Slow cooker pork cheek (carrillera)

Carrillera o carrillada is a delicious meat obtained from the cheeks of an animal, usually beef or pork. It's a quite greasy meat, and very tender when cooked properly. It wasn't until I started doing some research for this post that I have realized that it's not a very common thing to eat in other countries. For what I've seen, in France there's a dish called joue boeuf that, judging by the photos I've seen, must be delicious. I guess both dishes share some similarities, but I'm not very familiar with French cousine, so, if you are, let me know in the comment section.

There are many ways you can cook the carrilleras and many recipes out there. Mine is quite simple, and you just need a handful of ingredients. Since it's a type of meat that needs quite a long cooking time, I feel like slow cookers are perfect for it. Anyway, with any further ado, let's get into the cooking.

Ingredients:

• 5-6 pieces of pork cheek (you can use beef).
• 1 onion.
• 1 potato
• 1 carrot
• 200-250 grams of mushrooms (7 oz). 
• Flour
• Salt, pepper and your favourite seasoning. 
• Oil

Servings: 2-3 (5 or 6 pieces)

Cooking time: 4-5 hours (depending on your slow cooker and how you like the meat).

Temperature: High.

Preparation time: around 20 minutes.

For this recipe I use my Crock-Pot multi cooker, which has a "sauté" option. However, if you use a regular slow cooker, you can use a pan to prepare all the ingredients.

Wash the cheek pieces and let them dry. Then, cover them in flour.  

On your multi cooker, select the menu "Sauté" and pour some olive oil. Let it heat for a while and then put your cheeks in and mark them. 

Once they look brown on the outside remove them and set aside. 

Chop you onion in small pieces. I try to have as many ingredients prepared as possible before I start cooking, so that way I don't have to rush peeling and chopping.

Pour more oil into your pot/pan and turn it on again. I turn it off between the previous step and this is because I feel like I have more control of how the ingredients are cooking, but you don't have to do so. Add the onion and cook it until it starts changing color.

Peel and chop a carrot. I like to laminate it and then cut the circles into quarters, but you can cut it however you want. 

Add the carrot to the pot. 

Peel and dice a potato. The way I like to cut it is by making a small incision with the knife and breaking it with my hands, we call it "chascar".  

Add the potato to the pan and let it cook until the edge starts changing color or until you feel they're turning softer.

Clean your mushrooms and remove any soil they might have left. For this recipe I like to use Portobello mushrooms, but you can use any type of mushrooms. The ones I bought came already cut in quarters, so keep in mind that you need to set time if you need to cut them.

Add the mushrooms to the pot and let them cook for a while to remove the water. 

Add some salt, pepper, and your favorite seasoning. Because this Crock Pot is so hermetic and the liquids won't evaporate that much, I like  to add a teaspoon of flour and stir it. If you want to add some liquid, this is your moment. Carrilleras are often cooked with wine, so you can add a bit and let the alcohol evaporate. 

Add the carrilleras back to the pot. Close and let it cook for 4-5 hours in high. The cooking time will depend on how cooked you like the meat and your slow cooker. After 4 hours, check if the meat is tender and completely cooked. If not, let it cook for 30 more minutes and check again. 

After 4 hours, this is what we got.  If you want a thicker sauce, you can take some out, blend it and pour it back again. 

Serve the cheeks and the veggies while still hot and enjoy! If cooked properly, the cheeks should cut like butter and almost melt on your mouth. It's so yummy!

So what do you guys think about this recipe? Are you going to try this? Let me know in the comment section.

See you in my next post.

M.C.

For more slow cooker recipes, follow the slow cooker tag.