I have searched online for its translation (in spanish) but the only meanings that come up are either it being “in debt” or a piece of ham and I’m quite sure it is neither.
In my mind and by context it speaks to me like the phrase is being used to say that he “spitted out” or “threw up” but I’m not sure about it and thus I can’t seem to remember the reading every time the kanji comes up.
I am British/Canadian/Australian and would never use ‘hock’ in that sense, so this mnemonic was a bit of a surprise to me, too - ‘hork’ is what I (the Canadian part of me) would use, but I’ve just learned it has different meanings depending on where you’re from… Isn’t language wonderfully, frustratingly complex!