The Best Pork Cheeks

If you like pork cheeks, you'll want to know how to make the best pork cheeks ever. Seriously. Not everyone loves them so we don't usually have them in the vending machines. But sometimes we do -- score! We're a whole animal butchery so we have our fair share of pig heads.

It's really easy to make pork cheeks. And the ingredient list is short. All you need is:

• pork cheeks

• stock (chicken or pork)

• egg

• panko bread crumbs

• salt and pepper

• lard (you can custom order this, too)

Then the method, which we first wrote about in our book, The Butcher's Guide to Well-Raised Meat, is this: If you happen to have a pig head, remove the cheeks, or buy them from your friendly butcher. If they aren't already cleaned, take off the sinew and fat. Put the cheeks in a saucepan with enough stock (pork or chicken, up to you) to almost cover them, then braise them for an hour and a half. They should be tender but not falling apart.

Pat them dry and chill them until they are cool to the touch. Dredge the cheeks first in a beaten egg, then panko bread crumbs seasoned with salt and freshly ground pepper; do it again, and then deep-fry them in lard.

You're welcome.