Chef Gikas Xenakis shares his Pork Cheeks with sour Trahana recipe | The Kitchen

Gikas Xenakis is the top chef of Aleria, an award-winning restaurant in Athens serving trendy Greek delicacies.

Born and raised within the Greek countryside, Chef Xenakis’ delicacies revolves round contemporary and native merchandise, evoking the good variety of not solely the Greek countryside but in addition his mom’s cooking. He shares with The Kitchen his recipe for pork cheeks with bitter Trahana (frumenty) recipe, a scrumptious dish made that includes the traditional Greek pasta-like Trahana. It's decadent, refined, and excellent for the chilly months of the yr.

Chef Gikas XenakisAleria restaurant

Trahana is a kind of historical wheat product that is eaten in Greece and the japanese Mediterranean. Thought-about the primary Greek pasta, it's a wholesome and nutritious ingredient that pairs exceptionally properly with braised meat. Every area has its personal native recipe with Trahana.

Gikas Xenakis's Pork cheeks with bitter Trahana (frumenty) recipe

Cooking time: 2.5 hours

Serves: 4

Elements:

• 1 kg of pork cheek Iberico
• 100 grams of flour
• 50 grams of carrots
• 50 grams of celery
• 50 grams of onions
• 100 ml pink wine
• 1 garlic clove
• Recent thyme
• 600 ml hen demi-glace (Demi-glace is solely a wealthy inventory and a standard ingredient of French delicacies. Demi-Glace is made by lowering broth till it is thick and full of flavour. You will get use high quality store-bought, however in fact, it is going to be higher if you happen to make it your self. There are various Youtube movies explaining easy methods to. It's not a lot work, but it surely does require time on the range)
• Salt
• Pepper
• 200 ml olive oil

For the bitter Trahana (frumenty):

• 200 grams of bitter Trahana (frumenty)
• 700 grams of hen inventory
• 60 ml of olive oil
• 50 grams of grated Greek graviera cheese
• 30 grams of butter
• 5 grams of chives
• Salt
• Pepper

Technique:

For the pork cheeks:

1. Preheat the oven to 160 Celcius.
2. Sauté all greens in a big oven-proof pan with 100 ml of olive oil till smooth, about 6-8 minutes.
3. Add pink wine to the veggies and scale back (the alcohol will evaporate and a thicker liquid from the greens and the wine will stay. Don’t let it fully scale back, it can burn if not!)
4. Set a plate with the flour, coat the cheeks on each side, then season with salt and pepper.
5. Set one other saucepan to excessive warmth, add 100 ml of olive oil and brown the pork cheeks on each side.
6. Now add the pork cheeks to the vegetable oven-proof pan, add the hen demi-glace, cowl it (oven-proof cowl or aluminium foil) and bake for two hours.

For the Trahana (frumenty):

1. Heat up the hen broth till simmering.
2. Place a big pan to medium-low and add 60 ml of olive oil. Now sauté the Trahana for about 2 minutes.
3. Now stir sufficient simmering inventory to only cowl the Trahana. Cook dinner, stirring typically and vigorously till inventory is nearly absorbed.
4. Repeat. You have to proceed so as to add the hen broth (regularly, simply as you'll with a risotto) till Trahana is cooked, about 12-Quarter-hour. When it is prepared it must be smooth and creamy. Add butter and grated Graviera cheese.
5. Serve with the meat on high.

Pair with a Xinomavro, essentially the most well-known pink selection in northern Greece. Excellent for braised meat. I like to recommend Ramnista wine from Kir-Yianni vineyard in Naoussa.