The cheek of it! Part 2: Pork

red cabbage 

Pork cheeks are even cheaper than their bovine counterpart and just as delicious, they have a rich meaty flavour and again have that melt in the mouth effect after many hours of slow cooking. (enough for 4 people should only set you back £3-4).

I cooked these with a slightly different method to the beef because I needed to pop out for a few hours and didn't want to burn them.

Pigs cheeks, parsnip purée and spiced red cabbage

For the pigs cheeks (adapted from Anton Edelman)
4 pig's cheeks
flour for dusting
oil for frying
4 shallots peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 leek washed thoroughly and cubed
1 bulb of fennel
2 sliced garlic cloves
2 carrots peeled and sliced
2 tbspoons tomato puree
1/2 bottle of red wine
300ml beef or chicken stock
1/2 tspn ground black pepper
2 tspoons fennel seeds
1 bay leaf


For the parsnip puree
4 large parsnips peeled and diced
80 ml milk
30g butter

Season the pigs' cheeks and dust with a little flour. Heat some olive oil in a large ovenproof pan and fry the cheeks until golden-brown on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside. 

Add the shallots, leek, fennel, carrot and garlic and fry gently until lightly browned. Add the tomato purée and a little of the red wine. Reduce until the tomato purée starts to caramelise and darken. Carry on adding the wine in stages, reducing between each addition until the sauce is rich and dark. 

Preheat the oven to 140C/gas 1. Return the cheeks to the pan and add pour over just enough brown stock to cover. Add the peppercorns, fennel seeds and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. 

Cover with a lid and cook in the oven for 4-5 hours. Stir every hour or so, adding a little more brown stock if it starts looking dry. 

Remove the cheeks and pass the sauce through a sieve into a clean pan. Bring to the boil and reduce to a good consistency. Season with salt and pepper. 
For the parsnip puree: put the parsnips in a pan with the milk and the same quantity of water. Bring to the boil and cook until very tender. Put the parsnips in a blender with a little of the cooking liquid and the butter. Blend for about until very smooth. Season to taste. 

Red Cabbage, adapted from 'Vegetables' by Sophie Grigson ( Serves 4)

1 small red cabbage

1 medium onion, halved and sliced

2 eating apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped

80 ml (3½ fl oz) red wine with 1 tbspn sugar (or port)

20ml orange juice

3 tbs caster sugar

1 1/2 tbs red wine vinegar

2 cloves

1 star anise

1/4 tsp nutmeg

zest of 1/2 orange

30g (1½ oz) unsalted or lightly salted butter

Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 140C/gas 2.

Quarter the red cabbage, then core and slice finely. Mix in a capacious casserole dish with all the remaining ingredients except the butter. Dot the butter over the top. If the casserole is flameproof, bring up to the boil on top of the hob – not absolutely necessary, but it does give the cabbage a beginner's boost, thereby abbreviating a lengthy cooking time. 

Transfer the casserole, covered, to the oven (or put it straight in from cold) and leave to cook down gently for 31/2 to 4 hours. Stir after about 1 hour, and again every 40 minutes or so. The cabbage will cook down to a sublime melting tenderness, having absorbed most of the liquid.

Taste and adjust seasoning and serve at once or reheat thoroughly when the next meal comes along.

ok, not the prettiest dish, but Bavarian style meals are hard to aestheticise... you could sprinkle some chives on top if you wanted!

This was followed by chocolate tea cups. The puddings for both cheeks meals will be posted soon...

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