut oil)
• 30 g fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
• 4 crushed garlic cloves
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 450 g green chili pepper
• 1 cup cane vinegar
• 0.5 cup fish sauce
• A pinch of coarse salt
• A pinch of ground black pepper

Quick kimchi with cabbage

• 1 whole head of Chinese cabbage, cut into 5cm pieces.
• 8 cups of warm water
• 0.5 cup coarse salt
• 60 g kimchi powder
• 60 ml of vinegar
• 45 g of garlic and onion paste mixture
• 30 ml fish sauce
• Special equipment: deep fryer

Preparation:

1. Soak the pork leg in cold water, scraping the hoof on all sides with a scraper. Rinse with clean water.
2. Pour 8 liters of cold water into a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Add cane vinegar, garlic, fish sauce, salt, baking powder, peppercorns, bay leaf, and lemongrass. Slowly lower the pork knuckle into the boiling water and cover with parchment paper. Simmer over low heat for 4–5 hours. While the pork knuckle is cooking, remember to check the water level. Add more water if necessary to ensure the knuckle is completely submerged..
3. Preheat oven to 95°C.
4. Remove the pork leg and place it on a baking sheet with a rack. Place in the oven to dry for 30 minutes.
5. Preheat deep fryer to 175°C.
6. Slowly lower the pork leg into the hot oil and step back as the oil splatters. Fry until the hot oil stops splattering, 2–3 minutes. Flip the leg and fry, turning every few minutes, until the skin is crispy, 8–10 minutes total. Serve with sawsawan sauce, tinimtim, and kimchi.
7. Savsavan sauce:
   
   In a bowl, combine soy sauce, cane vinegar, spice vinegar, green onions, fish sauce, garlic, salt and chili pepper.
8. Tinimtim with green chili:
   
   Heat a frying pan over medium heat, then add oil. Add ginger, garlic, and shallots and sauté until fragrant and the onions are soft. Add green chili, vinegar, fish sauce, and 1 cup water. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer over low heat until all the liquid has evaporated, stirring the chili twice. Let cool, then refrigerate. Can be stored for up to 5 days.
9. Quick Kimchi:
   
   Soak the cabbage in warm water with salt. Leave it at room temperature to wilt for a day. Drain the brine and rinse the cabbage, then squeeze out the excess water. Transfer to a bowl and add kimchi powder, vinegar, garlic-onion paste, and fish sauce. Transfer the kimchi to a glass jar and store in the refrigerator.
   
   Note
   
   Kimchi seasoning is a blend of spices that enhances the flavor and texture of kimchi, and consists of dried chili peppers, rice flour, miso powder, dried garlic, ginger, and green onions.