Pork cheeks in cider and green peppercorn sauce | Lawrence Murphy

I say ‘knowingly’ because you have probably already eaten this cut of pork in sausages or minced pork.

Half a head of pork, slowly roasted in caramelised onions and cider, is a fantastic feast but some people could not tuck not this sort of dish.

I do believe that if we are going to eat animals we should be prepared to use the whole animal. If you can’t face (sorry for the pun) a head on your dinner table then you should try pig’s cheeks.

After a few hours of cooking this fabulous cut of pork becomes beautifully tender and produces a lovely stock which can be made into a sauce to go with it.

Served with creamy mashed potato it makes for a different and tasty winter dish.

Ingredients, serves 4

8 pork cheeks

2 onions sliced

1 carrot chopped

200ml cider

300ml chicken stock

2 cloves garlic chopped

Bay leaf

150ml double cream

Dessert spoon green peppercorns (removed from brine and rinsed in water)

Method

1. Heat a casserole dish and add a knob of butter. Add the onions and carrots once the butter starts to bubble.

2. Cook the onion and carrots until caramelised and then add the cider and chicken stock.

3. Bring to the boil, add the bay leaf, garlic and cheeks.

4. Bring up to simmer, cover with a lid and then cook in a pre-heated oven 150c gas 3 for 2 hours.

5. Once cooked, carefully lift the cheeks from the liquid and strain the liquid into a clean saucepan.

6. Bring the liquid to a boil and reduce by half, then add the cream and peppercorns. Simmer for 5 minutes.

7. Gently put the cheeks back into the sauce and simmer for 3 minutes before serving.