The authentic flavor of cured smoked pork is essential to Southern cooking. This rich stock is one of the best ways to bring that rich flavor—salt, smoke, and aged meat—to everyday cooking. We use the stock for cooking greens, peas, beans, and root vegetables, as a base for soups and stews, and as an essential part of many recipes throughout this book.

Traditionally, a Southern cook would often add a piece of cured pork as “seasoning” to a pot of water and vegetables—and cook them all together for a long time. However, while the cooking water is gradually extracting seasoning flavor from the pork, it is also leaching flavor and nutrients from the vegetables. But pork stock quickly imparts its rich flavor to whatever is cooked in it, and vegetables don’t have to overcook to reach full flavor. And because pork stock can be defatted before you use it, foods never have the excessive greasiness that unfortunately is sometimes thought of as characteristic of Southern cooking.