Thanks for opening this weeks Gristle newsletter. On account of the fact that I am asked this most weeks, I have added a “place that I ate last week that I also think you should eat at too” section at the bottom. Let me know if you are a fan and I can endeavour to keep it up. As always, shares/email forwards are appreciated xx
I would love to say that my corn tortilla hunt (read back) culminated in a chance backstreet find, but sadly it didn’t. While there is little romance in turning to a modest Instagram following for help, there is satisfaction to be gained in being the proud owner of an immodest stash of a near perfect food. Name it and I put it on corn tortillas last week. Meat in various forms was a taco topper mainstay - crisp chorizo, a particular favourite. I fried the tortillas in the residual oil until crisp and topped each with a mound of pickled radishes and onions. On Tuesday things got a little more involved. Goat cooked down with all sorts of surprisingly expensive dried chillies provided me with a burst of midweek energy. Worth the investment.
It’s rare I have time to eat or cook during the day, heads of lettuce dressed heavily with lemon and sloppy glug of good oil will usually suffice. In this instance my not-so-secret tortilla supply has been revolutionary. I have turned to good peanut butter and exceedingly ripe bananas for such occasions. There is a fruity funk to corn tortillas that makes what would be the breakfast of a toddler on any other vessel, feel so much more grown up.
What I have now termed “snackos” have now also made it into our home-life vocabulary. A healthy amount of pecorino and a not-so-healthy amount of chilli grated onto a tortilla and fried in a non stick pan cheese-side down is a fabulous thing. The cheese caramelises and crisps up while the grated chilli pisses out its fiery moisture, steaming the tortilla above. A great recipe to have in the back pocket for this weekends post pub kitchen raids. I would imagine my new creation would leave a still par frozen potato waffle dipped in a miscellaneous 2 year old chutney for dust.
Some tortilla experiments before last week had been less successful. The predecessor to the snacko was another drunk creation. Even now, 2018 smells like a corn tortilla, stuffed with ripped up sweet and sour chicken balls, Singapore noodles and cheddar cheese. An ill-conceived bastardisation that has burnt itself onto the upper reaches of my nasal cavity.
When I make a pigs ear of it 4 years on, it tends to be in a more literal sense. Last week, the gaps between tacos were populated with the real deal. Pigs ears are easy to get hold of, often free and actually quite easy to work into a midweek meal once given due preparation. If texture is your jam and Santa saw to the last of your savings, these recipes will probably hit the spot.
SOFT PIGS EARS // MAKES 4
A vast majority of pigs ear recipes start here. Once simmered slowly in a fragrant broth, their unruly form and unforgiving texture make way for something a lot more delicious. Cherish any leftover stock and use in life affirming pea soups, terrines and soup dumplings.
4 pigs ears, fresh
1 red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 head of garlic, split in half
Coriander stalks
1 tbsp Szechuan peppercorns
3 inch knob of ginger, sliced
Salt
Scrape any nasty bits from the pigs ears with a sharp knife and a strong stomach. Burn off any hairs with a blowtorch. Tip the cleaned ears into a large pot and cover with cold water. Place over a high heat and allow to boil for 2-3 minutes.
Drain the ears, rinse to remove any scum and return them to the pan.
Cover once again with water and tip in the onion, garlic, coriander, peppercorns, ginger and a small handful of salt. Bring everything up to a boil once more and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 2 1/2 - 3 hours, until a small knife meets little resistance when slid into the thickest part of an ear.
Remove from the stock carefully with tongs and cool on a tray - refrigerate for at least 2 hours before using.
NUMBING PIGS EAR SALAD // SERVES 4
Pork fat is tempered well by the likes of Szechuan peppercorns and black vinegar. Their semi-medicinal profile and sharp after-burn amp up flavour, cut through fat and provide a foundation from which savoury pork flavours can build. I often serve it over hot rice, the steam from which softens some of the ears and cooks out some of the onion’s allium bitterness.
3 tbsp chilli crisp oil
2 tbsp sesame oil, the good stuff
3 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tbsp black vinegar
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 inch knob ginger, sliced into thin strips
1 small bunch spring onions, thinly sliced
1 small bunch coriander, roughly chopped
4 cooked pigs ears, thinly sliced (see above)
1 tbsp Szechuan peppercorns, toasted and ground
1 tbsp sesame seeds
Measure the oils, soy sauce, vinegar and caster sugar into a large mixing bowl. Finely grate in the garlic. Beat everything together briefly.
Tip in the ginger, most of the onions and coriander. Add the sliced pigs ears and toss - ensure everything is coated well in the flavoursome oil.
Season to taste with the ground peppercorns. Don’t go overboard here, we are looking for comfortably numb - not an experience reminiscent of mild anaesthesia.
Transfer to a large serving plate and scatter over the remaining onions, coriander and the sesame seeds. Serve over hot rice.
CRISPY BUFFALO PIGS EARS // SERVES 4
Once soft pigs ears hit hot oil, their collagen and any available water tends bubble, splutter and spit fat over anything within a 3 metre radius. On said account, I cannot recommend you make this recipe. If you are willing to endure mild burns and the clean up that ensues however, you will be rewarded with a game day-ready snack like no other.
500ml peanut or vegetable oil
40g butter, unsalted
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp shrimp paste
7 tbsp fermented asian hot sauce
4 cooked pigs ears, thinly sliced (see above)
Heat the vegetable oil in the tallest pot you own over a high heat - trust me.
Tip the butter, sesame oil and shrimp paste into a small pan and place over a low heat. Melt everything together and allow the fat to foam a little. Take the pan off the heat and swirl in the hot sauce.
Once the oil hits around 170°C, quickly and carefully drop in a small handful of the sliced pigs ear. Step the fuck back and allow everything to sizzle and pop. Once the popping has subsided, agitate the slices in the oil a little to ensure an even colouring.
Once deep golden brown, transfer to a plate lined with kitchen towel and repeat with the remaining pigs ear slices.
Toss the crispy pigs ears with the sauce and serve immediately with a cold beer.
Hawksmoor is left off many of Londons more happening “must eat” lists and I can see why. It has been around for a while, the food while good does not provide much of a journalistic angle and it does not boast a full compliment of natural wine to quench the insatiable thirst of London’s sometime-creative class. What these lists do not value however, is consistency, a low intervention approach to food and a healthy rejection of flimsy trends - all of which you can find at here. While Action Bronson won’t be popping in any time soon, if anyone ever asks me where to take the parents for an occasion - this is my go to spot. It feels like a treat and improved my Wednesday ten fold. Order the crab on toast, which is more crab than toast, followed by the ribeye, beef fat fries and the anchovy hollandaise to dip it all in.