I have been raving about Cuban food. You may have heard me. Not only do I find it delicious, but I love the fact that it is organic, without processed condiments and super tasty. Cuba is the only place where I find myself constantly satisfied (and sometimes way overfull in a food coma!) yet I always come back lighter… no, not because I got a tummy bug and not because I have done so much more strenuous exercise. I put it down to the fact that I get genuine wholesome food there.
Given the fact that pork is one of the all time favorites there, it’s also definitely not fat free eating. In fact one of our go to snacks there is called Chicharrones. A by product of making a roast pork… it is literally fried fat (yes, you heard that right!) and fried skin. Crispy and delicious.
And since Yoanis was making some… I thought it’s the best time to capture how this little delicacy is made in case you wanted to try it…
He makes it look easy, doesn’t he?
Let’s re-cap, what do you need to make chicharrones?
We used a pork leg in this instance. It wasn’t too big, about 2kgs. But the bigger it is the more chicharrones you end up with.
First step is to remove the top layer of fat with the skin from the meat.
Next slice up the skin and fat into about 1.5 cm wide strips. Then separate the skin and the fat and cute both into 1 cm cubes. Make sure you also keep them separate for cooking as they take different duration to cook.
Once you cut them up into the desired size add some salt. And it is ready to be cooked!
Get a fry pan, small deep, non-stick is amazing for it.
Add a little bit of oil to the plan so the fat doesn’t stick to the bottom and add the fat. Medium heat works well to cook the fat till it turns golden brown. Once ready take the fat bits out of the pan and into a bowl. Make sure you let it cool before you try it!
Then cool the oil down a little before adding the skin. Make sure you also have your pan on a low fire for cooking the skin, and also use a cover as you’ll find the oil will be splattering.
The skin at first will turn white, before it turns golden brown. Make sure that you’ll stir it occasionally.
Perfect little snack for that afternoon beer! (PS. It’s keto!)
Enjoy!
Want to learn more Cuban Cooking? Our Soul of Cuba tour brings you authentic Cuban cooking in the heart of Havana. Join us.
