Hairy Bikers Pork Casserole Recipe

Hairy Bikers pork casserole, as near as their books get, is their pig’s cheek casserole, braised slowly in cider with leeks, mushrooms, bay and thyme. Though it takes over 2 hours, the Meat Feasts recipe is easy, feeding 4 at what I work out as about 550 calories a plate.

There’s no stock at all, because 500ml of cider is the only liquid, and the flour on the cheeks thickens it as they simmer. So the cheeks braise gently in it, and Si and Dave say they “need a good long cook” anyway.

Get the leeks and mushrooms properly coloured over a medium heat first, because on a low one the mushrooms give out their water and stew. If my dish is small, I brown them in two batches, keeping the pan hot enough that they sizzle rather than steam.

Hairy Bikers Pork Casserole Recipe

Author: Alex Saidani Cooking Method:Braising Cuisine:British Courses:Dinner

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 15 minutesCook time:1 hour 55 minutesRest time: minutesTotal time:2 hours 10 minutesServings:4 servingsCalories:550 kcal Best Season:Summer

Description

This is their Meat Feasts pig’s cheek casserole: browned leeks and mushrooms, then floured cheeks seared and braised in cider for an hour. After the vegetables have had their last half hour back in the pot, a splash of cream finishes it if you like.

Ingredients

For the casserole

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 15g butter
• 2 leeks, sliced into rounds
• 250g chestnut mushrooms, halved
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 1kg pig’s cheeks (trimmed weight)
• 2 bay leaves
• a large sprig of thyme
• 500ml cider
• 50ml single cream (optional)
• flaked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

• spring greens
• mashed potatoes

Instructions

1. Brown the veg: Heat the olive oil and butter in a large flameproof casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the leeks and mushrooms and sauté until they take on a little colour, then lift them out and set aside.
2. Sear the cheeks: Turn up the heat and season the flour with salt and pepper. Dust the pig’s cheeks with it, then sear them on both sides in the casserole.
3. Braise in cider: Tuck in the bay leaves and thyme and pour over the cider. Bring it to the boil, then turn down to a low simmer, cover and cook for an hour.
4. Add the veg back: Return the leeks and mushrooms to the casserole and simmer for another 30 minutes, then check a cheek is tender before moving on.
5. Finish and serve: Stir in the cream, if using, and simmer uncovered for a few more minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Serve with spring greens and mashed potatoes to soak up the juices.

FAQs

Can I use diced pork shoulder instead of pig’s cheeks?

Cheeks are what it’s written for, and Si and Dave say supermarkets sometimes sell them ready-trimmed, or a butcher can order them in. If you can’t get any, diced pork shoulder is the swap I’d make, because it also wants a long, gentle simmer.

Keep the same 1kg and the same cider, then check a piece at the 90-minute mark before the cream goes in. If it isn’t tender yet, give it longer.

Is there a Hairy Bikers pork casserole with potatoes?

Not by that name, though floury potatoes cook in the pot with diced pork leg and bacon in their One Pot Wonders pork and sauerkraut. Then juniper berries and sauerkraut season it, with a shredded pointed cabbage added for the last half hour.

They base it on bigos, the Polish meat and sauerkraut stew, and call it “a real rib-sticker” for a cold night. And it serves 4, with plenty of mustard on the side. As for BBC Food and BBC Good Food, I couldn’t find a Hairy Bikers pork casserole on either.

Can I cook it in the oven or a slow cooker?

Their method stays on the hob with the lid on, so I’d only be guessing at oven or slow cooker timings. Either way, the real test is a fork sliding easily into a cheek, and I trust that over any clock.

It keeps well, so I often make it a day ahead and get it into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking. Once covered, it lasts up to 2 days, and I reheat it just once, until piping hot. On nights when two hours is too long, I make their pork stroganoff instead, since it’s done in 15 minutes.

Is there an old-fashioned pork stew in their books?

Pörkölt from Mums Still Know Best is about as old-fashioned as it gets, since Hungarian shepherds cooked it in a cauldron over an open fire. For that one, diced pork steak simmers with onion, 2 to 3 tablespoons of paprika, green pepper and tomatoes for about an hour.

Their pork and bean casserole is the richer cousin, a cross between a cassoulet and Boston baked beans, with pork belly, sausages and bacon. While the pörkölt feeds 8 to 10, that one serves 4 hungry people.

Do I need the cream?

No, because they say the sauce “will still be good” without it, and the 50ml is optional. Still, they clearly love it, writing “we love a bit of cream in a cider sauce once in a while”.

Cider, leeks and mushrooms team up again in their chicken cider casserole, with chicken legs and smoked bacon, and it’s the one I’d cook next.