These Spanish braised Pork Cheeks are super delicious. Chunks of meat smothered under a dark, rich sauce. The meat is so tender that it fell apart at the touch of a fork, and the flavor was meaty deliciousness. The luscious pork just melted in our mouths.
INGREDIENTS
12 pork cheeks about 1 kilo
1 onion
6 shallots
1 green apple
2 carrots
1 red pepper
2 cloves of garlic
475 ml port wine
4-5 potatoes
1 bay leaf
2 Tablespoons of honey
½ teaspoon thyme
½ teaspoon flat leaf parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons of flour
80ml extra virgin olive oil
700 ml beef stock
Crush the garlic in a pestle and mortar add in the thyme, honey, parsley and a tablespoon of water. Continue to bash until you achieve a nice paste.
Pat the pork cheeks completely dry with paper towels and then cover the pork cheeks with the paste and season with salt and pepper. Let them marinate for at least 1 hour before cooking.
Dredge the pork cheeks in flour (they shouldn’t be coated in flour, just a hint)
Heat the olive oil in a heavy pan on a medium high heat. Sear the pork cheeks for about 30 seconds on each side until they are brown. Remove from the pan and set aside. Carry on doing this until all the cheeks are done
Dice the onion and red pepper to a small dice.
Peel the shallots and cut each one in half.
Cut the carrots into thin round slices.
Transfer the oil used to sear the meat into a large, heavy pot. Add a little more oil if necessary to completely cover the bottom.
On a low heat, sauté the onions, peppers, shallots and carrots for 15 minutes.
When the vegetables are golden, add the pork cheeks and the port. Add the bay leaf and, over a medium heat, allow everything to reduce by half. Make sure to stir while it is reducing or it will stick.
Add the beef stock to the pot and cook over a low heat for about 2 hours, until the cheeks are really tender.
Peel the potatoes and cut them into bite size chunks. Peel the apple and dice it to a medium dice.
Twenty minutes before taking it off the heat add the potatoes and apple to the pot.
When everything is tender, take off the heat and serve.
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