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(photo from wokkingmum.blogspot.com)

Excerpt from The Wisdom of the Chinese Kitchen:

In Cantonese tradition, a new mother eats chicken wine soup for the first ten days after giving birth. Then for the rest of the month, the mother-in-law makes pig’s feet and ginger in black vinegar, which are said to help the mother produce more milk for the baby. The eggs in this dish are a symbol of birth and life, and the ginger helps to reinvirograte the mother’s body. To make this correctly you must peel the ginger which takes incredible patience.

All relatives and friends who come to visit the new baby are also treated to the pig’s feet, for pots and pots of this are prepared. I distinctly recall having it many times as a child and loving it. The black vinegar and sweetened black vinegar are found in Chinese supermarkets…

RECIPE
Here’s the recipe from wokkingmum:

Ingredients:
1.5 liter Sweet Rice Vinegar (Sweet Black Vinegar)
2.25 liter Water
1/2 kg Yellow Rock Sugar
1 teaspoon Salt or to taste
2 teaspoon Sesame Seed Oil
1 kg Ginger, slightly smashed
1.5kg Pig Trotter or other leaner meat (I don’t even know what a trotter is)

How to do it:
Blanch meat and set aside.
Heat oil in a pot (preferably clay pot, do not use metal or it will react).
Saute ginger till fragrant.
Add vinegar, water, rock sugar and salt to the pot with ginger and oil.
Bring it to a boil.
Reduce to a simmer and continue simmering for an hour.
Add in the meat and simmer for at least an hour or till the meat is tender.
Serve hot with rice.

WokkingMum says
You can save half the gravy (before adding the meat) for the next day if you are eating alone. Just heat up at the end of the day and heat up again the next day. Ie, heating at least twice a day. No refrigeration needed. When it’s ready to be eaten, just add meat to the gravy and cook.

Final Thoughts
I love black vinegar and pig’s feet. I still remember eating it as a kid and loving it as well. I don’t know if it’s the sweetness, or the tartness, or just the unique flavor of this dish that kept me coming back for more… Dunno, but if you’ve never tried this, I highly recommend it. If you are in the neighborhood and want to see the baby, please don’t hesitate to ask for the pig’s feet. We have plenty of it thanks to my folks.

Update
I was talking to my baby’s doctor about why chinese ate this dish. She said pig’s feet was high in iron and the acidity of the vinegar helped the body absorb the iron better. There were other sources that said the long heating of the dish allows for the bone marrow to fully come out to help with the replenishing process of the mom. Eggs, which I left out in the recipe, represents birth. Must be hardboiled first and then placed into the dish.

Enjoy and may you be fruitful and continue to multiply!

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