Pork Cheek Croquettes recipe

Croquette is one of the most eaten tapas and there are many different varieties. In fact it is a typical Spanish dish that everyone can make at home and it is super easy to make.

Today I am going I am going to share with you all how to make Pork Cheek Croquettes. 

Croquettes in fact can be done (I say) on purposely, but it is also a way to make your leftover food wayyy more attractive. The rationale behind croquette was initially to use up the leftover food.

And I am telling you, croquettes of sobra (leftover food) are the one of the best croquettes ever just like this one that I am going to show you! 

 

So first of all I made a Pork Cheek Stew. Now I am person who hates to follow step by step recipes because things change! The amount of the ingredients you can buy, the amount that you want to serve etc. Also it is always best to buy ingredients in season. Therefore I will tell you only the essential rules that you need to know.

What you need:

Pork Cheeks, Vegetables, Herbs, Wine

• Meat : vegetable proportion = 4:6
• I think in general a stew with 2 pork cheeks can serve 2 easily but make more if you want left over! 
• Marinate your pork cheek with salt and black pepper at least 2-3 hours before (put as much as you want because you are going to throw it into a stew! The more the merrier, the earlier you marinate it the better.)
• Vegetable choice: whatever you want but something that can be cook for a long time and contribute to a sweet note to the base of stew, release lots of moisture and absorb well the flavour of the broth. Safe choices are carrots, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, zucchini etc.
• Herbs are your best friends. Throwing in some moderate amount rosemary, thyme, etc never hurt. (moderate meaning throw in 1-2 sprig and add more if you think its necessary). The golden rule is that rosemary and thyme usually go well with meat, oregano usually goes well with a tomato base (if you throw in a bigger proportion of tomato that other veggies), depends on how you like it.
• Wine makes the magic. I personally like cooking with red wine more but I think with pork it is pretty versatile. It depends on what wine do you have. Usually I would add around 100 - 150ml (for a portion of 2) of wine to start, then add more along the way. I mean it depends on how you like. Don't be afraid to use a cheap wine. A sweeter white or red wine does a great job making the meat more tender (not dessert wine like moscato or mistela).

• Always sear the meat and the onions at high heat in the pot with some oil first. Once they are browned and the onion is softened, add the rest of the veggies, give it a nice stir, add your wine then turn the heat to low to medium and cover the pot. 
• Now every stove is a bit different. The whole point here is not to let the moisture of the vegetables evaporate. Therefore feel free to turn the heat lower if you think it is necessary. I suggest not to add any water at this point because you want your broth too be concentrated and your meat to slow-cook absorbing all the lovely flavour. 
• Add salt and pepper on the way depends on how you like it.
• You need to cook the stew at least for 2-3 hours with low heat. And then to serve, if you prefer a more creamy finishing, turn off the heat and let it rest for 5-10 minutes in the pot and then stir in a cold chunk around 20g of butter in (optional). The stew is lovely to be served with some creamy mash potato.

Now you have the perfect strew, so what about the croquette? 

It is actually very easy. You need to make a Bechamel (white sauce) with the pork cheek stew that you have. So, heat your left over up, add flour and a splash of milk to make the bechamel. 

Again some golden rules here:

• Cut your meat and veggie into small dices (no bigger than 1cm but the smaller the better because it will be easier to form the croquette later)
• Heat the stew up first, add a pinch of salt and pepper, then stir in the flour, then add the milk. 
• Now the amount of flour you put in will depends on how saucy the stew you have left was. My strategy is to add 1 tablespoon of flour into the stew at a time and stop when you see that the stew has "dry up" i.e. there is no liquid, that's enough. For instance, I have only added 1 big tablespoon of flour into the stew that I had left given it was not very saucy. 
• The amount of milk depends on how creamy you want your croquettes to be. If you add lots of milk, it will be a more saucy bechamel (white sauce) which your croquette will be very creamy, but obviously it will be a bit more complicated to coat the batter and breadcrumbs later. In general I would say the proportion of Stew with flour : Milk should be 8:2.
• Please please please use a full fat milk!! I mean you are eating the ultimate fried food anyway, why do you want too compromise of the creaminess and the flavour?

Once you have your stew bechamel ready, rest it in the fridge for at least 3 hours so that it hardens and it will be easier to form the shape.

Coat the bechamel with 1) flour, then 2) egg, then bread crumb.

Now the above photo is not the most ideal situation but I have learnt my lesson. It will be so much easier to put your flour, egg and bread crumbs in larger bowl / plate.

Once you have formed your croquettes, place them back to the fridge again for at least an hour before frying.

Now when you fry them, golden rules:

• Make sure your oil is at the maximum temperature possible
• Fry them maximum 3 at a time. Remember your croquettes are cold. If you put in too much at a time, this will cool down the oil. Then what will happen? Well given the croquettes are made with bechamel, they are going to break or they are going to be soggy and you are going to be depressed with all the hard work you have put in.
• Take them out when they are nicely browned and place them onto kitchen towel to drain off the excessive oil.

Then serve and enjoy!

Hope you have enjoyed my sharing! Again they are super easy to make but patience is the key. 

If you have interested in learning how to cook other classic Spanish dishes, check out my other post about how to make a Spanish Potato Omelette (Tortilla de Patata). See you all next time!

Lots of love,

Cherrie