I wonder have I ever tried a cherry pie? Maybe I did in my youth or perhaps I saw so many in American movies while growing up in the 1980s, I somehow imagined that I had eaten a slice or two. Are they eating cherry pie during that famous scene in Stand By Me? That film certainly coloured my childhood but not in terms of cherry pie.
If you have not noticed, cherry season is upon us. You should encounter bunches of both sweet and sour cherries in both farmers’ markets and supermarkets.
Do please go for the Irish ones; they’ve travelled less and in my experience have a better flavour. Don’t be deceived though by their appearance. Sometimes the shiny ones taste of nothing, while the rough-looking ones have an incredibly sweet taste.
Other than making a jam or a pie filling with them, cherries also pair nicely with pork. A pan-fried chop with a few cherries thrown in at the last moment and finished with a glass of amontillado sherry. That’s the dark brown dry sherry. It has a wonderful nutty quality. If you can, get a free-range pork chop on the bone. The bone helps conduct the heat through the meat and stop it from drying out as much.
You can also make a nice savoury sauce with cherries. Halve them and place them in a jar with a 3 per cent brine solution for a few days. That’s 3 per cent salt water, so 9g of salt for 300ml of water. This will give them a slightly sour quality due to the fermentation. Strain the contents in a pot and add 15g of fresh dillisk (if its dried, just rehydrate in warm water). Add a tablespoon of sugar and a pinch of sea salt and bring to the boil. Simmer for 25 minutes. Blend in a food processor until smooth.
Not only does this go well with pork, it also works with meaty fish, like pan-fried monkfish or grilled tuna. A few flame-roasted cherries will do nicely on the side.
