Pata Tim is all about slow-cooking pork hock until it’s super tender and almost melts in your mouth. It’s cooked in a rich, slightly sweet and savory sauce with star anise. Using a pressure cooker, you can prepare this fast and easy meal, making it perfect for any occasion.
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What is Pata Tim?
Pata Tim is a Filipino dish with Chinese influences, quite similar to Asado. It’s either a braise or a stew with pork hock or pork leg, slow-cooked in a slightly sweet and savory sauce until the tender meat becomes gelatinous.
The flavorful sauce combines soy sauce, star anise, spices, and sometimes oyster sauce for extra flavor. I usually cook it in a pressure cooker to save time, but you can also use a stove or slow cooker if you're not in a rush.
Ingredients you'll need
Notes and substitutions
- Pork hock: This cut is the lower leg of the pig, sometimes including the feet, often called "trotters." After slow-cooking, it becomes gelatinous, adding a rich texture to the dish. Trying using pork hock that's been cut into pieces for faster cooking and better flavor.
- Shiitake mushrooms: I like using dried shiitake mushrooms for their deeper flavor, but fresh ones can be used in a pinch. You can also use dried banana blossoms, which add a slightly sweet, floral note and a meaty texture that soaks up flavors beautifully.
- Soy sauce: You can use regular or light soy sauce. If you want a darker color without changing the flavor too much, you can add a splash of dark soy sauce.
- Shaoxing wine: It makes the flavors of the dish richer and more complex. If unavailable, you can use regular cooking wine or even pineapple juice for extra sweetness and flavor. If you prefer a hint of acidity, a splash of rice wine vinegar is a great option.
- Bok choy: Shanghai bok choy, pechay, or napa cabbage—any of these greens make a great addition to the dish. You can also add carrots or chayote for some extra crunch and mild flavor.
How to make this recipe
Step 1: Boil the pork hock
Rinse the pork hock thoroughly. Place it in a large pot and fill with enough water to completely cover the meat.
Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat and cook for about 20 minutes to remove any impurities. Then, take the meat out of the pot and pat it dry with paper towels.
Step 2: Rehydrate the mushrooms
Place the dried shiitake mushrooms in warm water and let them soak until they're fully rehydrated. Once soft, trim off the stems if needed.
Step 3: Sear the pork
Sprinkle some salt on the pork pieces. In a heavy-bottomed pot or your electric pressure cooker, sear the pork over high heat until it's lightly browned on most sides.
CAUTION: Be careful—oil can splatter while searing, especially if the pork isn't dry. To keep safe, make sure to pat the pork dry, use a deep pot to minimize splatters, and keep your distance to avoid any burns.
PRO TIP: Searing adds flavor through the Maillard reaction, which creates a delicious browned crust. The fond left from searing also forms the base for the flavorful sauce.
Step 4: Sauté the mushrooms
After they've soaked, drain the shiitake mushrooms and squeeze them to get rid of any extra water. Sauté the mushrooms over medium-high heat until lightly browned, adding a little more oil if needed.
Step 5: Sauté the aromatics
Toss the garlic and onion into the pan and sauté until softened and aromatic.
Step 6: Add pork and seasonings
Place the pork back into the pot and pour in the soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, brown sugar, and add 4 cups of water. If you're using an electric pressure cooker, just use 1½ cups of water since it locks in moisture really well.
Step 7: Add the spices
Toss in the star anise, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick. If you have a mesh bag, place the spices into it so you can easily pull them out later—this makes it simple to remove or discard them after cooking. Then, crack some fresh black pepper to taste.
Step 8: Simmer
Let the mixture simmer on medium-low heat. On the stovetop, this will usually take about 2½ to 3 hours. If you're using an electric pressure cooker, set it to high pressure and cook for 1 hour.
You'll know the pork hock is ready when it's tender and the meat easily pulls away from the bone. Give it a test by poking it with a fork; if the fork slides in easily and the meat almost falls off, it's perfect.
Taste your sauce and adjust the seasoning—add a bit more salt, pepper, sugar, or liquid if you think it needs it.
Step 9: Thicken the sauce
Transfer the meat to a serving platter and keep warm. Mix the cornstarch slurry into the sauce and let it simmer for about 2 minutes, or until it thickens up nicely.
Step 10: Cook the bok choy
You can blanch the bok choy in a separate pot of boiling water, or just add it straight into the sauce and let it wilt.
Step 11: Serve
Place the meat on a platter and spoon the warm sauce over it, then arrange the bok choy on the side.
Serve your Pata tim with a side of steamed white rice and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can cook Pata Tim on the stovetop instead. It typically takes about 2½ to 3 hours of simmering over medium-low heat. You'll know it's ready when the pork hock is tender enough that the meat pulls away from the bone easily.
Absolutely! Pork hock is traditional because it gets really tender and gelatinous when cooked slowly, but you can definitely use other cuts like pork belly or shoulder. They might cook a little faster and have a different texture, but they'll still make your dish delicious.
Pork hock and pork leg are different parts of the pig. The pork hock is the lower part near the foot, which is tougher and gets nice and gelatinous when you cook it slowly. The pork leg, on the other hand, is the upper part. It's leaner and really great for roasting.
Absolutely! Pata Tim can be made ahead of time and actually tastes even better the next day as the flavors have more time to meld. Just reheat it slowly over low heat or in a microwave before serving.
More Chinese-inspired Filipino dishes
- Pancit Canton: Stir-fried wheat noodles with assorted vegetables and meat. Pancit Bihon is a variation with thin rice noodles.
- Lumpia Shanghai: Crispy fried spring rolls filled with a mixture of meat and vegetables, wrapped in lumpia wrappers.
- Siopao: Steamed or baked buns filled with savory meat fillings such as asado (sweet pork) or bola-bola (meatballs).
- Siomai: Traditional Chinese dumplings with a mixture of ground pork, shrimp, and extenders like singkamas (jicama) or mushrooms, wrapped in wonton wrappers.
- Hopia: Similar to Chinese mooncakes, this flaky pastry has a sweet filling with mung beans, ube (purple yam), or pork fat.
- Arroz Caldo: Similar to Chinese congee, this rice porridge is cooked with chicken, ginger, and garlic.
- Fish Tausi: Fish cooked with tausi or fermented black soybeans.
Other pork recipes you may like
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📖 Recipe
Pata Tim Recipe
Equipment
- Electric pressure cooker or a large heavy-bottomed pot
Ingredients
- 5 pounds pork hock see note
- 10 dried shiitake mushrooms see note
- 6 garlic cloves smashed
- 1 onion chopped
- ⅔ cup soy sauce see note
- ½ cup Shaoxing wine see note
- ⅔ cup brown sugar more to taste
- 4 star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup of water
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 bunch bok choy see note
- Salt and pepper (or whole peppercorn) to taste
Instructions
- Rinse the pork hock and place it in a large pot with enough water to fully cover them. Let it boil over medium-high heat for about 20 minutes to remove the impurities. Remove them from the water, then pat them dry.
- Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in warm water until rehydrated, then trim off the stems if necessary.
- Season the pork hock pieces with salt. Sear them over high heat until they are lightly browned on most sides.CAUTION: Oil can splatter while searing, especially if the pork is still moist. For your safety, thoroughly dry the pork, use a deep pot to contain splatters, and maintain a safe distance to avoid burns.
- Drain and gently squeeze the mushrooms to remove excess water. Sauté them over medium-high heat, adding more oil as needed.
- Add the garlic and onion, then sauté until softened and aromatic.
- Add the pork, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, brown sugar, and 4 cups of water. If using an electric pressure cooker, add only 1½ cups water as it keeps the moisture in due to its sealed environment.
- Add the star anise, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick. If you have a mesh bag, place these spices inside it for easy removal later. This way, you can easily pick out or discard the spices after cooking. Sprinkle in some freshly cracked black pepper to taste.
- Let the mixture simmer over medium-low heat. For stovetop cooking, it will typically take 2½ to 3 hours. If using an electric pressure cooker, set it to high pressure and cook for 1 hour.The pork hock is ready when it's tender and the meat easily separates from the bone. Check by poking with a fork; if it enters easily and the meat nearly falls off the bone, it's done. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper, or more sugar if needed.
- Transfer the meat to a platter and keep warm. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the sauce and simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes.
- Blanch the bok choy in a separate saucepan of boiling water or add it to the sauce and let it wilt. Turn off the heat.
- Serve your Pata tim—spoon the warm sauce over the meat, then arrange the bok choy on the side.
Notes
- Pork hock: This cut is the lower leg of the pig, sometimes including the feet, often called "trotters." When cooked, pork hock becomes gelatinous, adding a rich texture to the dish. For quicker cooking and more flavor, try using pork hock that’s been cut into pieces.
- Shiitake mushrooms: I like using dried shiitake mushrooms because for their deeper flavor, but fresh ones can be used in a pinch. You can also use dried banana blossoms, which add a slightly sweet, floral note and a meaty texture that soaks up flavors beautifully.
- Soy sauce: You can use regular or light soy sauce. If you want a darker color without changing the flavor too much, you can add a splash of dark soy sauce.
- Shaoxing wine: It makes the flavors of the dish richer and more complex. If unavailable, you can use regular cooking wine or even pineapple juice for extra sweetness and flavor. If you prefer a hint of acidity, a splash of rice wine vinegar is a great option.
- Bok choy: Shanghai bok choy, pechay, or napa cabbage—any of these greens make a great addition to the dish. You can also add carrots or chayote for some extra crunch and mild flavor.
Mark
Delicious!!!
Nora Reyes
Hey Mark, Thank you! =)