MAKE THE CUT
Gareth Stewart, dish columnist and executive chef of the Nourish Group’s Andiamo, shares his recipe for Pork Cheek and Ricotta Tortellini
Chef Gareth Stewart serves up a Pork Cheek and Ricotta Tortellini.
My first truly delicious mouthful of tortellini was devoured during my time at Claridge’s hotel in London – the dish really upped the ante in terms of pasta (of course, lobster was the hero filling).
However you don’t need fancy ingredients to serve up impressive tortellini. Here I’ve created a recipe opting for seasonal ingredients that are easily sourced – the result is a hearty comfort meal to enjoy with a bold glass of malbec.
The key to nailing home-made tortellini is practice. Also, make sure to use a timer when you’re cooking them!
Pork Cheek and Ricotta Tortellini, Broth and Pesto TORTELLINI FILLING
1 carrot, peeled, diced ½cm
1 stick celery, diced ½cm
1 leek, trimmed, diced ½cm
1 onion, diced ½cm
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pork cheeks, skin removed
100 grams guanciale or pancetta 150ml white wine (I used pinot gris) 1 litre chicken stock
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil sea salt and ground pepper
130 grams fresh ricotta
60 grams parmesan
2 tablespoons chopped parsley, plus extra to serve
BASIL PESTO
50 grams pine nuts, toasted, cooled 50 grams parmesan, grated 5 cloves garlic
30 grams basil, chopped
100ml extra virgin olive oil
75ml light olive oil
PASTA DOUGH
3 egg yolks (75 grams) 4 whole eggs (160 grams) 2 teaspoons olive oil 1 tablespoon saffron water
(see Cook’s note)
500 grams pasta flour (‘00’) fine polenta for sprinkling
EQUIPMENT:
Line an ovenproof dish with baking paper and cut a second piece of baking paper to the same size (to use as a cartouche).
Set a pasta machine aside.
TORTELLINI FILLING:
Divide the carrot, celery, leek and onion between two bowls.
Heat the canola oil in a large frying pan. Add the pork cheeks and brown on all sides. Remove from the pan and sit in a colander.
Add 1 bowl of vegetables and the guanciale or pancetta to the same pan and sauté, making sure that the veges are sautéed evenly.
Deglaze the pan with the white wine, add the chicken stock and pour the mixture into the ovenproof dish. Add the pork cheeks and thyme, cover the surface with the cartouche and cover the dish with tinfoil. Cook the cheeks for 3½ hours, or until the meat is very tender.
Remove the dish from the oven and allow the pork cheeks to cool in the liquid until cool enough to handle.
Remove the cheeks and the guanciale from the cooking liquid and set aside. Strain, reserving the cooking liquid and strained vegetables separately.
Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan, add the second bowl of vegetables and sweat for a few minutes, making sure they don’t colour. Season with salt and pepper, then add the reserved pork cheek cooking liquid. Keep warm.
Pull apart the cooled meat, place in a bowl and mix in the reserved strained vegetables, the ricotta, parmesan and parsley. Mix well and adjust the seasoning. Roll into 20-gram balls and set aside.
PESTO:
Blend the pine nuts, parmesan and garlic in a food processor or blender. Add the basil and blend. Add the oils and blend again. The quicker you blend the pesto, the greener it will be as the blender will warm it up if it’s on too long and this will affect the colour and flavour. Set aside.
PASTA DOUGH:
In a jug, mix the egg yolks and whole eggs together with the olive oil and saffron water.
Place the flour in a bowl, make a well in the centre, add the wet mixture and mix together. Knead the dough for 5 minutes and then set aside to rest for at least 20 minutes before rolling.
Roll out the pasta dough to the last setting on the pasta machine. Put it through this setting 3 times to make sure it is thin enough.
Cut the pasta into 18 x 10cm squares. Sprinkle fine polenta on a tray and bring a large pot of salted water to the boil.
Make around 6 tortellini at a time so that the pasta dough doesn’t dry out. Take one pasta square, wet two of the edges with water and place a ball of filling in the centre. Fold over the filling diagonally and push all the air out, making sure that the edges are sealed. You should now be left with a triangle. Trim the sides up to keep them neat; take the two outer corners and wet one of them. Take the dry side and pull it round to link to the other side. Place the finished tortellini on the prepared tray and repeat with the remaining pasta and filling.
Cook the tortellini in the pot of boiling water for 4 minutes.
TO SERVE:
Add the tortellini to the broth. Divide between bowls, dollop over pesto and garnish with parsley. SERVES 6 Cook’s note: Make the saffron water by soaking a good pinch of saffron threads in 3 tablespoons water for 5 minutes.