Chef Isabel
Berenjenas Fritas con Miel de Caña
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Flamenquín de Córdoba
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Flamenquín de Córdoba is Andaluz comfort food with a Cordoban surname: pork loin beaten thin, rolled around jamón serrano, breaded cleanly, and fried until the crust turns golden and the inside stays juicy.
Appetizers & Snacks
Spanish
Comfort Food
Game Day
Budget Friendly
25 min
Active Time
12 min cook•1 hr 7 min total
Yield4 flamenquines
Flamenquín de Córdoba is Andaluz, and more exactly Cordoban: a long roll of pork loin wrapped around jamón serrano, breaded, and fried until the outside is golden and the meat inside stays tender. What makes it this dish and not just a breaded cutlet is the tight roll, long and firm, with the jamón hidden in the middle and its salt seasoning the pork from within.
The method that decides it is the pounding and rolling. Beat the pork thin enough to bend without tearing, overlap the slices if you need the length, then roll tightly from one end and chill it before breading. A loose flamenquín opens in the oil. A tight one fries cleanly, cuts neatly, and gives you that line of jamón through the center.
If you can't find jamón serrano where you are, use a dry-cured ham like prosciutto, but know what changes: it is usually softer and sweeter, so use less salt on the pork and keep the slice thin. No hace falta haber pisado España. You need decent pork loin, good dry-cured ham, and the patience to close the roll well. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.
Flamenquín belongs to Córdoba and the surrounding Andalusian countryside, where pork loin and cured ham from the household larder were turned into a filling fried dish that could feed generously without costly ingredients. Its origin is often argued between Cordoban towns and nearby Jaén, but the Cordoban version is the one most closely tied to the long pork-and-jamón roll served in tabernas and home kitchens. Later versions add cheese, peppers, or other fillings, but the plain lomo and jamón roll is the dish's old backbone.
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Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
thin pork loin cutlets
Quantity
8 (about 70g each)
trimmed of thick fat
jamón serrano
Quantity
8 thin slices (about 120g total)
fine salt
Quantity
6g
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1g
garlic
Quantity
1 large clove
finely grated
lemon juice
Quantity
1 tablespoon
plain flour
Quantity
60g
large eggs
Quantity
2
beaten
fine dry breadcrumbs
Quantity
120g
olive oil or mild olive oil
Quantity
600ml
for frying
lemon wedges (optional)
Quantity
4
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| thin pork loin cutletstrimmed of thick fat | 8 (about 70g each) |
| jamón serrano | 8 thin slices (about 120g total) |
| fine salt | 6g |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1g |
| garlicfinely grated | 1 large clove |
| lemon juice | 1 tablespoon |
| plain flour | 60g |
| large eggsbeaten | 2 |
| fine dry breadcrumbs | 120g |
| olive oil or mild olive oilfor frying | 600ml |
| lemon wedges (optional) | 4 |
Equipment Needed
- •Meat mallet or rolling pin
- •Deep frying pan or wide heavy saucepan
- •Kitchen thermometer
- •Tongs
- •Wire rack
Instructions
- 1
Flatten the pork
Lay the pork cutlets between two sheets of baking paper and beat them with a meat mallet or rolling pin until they are about 3mm thick. Work from the center outward, gently. You want wide, flexible pieces that roll without tearing, not ragged meat full of holes.
Ask the butcher for lomo de cerdo cut thin for flamenquines if you can. If the slices are small, overlap two pieces by 2cm before rolling. - 2
Season lightly
Mix the salt, pepper, grated garlic, and lemon juice. Rub a very little over the pork, mostly on the outside faces. Go gently with the salt because the jamón will season the inside as it fries. Pésalo, no lo adivines: too much salt is the one mistake you can't undo.
- 3
Roll with jamón
Lay one slice of jamón over each flattened pork cutlet, trimming or folding it so it stays inside the edges. Roll from the short end into a tight cylinder, tucking as you go. Set the rolls seam-side down on a tray, cover, and chill for 30 minutes so they hold their shape in the oil.
- 4
Bread the rolls
Put the flour, beaten eggs, and breadcrumbs in three shallow dishes. Roll each flamenquín first in flour, shaking off the excess, then in egg, then in breadcrumbs. Press the crumbs on firmly, especially over the seam and the ends. A closed crust keeps the pork juicy and the oil clean.
- 5
Fry until golden
Heat the oil in a deep frying pan to 175C. Fry the flamenquines two at a time, turning often, until evenly golden and cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes. The oil should bubble steadily, not rage. If the crust darkens too fast, lower the heat and give the pork time to finish.
- 6
Rest and serve
Lift the rolls to a rack or paper-lined tray and let them rest for 3 minutes. Cut on a slight angle if serving as a snack, or leave whole with fried potatoes and a little salad. The crust should be crisp under the knife, the pork juicy, and the jamón visible in a clean rose line through the middle.
Chef Tips
- •Do not add cheese if what you want is the Cordoban flamenquín. Cheese belongs to later versions and it leaks in the fryer. The old dish is pork loin and jamón, plain and good.
- •Jamón serrano is right here. If you can't get it, use very thin prosciutto or another dry-cured ham, but salt the pork less because the cure and sweetness change from one ham to another.
- •Use fine dry breadcrumbs, not large coarse flakes. The crust should seal tight around a long roll, and big crumbs leave gaps where oil gets in.
- •A thermometer helps. At 175C the crust browns while the pork cooks through; too cool and the breading drinks oil, too hot and the outside is done before the center is safe.
- •Serve it with fried potatoes, a simple lettuce salad, and lemon if you like. That's enough. A sauce that hides the crust is not doing you any favors.
Advance Preparation
- •The pork can be flattened, filled, rolled, and chilled up to 8 hours ahead. Keep the rolls covered and bread them just before frying.
- •Breaded flamenquines can rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before frying; this helps the crust set and the seam stay closed.
- •Leftovers keep one day in the refrigerator. Reheat on a rack in a 180C oven until the crust firms again; the microwave softens the breading.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 240g)
Calories
800 calories
Total Fat
52 g
Saturated Fat
10 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
42 g
Cholesterol
205 mg
Sodium
1600 mg
Total Carbohydrates
34 g
Dietary Fiber
2 g
Sugars
2 g
Protein
48 g
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