USA Recipes

Southern-Style Pig Tails

Pig tails are used in a lot of different cuisines. They are great as a meat dish with turnip greens, blackeye peas, or boiled cabbage. My recipe cooks the tails twice, and the result is a crispy crackling covering the tail that you can eat or save for crackling in cornbread. The crushed red pepper can be used liberally for a spicy taste. Be sure to buy pig tails that have a lot of meat around the upper part.

Ingredients

  • 8 pig tails, rinsed
  • 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic, halved
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Step by step

  1. Place pig tails in a large stockpot and fill with enough cold water to cover. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 to 15 minutes. Drain in a colander and clean the pot.
  2. Return tails to the pot and cover again with cold water. Add onion, garlic, pepper flakes, and salt; bring to a boil. Cook at a boil until tails are almost falling apart, about 2 hours.
  3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil.
  4. Drain pig tails and place onto the prepared roasting pan. Discard or save stock for another use.
  5. Roast in the preheated oven until tails pop and sizzle and the skin browns, 30 to 40 minutes. Very carefully open the oven door and remove from the oven. Allow tails to cool before serving.

You May Also Like