Cachopo

Ingredients

• 4 veal or beef escalopes, pounded evenly to 5 mm maximum
• jamón, sliced
• Cabrales or Afuega'l Pitu cheese, sliced or crumbled; sufficient quantity to melt fully — do not skimp
• For the breading
• plain flour
• eggs, beaten
• fine breadcrumbs
• fine salt and black pepper
• olive oil, for frying; enough to submerge the cachopo adequately
• To serve
• roasted red peppers, chips, or salad, as customary in Asturian sidrerías

Method

1. 1
   Pound each escalope on a board to an even 5 mm. Season both surfaces with salt and black pepper. The meat must be uniformly flat — any thick patch will prevent the crust from setting before the interior overcooks. The seasoned surface should show no tears.
2. 2
   Lay two escalopes flat. Distribute the jamón across each in an even layer, leaving a clear border of at least 1 cm around all edges. Lay the cheese over the jamón in a generous, even layer — it must be present in sufficient quantity to melt into a liquid core. Too little cheese will disappear entirely during frying.
3. 3
   Place the remaining escalopes on top. Press firmly around the entire perimeter with fingertips to seal the edges completely. This is where the dish lives or dies: any breach in the seal will allow the filling to escape into the oil, where it burns and is lost. Run a finger along every edge — there must be no gap.
4. 4
   Set up the breading in three wide dishes: flour, beaten egg, fine breadcrumbs. Dredge each sealed cachopo in flour, shaking off any excess, then pass through the egg, ensuring full coverage, then press firmly into the breadcrumbs on both sides and along all sealed edges. The surface must show a complete, unbroken coat of crumbs with no bare patches.
5. 5
   At this stage the cachopo may be refrigerated, uncovered, until ready to fry. Bring the oil to 175°C in a vessel wide enough to hold the cachopo. A cube of bread dropped in should colour to deep gold in roughly 30 seconds. Too low a temperature causes the breading to absorb fat before it crisps.
6. 6
   Lower the cachopo carefully into the oil. Fry, turning once, until the crust is a deep, even golden brown on both sides and the internal temperature reaches 65°C — the minimum required to melt the cheese fully. The crust must be firm and deeply coloured, not pale. Lift and drain briefly.
7. 7
   Serve immediately on warmed plates with roasted red peppers, chips, or salad. When cut at the table, the interior must reveal a liquid core of melted cheese. The cheese begins to set as the cachopo cools — delay is not an option.