Febras assadas — Portuguese barbecued pork escalopes marinated in white wine and paprika, grilled fast and piled onto crisp twice-cooked chips. Smoky, juicy and moreish.
- 2 Pork
- 200ml White Wine
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- 2 Lemon
- 1/2 Lemon Juice
- Dash Olive Oil
- To serve Mayonnaise
- 1 kg Potatoes
- For frying Vegetable Oil
Video
Preparation
- Cut the tenderloins into 5 equal pieces, leaving the tail ends a little longer. Slip one piece into a clear plastic bag and bash with a rolling pin into an escalope the size of a side-plate, then repeat with the remaining pieces.
- Put the wine, paprika, some salt and pepper and the juice of ½ a lemon in a bowl and add the pork. Leave to marinate for 20–30 minutes while you get your barbecue to the stage where the coals are glowing but there are no flames.
- For the chips, fill a basin with cool water and cut the potatoes into 3cm-thick chips. Soak for 5 minutes, change the water, and leave for 5 minutes more, then drain and pat dry.
- Heat the oil in a deep fryer or heavy pan to 130C and lower the chips in, in batches, to blanch for 8–10 minutes. Remove, drain well, and cool on a tray. Reheat the oil to 180C (make sure it's hot or the chips will be soggy) and fry the chips again in batches for 2 minutes, give them a shake, then cook for another minute or so until well coloured and crisp. Drain, tip into a bowl, and sprinkle with sea salt.
- The pork cooks quickly, so do it in 2 batches. Take the pieces out of the marinade, rub with oil, and drop onto the barbecue (or a chargrill). Cook for 1 minute on each side — they may flare up, and this is enough as they keep cooking. Pile onto a plate and repeat with the rest.
- Serve by piling a plate with chips, dropping the pork on top, and pouring over the juices so the chips take up the flavours. Top with a spoon of mayonnaise and a wedge of lemon.
