Braised pork knuckle with fat choy, dried mushrooms, and dried oysters is an auspicious Chinese New Year dish for the Cantonese. The name in Cantonese is 橫財就手, has a symbolic meaning of ‘a windfall of good fortune.’

In just a few days, families worldwide will gather and celebrate the new year with a lavish feast, and there is no exception in our family. I have prepared this traditional Chinese dish in advance for Chinese New Year because it is freezer-friendly.  It is even tastier the next day after the pork knuckle has completely absorbed all the flavor from the sauce.

I hope this pork knuckle will bring you good luck and wealth in the coming year.  Let me show you how to prepare this wonderful dish. It is our specialty for the Lunar New Year. Get it from the Asian butchers and start to cook up a storm for your family!

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Ingredients for braised pork knuckle for Chinese New Year

The following are the main ingredients for braised pork knuckles. Some less important ingredients are excluded from this brief explanation.

• Pork Knuckle. The knuckle of pork is the best cut of meat for this dish. However, you can use any cut of pork that is less fatty if you want to make it healthier.
• Ginger, green onion (scallion), and wine. These are important flavoring ingredients commonly used in various braised meat recipes.
• Bay leaves, cinnamon, star anise. These are the spices and herbs for the pork knuckle, with a flavor profile leaning towards Cantonese style. We have shared another pork knuckle recipe that involves a different set of spices, which you can view here.
• Black moss (fat choy, 发菜) is an edible alga related to spirulina that resembles long strands of silky, luscious hair. It will rehydrate after soaking for ten to twenty minutes. Clean it carefully with water, and it is ready to use
• Dried shiitake mushrooms have a floral aroma. Please use only the dried version, as they are much more flavorful and have a meatier texture than the fresh ones.
• Dried oysters are equally packed with umami, like dried mushrooms.

How to prepare the braised pork knuckle

1. Clean the pork knuckle by changing the water several times until it clears. Take a closer look at the skin to spot if there is any hair. You can remove it using tweezers or burning it away with a blow torch. 

2. Place the pork knuckle in a pot, then fill it with water sufficient to submerge it.  Add a few slices of ginger, two stalks of green onions, and two tablespoons of rice wine into the water. These ingredients help to eliminate any unwanted smells of the pork. 

3. Bring the water to a boil. Then, blanch the pork knuckles over medium heat for ten minutes. Turn it over at least once. Remove it and wash it under running water. Let it sit for ten minutes to drain away the water. 

4. Rub a large tablespoon of dark soy sauce on the pork knuckle evenly. Dark soy sauce adds color and caramelizes the sugar in the sauce while deep-frying, creating attractive charred marks. Let it rest for ten minutes to drip off the excess soy sauce. 

5. Heat about half an inch deep of oil in a large pan or wok. Place the pork into the oil. You will expect the oil to splutter since the pork knuckle is wet. So prepare a lid and cover it immediately after placing it in the pan.  Shallow fry it for two minutes on each side or until it forms some charred marks.  Remove the pork knuckle from the oil. 

6. Rehydrate the dried shiitake mushrooms by soaking them with water for half a day (or overnight). You can use hot water to reduce the soaking time to about two hours. Once they are soft, squeeze out the water and cut off the stem with a pair of kitchen scissors. You can include the mushroom stems if you eat with your family or discard them if you serve your guests. 

7. Soak the dried oyster with water for 15 to 30 minutes or until soft. Clean each oyster with water to remove any sand and dirt. 

8. Heat some oil in a wok or a large pan.  Saute the green onions, sliced ginger, and garlic cloves over medium heat until aromatic. 

9. Add the dry spices (bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and star anise) and stir them quickly.  Place the pork knuckles into the wok. Add sufficient water enough to submerge half of the pork knuckle. 

10. Add the rock sugar and the liquid seasonings (chu hou sauce 柱侯醬, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, red fermented bean curd (lam yu), and rice wine). Bring it to a boil over high heat, then return to a simmering temperature to braise it for two hours. High temperatures will not produce tender meat. Turn over it every half an hour to ensure even cooking.  Add boiling water whenever the water level drops below the midline of the pork knuckle.

11. After two hours, add the dried mushrooms and dried oysters. Also, include the mushroom stock (i.e., the water after soaking the mushrooms) in the wok. 

12. Continue braising at a low temperature for another hour. Check the doneness of the meat by piercing a chopstick into the thickest part of the pork knuckle. The meat should be soft and tender if it can be pierced with minimal resistance.

13. Add the back moss to the liquid, bit by bit, and cook for another ten minutes before turning off the heat.

14. Remove the pork knuckles, mushrooms, black moss, and oysters from the wok. Keep them aside in separate bowls. Pour the braising liquid through a wire mesh strainer for a clean broth. Now, return the broth to a clean pan. Bring it to a boil and reduce if it is too much to prepare the sauce. Test the flavor to decide if you need to add any seasoning or salt.

15. To serve: Place the pork knuckle on a large oval plate. Arrange the mushrooms, oysters, and black moss around it, then drizzle the sauce onto the pork knuckle. Garnish with some lettuce and scallions. Enjoy the tender piece of meat with plenty of gravy.

Tips to make the best Chinese braised pork knuckle

• Blanching the pork knuckle is an effective way to remove the unwanted blood smell.
• While blanching the pork knuckle helps remove the unwanted smell, frying it before braising develops additional flavor. It is usually deep-fried in the restaurant because it is an efficient method. However, deep-frying is not a practical method at home. Therefore, I have changed it to shallow fry with less oil instead. 
• You can use Hoisin sauce to replace chu hou sauce and regular sugar for rock sugar. Most of these items are available at the Chinese grocery store.
• You may need to fill the wok with more water if the level is lower than half of the pork knuckle. I suggest adding boiling water to keep it at a constant boil. 

Are dried seafoods safe to eat? 

There are some concerns about the safety of the mushroom water and black moss.  Below is the information I have read.

• The mushroom water. Some readers are concerned about the safety of consuming the water after soaking the mushrooms. A small amount of sulfites is added as a bleaching agent and preservative to the mushroom, transforming into sulfur dioxide during processing. Excessive amounts of sulfur dioxide may cause dyspnoea, vomiting, and diarrhea, especially in asthmatic or allergic individuals. Since the water after soaking the mushrooms has plenty of flavors, I have added it to the braising liquid. I believe our liver should be able to metabolize that trace amount and should not be hazardous to our health as long as it is not significant. Anyway, you can read this article before deciding whether to use it.
• Black moss. According to a study by the Chinese University of Hong Kong, black moss contains an amino acid beta-methylamino-L-alanine (BMMA), which may affect normal nerve function.  However, this article also implies that it is Ok to consume in small quantities. Black moss is expensive and rarely consumed regularly except during the Chinese New Year. I think it should be fine as long as it is not in an excessive amount.

Disclaimer: I am a pharmacist but have not researched this matter in detail. Hence, this is only for your reference.

Note:

This recipe is a popular dish served during the Chinese New Year. This dish is the Chinese version of German ham hock, German pork knuckle, pig knuckle, or pork shank. Unlike traditional German recipes, it is braised with Chinese spices instead of roasting in a baking tray at low oven temperature with bay leaves and other Western herbs and, therefore, does not have crispy skin. However, the flavor of spices is infused into the meat after braising, and the meat is fall-apart tender after braising for a long time. 

The accompanying sides are Chinese shitake mushrooms, dried oysters, and fat choy instead of side dishes like red cabbage, juniper berries, caraway seeds, green beans, potato salad, and potato dumplings. It is stewed and does not have crispy skin, but the meat is tender and melts in the mouth. The thick gravy form during braising is due to the gelatin from the connective tissue of the pork knuckle.

Other related recipes

• Braised chicken with mushrooms. Quick, easy, and delicious. That is how my family described this recipe.  It is a freezer-friendly recipe and is a typical Cantonese home cook dish.
• Chinese spareribs. This pork knuckle recipe is a simplified version, prepared with similar herbs and spices. It’s the perfect choice to try different herbs from your regular rosemary, thyme, black pepper, and olive oil.