A ham hock is the joint between the tibia/fibula and the metatarsals of the foot, where the foot was attached to the hog's leg. It is the portion of the leg - also known as pork knuckle - that is neither part of the ham proper nor the foot or ankle, but rather the extreme shank end of the leg bone and the associated skin, fat, tendons, and muscle.
Since this piece generally consists of much skin, tendons and ligaments, it requires long cooking through stewing or braising to be made palatable. The cut of meat can be cooked with greens and other vegetables or in flavourful sauces. It is often added to soups with the meat being added to the soup prior to serving. The meat of particularly meaty hocks may be removed and served as is. Ham hocks, like hog jowls (pigs' cheeks), add a distinctive flavor to various dishes. This is particularly true for collard greens, mustard greens, cabbage, green beans and navy beans.
Ham hocks are essential ingredients in soul food and other forms of American Southern country cooking. Eisbein is the name of the joint in German, and also the name of a north German dish using the lower part of the ham hock, cured and boiled. Schweinshaxe is a Bavarian dish of roasted ham hock. Golonka is a very popular Polish barbequed dish using this cut. They are also popular when boiled with escarole, more commonly called endives, in Italian American cuisine. Fläsklägg med rotmos is a Swedish dish where the, often salt-cured ham hocks are eaten together with mashed rutabaga, and sweet Scanian mustard.