Hock & trotter at 92 degrees: Eisbein

Pick hocks with unbroken skin and a clean cut through the bone; splintered ends cloud the broth. Done is when the skin yields to a spoon. Anything short of that and the collagen is still rubber rather than gel. Sold for skin and collagen more than grade — joints should be evenly cut and skin unblemished.

Colour, sinew, where the fat sits, and thickness are what you check before you pay. Ask for the thickness that matches “Eisbein.” Use 92 degrees and 92 when you cook. Salt after you know the job. Do not play with undercooked meat. Cook Hock & trotter to 92 degrees and serve it as “Eisbein.” The other figure to watch is 92. Do not time a hard-working muscle like a thin steak. Colour before heat is not doneness. Ankle and foot: skin, tendon and bone with very little muscle. Almost pure collagen, which is why it turns broths silky and why chilled versions set into jelly on their own. Germany roasts it, Korea braises it in soy and

Cook Hock & trotter to 92 degrees and serve it as “Eisbein.” The other figure to watch is 92. Do not time a hard-working muscle like a thin steak. Colour before heat is not doneness. Ankle and foot: skin, tendon and bone with very little muscle. Almost pure collagen, which is why it turns broths silky and why chilled versions set into jelly on their own. Germany roasts it, Korea braises it in soy and