Chicharrón Prensado. Pressed Pork Chicharron Two Ways!
Compact, convenient and easy chicharron prensado recipes! Pressed pork chicharron is a time saver when you are craving chicharron and carnitas with authentic flavors!
Servings 6 Servings
Equipment
- Blender
- Large skillet
Ingredients
Chicharron Prensado Recipe 1
- 4 chile california or guajillo stems and seeds removed
- 1/2 small onion
- 3-5 cloves of garlic
- 2 serrano peppers
- 3 Roma tomatoes
- 1/2-1 tsp oregano
- 3/4 c water
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 tbsps pork lard
- 1 lb pressed chicharron cubed
Chicharron Prensado Recipe 2
- Avocado oil
- 6-8 cloves of garlic, depending on size peeled
- 4 chile California or guajillo stems and seeds removed
- 4-6 chile de arbol stems removed
- 2 serrano peppers stems removed
- 3 Roma tomatoes
- 4 cups Water
- 1/2-1 tsp Oregano
- Salt to taste
- 1 med. white onion, sliced into thin strips
- 1 lb chicharron prensado, cubed
Instructions
Chicharron Prensado Recipe 1
- To prepare this easy salsa, add the first eight ingredients to the blender. That's right, no precooked ingredients! Secure lid and blend on high until very smooth. If you are using a power blender, such as a vitamix, there is no straining required. Otherwise, you may need to strain the sauce using a wire mesh strainer into a bowl.
- To a large skillet, preheat 2-3 tbsps of pork lard at medium heat. After a few minutes, pour in the red chile sauce from the blender into the hot oil. Essentially, you will fry the sauce/salsa to cook and develop the flavors before adding the pork.
- The sauce should thicken and reduce slightly. Make sure to taste for salt along the way.
Chicharron Prensado Recipe 2
- In a skillet at medium heat, drizzle in 1 1/2 teaspoons of oil. Add the dried chiles, serrano peppers and garlic. After a few minutes when it begins to sizzle, stir and flip ingredients for another 1-2 minutes. Pour in 1 cup of water and bring up to a light simmer. Remove from the heat and let sit for 10 minutes.
- In a separate pot, add the roma tomatoes to simmering water. Cook gently until skins from tomatoes begin to tear open. Remove from heat.
- In a large deep skillet at medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the sliced onions. Saute for 7-8 minutes or until onions begin to caramelize a bit.
- Add the cubed chicharron to the skillet with onions. Stir well to combine and let cook for 6-7 minutes.
- To the blender, add all ingredients from skillet with chiles and garlic, including the water. Add the roma tomatoes. Pour in 3/4 cup of the cooking water from the tomatoes. Add oregano and salt to taste. Blend on high until very smooth.
- Continue cooking at a steady simmer, turning heat down slightly, until the sauce reduces and chicharron becomes thick. Taste for salt. Serve as is for tacos, gorditas, sopes, burritos and more! This version, I chilled overnight and used it to prepare tamales! See link for Tamales!
Notes
After preparing both versions, recipe 2 was my favorite. Taking the time to fry the sauce ingredients lightly adds more flavor in the end. The sauteed onions added more flavor too, especially if you let them begin to caramelize. The tamal filled with chicharron was absolutely delicious. See links highlighted in blue to get all the details on how to prepare masa for tamales and how to prepare and steam them.