Muzhuzhi — Georgian Pickled Pork Trotters

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Wash and clean the pork trotters.

2. Step 2:

   

   Soak them for a few hours, preferably overnight.

3. Step 3:

   

   In the morning, wash the trotters again and scrape them clean if needed.

4. Step 4:

   

   Cover with water by about an inch (2–3 cm). Bring to a boil, skim off the foam, then lower the heat and cook on the lowest possible setting for 2 hours — you want the water barely bubbling, so the trotters gently braise rather than boil hard.

5. Step 5:

   

   After 2 hours, add the onion, salt, bay leaf, and the black and allspice peppercorns.

6. Step 6:

   

   Cook for another hour.

7. Step 7:

   

   Then take out the trotters, measure out the wine vinegar, and peel the garlic.

8. Step 8:

   

   Pull the meat off the bones and cut it into rough pieces — Georgians don't chop it too fine. This is a good point to add some chopped cilantro, though I didn't have any in winter. It still came out delicious.

9. Step 9:

   

   Take 3–4 ladles of the cooking broth (do whatever you like with the rest).

10. Step 10:

    

    Press the garlic into the broth and add the wine vinegar (anyone with a sensitive stomach should go easy on the vinegar). A quick aside: when I was looking for a muzhuzhi recipe, most called for about 3 cups of vinegar per 10 trotters. I thought "that's way too much" and picked the recipe I'm sharing here — but once I tasted the finished dish, I realized it could have used a bit more vinegar. So it's up to you!

11. Step 11:

    

    Pour the marinade over the meat and put it in a cold place to set.

12. Step 12:

    

    By morning the appetizer is ready! Cut it into serving pieces.

13. Step 13:

    

    Arrange it on a plate. Serve with adjika and lavash. Enjoy!