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Pig’s Feet

bgibson135

Note Slight Impact on Blood Sugar
This was the very first item I cooked
in my Instant Pot Mini.

NOTE [02/17/26]: According the the STELO Event for eating pig’s feet, there was almost no rise in blood sugar. But that doesn’t mean that these high fat items are healthy. [end NOTE]

Pig’s Feet (Instant Pot Mini Version)

Tender but still holds shape (good for eating as pieces)

High Pressure: 55–60 minutes
Natural Release: 20 minutes (minimum)

Very soft / fall-apart (best for soups, beans, or stewed greens — probably what you’ll like)

High Pressure: 75–90 minutes
Natural Release: full natural release (don’t quick release)

Basic Method

  1. Clean and rinse feet well
    (Optional but recommended: pour boiling water over them for 2–3 minutes and rinse — removes funkiness)
  2. Put in pot:
  • 2–3 pig’s feet (Mini capacity)
  • 1 to 1½ cups water (minimum liquid requirement)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • onion (you like onion 🙂)
  • garlic
  • splash vinegar (helps break down collagen)
  1. Cook using times above.

What you’ll notice

After about 80 minutes, they become:

  • silky
  • sticky lips texture
  • skin almost gelatin
  • tendons edible

That’s the sweet spot for adding to:

  • black-eyed peas
  • turnip greens
  • collards
  • cabbage stews

I tried adding black eyed peas to the Instant Pot after cooking the Pig’s Feet about 40 minutes. The peas were not quite tender enough, but that wasn’t the real problem. The pig’s feet did not flavor the beans well enough to justify using them as seasoning meat. I cooked the beans another 15 minutes or so and they came out tender but the meaty flavor just wasn’t there. DON’T use pig’s feet for seasoning black eyed peas. You can eat pig’s feet with a seasoned side of black eyed peas, and maybe some green beans & red potatoes.