
Recipes
Pork Cheeks
By Dan Van Rite
Dan Van Rite also found his muse in a familial female – his mother. His mom used to make pork chops in a crock pot with apple juice, apples and cabbage. But he’s switched the prep to a pressure cooker and the chops to pork cheeks, cooked in apple cider. He serves them with a slaw of napa cabbage and granny smith apples in a buttermilk, herb and lemongrass dressing.
Ingredients
Serves 2 to 3
Pork Cheeks:
2 pounds pork cheeks, cleaned
1 cup apple cider
3 garlic cloves
1 onion, sliced
Salad:
2 Granny Smith apples, julienned
1 pound brussels sprouts, shaved thin on a mandoline
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 shallot, diced
1 cup olive oil
Juice of 2 lemons
Instructions
Pork Cheeks:
Pressure cook on high pressure for 30 minutes and then let the pressure release naturally. Once cool, take out the pork cheeks and reduce the liquid by half. Use the liquid to reheat and glaze the pork cheeks.
Salad:
Mix apples, brussels sprouts, parmesan and herbs in a bowl. In a blender, combine the lemon juice, buttermilk and shallot, then slowly pour in your olive oil and blend to emulsify.
Plating/Serving:
Dress the apple/brussels sprouts salad and lay it in a bed on the plate. Take the braising liquid and reduce it down until it gets to a syrupy consistency. Toss the pork cheeks in the braising glaze until coated. Lay the pork cheeks on top of the salad. Then, drizzle what's left of the braising syrup on top and garnish with fresh dill.
Pro Tips
1
Make a stock in an Instant Pot. You can use chicken bones (backs, necks, feet etc.). Toss them on a roasting pan and roast in the oven at 350 degrees for an hour, or until brown. Take them out of the oven and put them in the Instant Pot.
2
Deglaze the roasting pan with a half-cup of water or white wine. Scrape until all of the brown bits are up. Dump the whole thing into the Instant Pot. Add 1 yellow onion (rough chopped), 1 carrot (rough chopped), 1 stalk of celery (rough chopped), 2 bay leaves and 3 cloves of garlic. Add two quarts of water, cover and set on high pressure for one hour. Let it naturally release (keeping the lid on) and then strain it.
Bio
Dan Jacobs and Dan Van Rite are the head chefs and owners of two successful Milwaukee restaurants: DanDan, a Chinese-American mainstay and EsterEv, a fine dining tasting menu-only restaurant located inside of DanDan. The two chefs began working together in 2016 and have since built what Eater National touted as “a mini Milwaukee empire,” attributing the success to their unique partnership and incredible team. Their acclaimed restaurants have been recognized nationally, landing Jacobs and Van Rite on the list of semifinalists for the 2018, 2019, 2022 and 2023 James Beard Awards: Best Chef Midwest category.

Dan Van Rite
DanDan and EsterEv
Dan Van Rite
DanDan and EsterEv