chicharrón

Pork Crackling Snacks

OK these are just terrible for you health-wise, but if you’re making a pork dish and you’ve got a lot of skin you’re not using, then don’t throw it away – make these pork crackling snacks!

Chicharrón are popular all over Spain and central & south America (and the Philippines), I suppose it's not a surprise when you consider how popular pork is across the region and the people's skills when it comes to cooking up all the bits and pieces of the animal.

There are other recipes out there that dry the boiled skins out in the oven on low heat for hours and hours and hours so when you deep fry them they puff up into light and airy treats. Admittedly these are much better but they take ages to make.I'm too lazy.

My recipe is much less labour intensive because the longest cooking time is the boiling, where you can throw the skins into water and walk away as they boil. Much less hassle than watching strips of pork skin slowly dry out in an open oven.

When it came to the deep-frying part, this is where I got ridiculously girly. The oil was spitting like crazy and I’m ashamed to say I hid behind Jonas who bravely did the hard work on this one.

In this recipe, ingredients do not have amounts because it’s a rustic dish and it’s best to make it all by feel depending on how much skin you're using.

As long as you make sure you have enough oil for deep frying, nothing else matters.

Chicharrón

Anna's very own recipe.

Ingredients:
Pork skin
Rock salt
White vinegar
Vegetable oil, for frying
Paprika
Black pepper
Garlic powder
Salt flakes

Method:

1. Cut away as much meat and fat as you can from the back of the pig skin. Ensure hairs have been removed too.

2. Bring a pan of water to the boil. Add a little rock salt and a dash of white vinegar.

3. Boil skin for around 2 hours or until the skin is soft and the remaining fat can be scraped off the back. Cut into strips.

4. Fill a deep pot with at least 5cm of oil and heat until a cube of bread goes brown in 30 seconds.

5. Dust pig skin with paprika, pepper and garlic powder.

6. Deep fry skin until curled and crispy. (careful, the oil will spit like crazy!)

7. Drain on kitchen paper, dust with more paprika and salt flakes and serve immediately while still crunchy.