Braised Pigs Cheeks - Spanish

Ingredients

• 1-2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 800g pork cheeks (ideally Ibérico Pork), excess fat & sinew trimmed and cut in half
• 1 tbsp flour, seasoned with salt and pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp pimentón de la Vera (smoked paprika)
• 100ml sherry vinegar (I’d half this)
• 500ml beef or pork stock
• Handful flat-leaf parsley
• 400g can of butter beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 garlic clove
• 70-100ml olive oil

Method

1. Add the oil to a pan and fry the onions until softened. Put to one side.

2. Lightly coat the pork cheeks in the seasoned flour and fry until browned on all sides, do in batches if required. Now add all pork and onions together adding garlic, cumin and paprika. Then add the sherry vinegar to de-glaze the pan, ensure to scrape all the brown bits from the base to combine and optimise the flavours.

3. Add the stock, bring to the boil and then simmer and cover for 2 hours until the pork is tender. If the sauce is too liquid, take off the lid and bring back to the boil to reduce the sauce.

4. Pour the beans into a saucepan with the garlic and 100ml water and bring to the boil for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and whiz in a blender with the olive oil until smooth. Season to taste.