Molho de fígado is one of the foods made on Corvo at the pig slaughter: pork liver and meat cut small, seasoned with garlic, wine or vinegar and spices, then cooked slowly.
It was part of the island's winter fare, alongside torresmo, linguiça and morcela. It is eaten hot, with boiled potatoes or sweet potatoes.
Method
Cut the liver, pork, heart and tongue, if using, into small cubes, and finely dice the back fat.
Mix the crushed garlic with the wine, vinegar, pepper paste, cumin, allspice, black pepper and a little salt.
Coat the meats in this marinade, cover and leave in the fridge for two days. Stir now and then.
In a wide pan, melt the back fat over a low heat until it releases its fat.
Add the meats with their marinade and cook gently for about 1 hour, stirring from time to time, until the meat is tender and the sauce has reduced. Add a splash of water if it gets too dry.
Check the seasoning and serve hot with boiled potatoes or sweet potatoes.
Tips
- Two seasonings are recorded on Corvo: one with just vinegar, garlic, salt and allspice, and another with wine, cumin, red pepper paste, allspice and black pepper. This recipe combines them. For the vinegar-only version, leave out the wine, cumin, pepper paste and black pepper, and add a splash of water during cooking.
- For softer liver, marinate it separately and add it only for the last 15 to 20 minutes of cooking.
- Heart and tongue are traditional but optional; if you leave them out, use more pork. Blanch and peel the tongue before cutting it.
- If you have no red pepper paste, crush roasted red pepper with a little salt. The paste is often salty, so season carefully.
- It goes well with fried or scrambled eggs. It keeps in the fridge for three to four days and tastes better the next day.
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