My mother, who is now 81, doesn’t have as much energy to cook these days, but she still makes salted pork bones. There’s not much to it! You simply take meaty pork neck bones, and salt them for 24 to 48 hours in the refrigerator.
Why Make Salted Pork Bones?
We’ve made many soups, stocks, and congee recipes with regular pork bones, so why bother salting them? Well, salting them actually adds a lot more flavor. The meat tastes lightly cured, without being too ham-like. It’s kind of crazy how different the flavor can be after just 1 day of salting. The pork bones my mother gave me were incredibly meaty. That’s what you want to find for this recipe. The ones we got the day we blogged this weren’t as meaty, so keep that in mind when you shop around!
Applications
We use salted pork bones in soups and congee. Bill has shared his mother’s salted pork bone congee, but you can also use it in soup recipes like:
Cantonese Mustard Green Soup with Pork Bones
Cantonese Bitter Melon Soup with Pork Bones
Yan Du Xian (to replace the salted pork/ham and pork belly)
Ching Po Leung Herb Pork Bone Soup
Tis the season for soup, so now is the time to try one of these recipes out! We will also soon be posting another simple recipe to use these salted pork bones, so be on the lookout for that. When using these pork bones, you can blanch them before adding them to soups, or you can roast them (in the oven for 45 minutes at 400°F/200°C) or pan-fry them in oil until browned on all sides.
An Optional Ingredient
To elevate the flavor, I sometimes marinate pork neck bones with salt and Sichuan peppercorns. I just cook the salt with a little bit of Sichuan peppercorns over medium low heat, until the salt turns a light golden color. Then I cool it down before adding it to the pork bones.
Recipe Instructions:
Soak pork bones in water for 1 to 2 hours. This helps remove blood and impurities before salting. After soaking, rinse them in fresh water a couple of times until the water runs clean. Drain and shake off excess water. If you are using Sichuan peppercorns, cook salt and Sichuan peppercorns using medium heat for about 5 minutes until the salt turns a light golden color. Remove from the heat and cool completely. If you’re not using Sichuan peppercorns, you can skip this cooking step and just add the salt directly to the pork bones. In a large bowl, evenly rub the pork bones in the salt (and the Sichuan peppercorns, if using). Cover and marinate for 24 to 48 hours in the refrigerator. If making smaller batches of soup, it might be a good idea to rinse before cooking. Also if you used Sichuan peppercorns, brush them off the pork bones before cooking them.
