Pigs feet
 

Looking at some restaurant's specialties it seems that pig's feet and knuckles (?) are considered food, even good food, in Paris. Has anyone ever tried them? Liked them?

Pup likes them but then again, you can never trust his taste!<BR>He likes pigs ears too!

They are also eaten in Germany and Italy.<BR>chacun a son gout.

I am not joking! There is even a restaurant, "au pied de cochon", whose specialty is pig's hooves in bearnaise sauce. I would like to be culturally open-minded, but I'm a coward and I want to know if anyone else has dared try these first and their reaction to the dish!

you've never had pickled pigs feet? It's a southern delicacy. Nothing like knawing on a pig knuckle on a summer afternoon sittig on the levy.

x,<BR>Where other than McDonald's and Burger King have you eaten??

Actually, x, I was not kidding. Pup does love Pigs Ears.<BR>They serve pigs feet and parts all over the world, look on any menu in NYC!<BR>I personally would avoid a pigs foot, ick ick, but they are loved by some!

Gimme a pigfoot and a bottle of beer.

Cmon guys x is looking for a real answer. Sorry, I have not tried them. Would rather have other delicacies there. <BR>hey just try them!! think of the stories you culd tell. If it is a nice restuarnat give it a try. I would not buy them off a street vendor.

Not a big deal. You can get them at many PA Dutch markets, including the Lancaster, Lebanon, and Allentown farmers markets. My father used to make a dish called "souse", which is/was essentially jellied pickled pig´s feet. I´d come home from school to see a row of pig´s feet on the kitchen table. I would never eat the stuff, but it´s a fairly common PA Dutch dish.<BR>BTilke (Brussels)

This spring in Germany, I tried Fried Pork Knuckles.........absolutely great!!!!!! Once I had them, I kept ordering them when they were on the menu. Super!! Much like Osso bucco or Lamb Shanks, only crispier.<BR><BR>I believe that when you are in another country, you "go with the flow". I also like Wild Boar. In France, I ordered Jugged Wild Boar. It was one of the best meals I have ever had. <BR><BR>After we returned home, I found a recipe for Jugged Hare on the Luxembourg website. I read the recipe and preparation. Had I known how it was prepared, I would not have ordered it. <BR><BR>Stupidity is wonderful! Enjoy!<BR><BR>Dick

Pig's feet are a common bar snack in PA too. My mother loved them but they look too footy for me!<BR><BR>However pig's knuckle is smiliar to ham hocks, just not smoked and they are wonderful! Now I'm sure you've eaten ham hocks with no problem, in soups or boiled with vegetables. The knuckle I had was roasted and wonderful!

I was in Quebec City last year and had fried moose lips. They were delicious.

I ordered jambon at Bofinger in Paris thinking I was getting a piece of ham but it turned out to be a giant ham hock, which I believe is close to the foot somewhere. It was magnificant. The meat just fell off the bone and the gravy or sauce was so silky. I've used them in soups before and they are very good.

Didn't order them but while at dinner at Au pied du cochon we saw MANY people with them. As you said x- the restaurant is famous for them in Paris.

X,<BR>Maybe I was a little harsh.<BR>I have eaten pigs feet for over thirty years.<BR>One of the best ways to prepare them is in combination with corned beef.<BR>Put them in a roster with a corned beef roast-Heaven, really makes for great pigs feet.

EAT THEM? Not only do we Chinese eat them, we relish them! We eat every part of the animal and delight in it -- the stranger the better!<BR><BR>Actually, in poorer, agricultural communities, it's just practical to eat as much of the animal as possible. I believe that all over the world our great cuisines have grown out of this practice.

Great! I consider myself quite open-minded about food, I just wanted some idea of what to expect before diving right in! After reading these replies, I do think I'll give them a try! Besides, what doesn't taste good in bearnaise sauce?

I not only eat them abroad, but at home as well. I went to Au Pied de Cochon with my brother and I had the pig foot in bernaise sauce. It was delicious! however, it was a pretty big serving, so the richness of the whole thing (fried, mind you) made it hard to finish. My brother ate the pig foot that was stuffed with duck liver. That was REALLY delicious and I wish I ordered that one instead! But I'm sure that was equally rich. We walked a lot before & after dinner so it wouldn't totally grief our arteries.<BR><BR>Like Burta always tells me, "the Chinese eat what must be improved." I'm a runner so I guess that helps me???

I've had pig's knuckle several times and loved it. Have tried pig's feet and thought they were OK, but certainly would depend upon how they were prepared.<BR>I believe people put too much emphasis on the names of food. How many people would order pig's butt and fried unborn chicken fetus off a menu??? Yet, ham and eggs are sure popular. It's all in the name.

Good one, Patrick LOL~

Patrick...you are so right and so funny! Love it!!!!!!

Just returned from France. Saw pig's feet on lots of menus but didn't order them as I was afraid they wouldn't live up to my Mothers recipe. Coming from New England and with a French Canadian background It was always a treat to have pig's feet. I believe the feet were boiled for hours and thenserved with a thick ragout sauce. The meat would fall of the bone. Absolutely delicious.

Moose lips?

Pig's feet and ears are very popular in Portugal. Pigs ears may be eaten cooked or alternatively served cold as a salad with onion, olive oil and vinegar.<BR> <BR>

I am so glad I asked! I am positively looking forward to trying these now when we get to France! Thank-you all for your descriptions and encouragement!

How does the poor moose kiss another moose now ? What is the moose going to do with all the unused lip gloss ? What do the pigs do with all their unused nail varnish. Do you know how difficult it is to get such shy creatures to breed ?

rq:<BR>Remember, this is Paris, love is everywhere, they will have no problem breeding.

Nothing makes Pup happier that that delicate aroma of smoked pigs ears from the Pet Shop. <BR>I imagine there are a lot of pigs our there going "Huh???" all day, thanks to doggies with a penchant for Pigs ears:)

Maybe thats why they bring their dogs into restaurants--to feed them the pigs feet under the table.

Was in Bavaria this summer and went to what I thought was a "pig roast". I forget what it was called in German. Anyway, it was a menu where you could choose for your meal any part of the pig! I chose "liverwirst" ... not what you would expect! It was intestines stuffed with something that tasted like liverwirst! Many chose "souse", pigs feets, etc and a good time was had by all- even to the beer brewed on site.<BR>

had 'em in Paris, like Melissa said: Delicious! Every few weeks, I go to Eastern Food Center on King Street in<BR>Honolulu's Chinatown for their Sunday special - Pig's feet won ton noodle! Gee guerk tun mein, $4.75! Das right, $4.75! Stanley Hong, the former head of the Hawaii Visitors' Bureau, has proposed an annual Pig's Feet Festival in Hawaii. Anybody interested?

I just went to a gourmet wine store yesterday. The merchant told me he just went to Paris and went to (he thinks) a 2-star restaurant called Violin de Argent. On the menu was a dish called &quot;upside down pig's feet pie.&quot; He said, &quot;It sounded so <i>WRONG</i> that I just <b>had</b> to order it! And you know what? It was actually good!&quot;

I'm going to be in Paris in a few months and would like to look for this restaurant. Is anyone familiar with it?

Melissa, Accoring to the Michelin Red Guide, the only restaurant name that approaches the one you give is Le Violon d'Ingres, which is a one star restaurant. BTW, I had a dish called le petit j&eacute;sus en robe at a restaurant called L&eacute;on le Cochon in Rennes; the dish was a boned and stuffed pig's foot wrapped in a dough and deep fried. Delicious.

I think that Le Violin D'Ingres was a 2 star restaurant then had one taken away.
They do have pigs feet on the menu, happily when we were there, we were with friends who spoke fluent French and knew what was what..otherwise, I am sure I would have told the Yankee that pied du cochon was some kind of seafood ~LOL

Scarlett: you wouldn't have been too far from the truth!

Au Pied du Cochon serves a monster platter of delicious seafood!

Its onion soup is oooo-la-la-la as well!
:)

After reading this thread, never have I wanted a salad so badly. ;;)

I've never actually had pig's feet despite living in the south my whole life. I always thought it was gross when my mom made them, which is really funny since my favorite part of the pig at a pig pickin' has always been the tail! After reading this thread, I think I'm going to have to try some feet when I'm in Paris in December.

If you generally like the taste of pork, there's no reason to eschew pigs' feet. That said, I've had them in France where they were cooked - maybe braised? - in such a manner that there was a fair amount of gelatinous stuff to pick away before you got to the good stuff. The actual meat itself was delicious.

Thank you so much!! The wine guy was actually kind of fuzzy on the name, too, so I am glad I posted here to get the real scoops from each of you. I did go to Au Pied de Cochon a few years ago; I had the fried pig's trotter with bernaise sauce. Delicious!....but too rich. By the time I was done I felt like the whole pig. My brother had a pig's trotter stuffed with duck liver, that was delish as well.

I will still try to find this Le Violon d'Ingres when I get there, so I can say that I did!