TORTOS WITH CHORIZO MINCE, FRIED EGGS & CABRALES CHEESE

Place the P.A.N. pre-cooked white corn flour, the wheat flour, and the salt in a bowl and mix them lightly with a spoon.

Warm the water so it is slightly hot, around 40–45°C. You can do this by heating it in the microwave for a few seconds—you should be able to dip a finger in without burning yourself, but still feel the warmth.

Pour the water into the bowl and use the spoon to mix so the flours absorb the liquid.

Knead it slightly with your hands—you’ll notice it’s sticky. Shape it into a ball or simply compact it, then leave it in the bowl covered with a damp cloth for 1 hour at room temperature.

Divide the dough into 12 portions and shape them into small balls. Ideally, weigh the dough, divide its total weight by 12, and then weigh each ball to make sure they all match that weight.

Prepare a saucepan filled halfway with oil and heat it over medium heat until it reaches 170°C. You can check this with a kitchen thermometer; if you don’t have one, I’ll explain below how to tell when it’s ready.

Roll out the dough balls using a rolling pin, placing the dough between baking paper or plastic wrap—whichever you prefer. They should be thin but not too thin, as shown in the photo.

This dough breaks easily, so carefully peel it off the paper and place it directly into the saucepan to fry. What I usually do is roll it out almost at the same time as I’m frying.

The tortos puff up, meaning the dough fills with air inside and both sides remain joined only at the edges. Here you can see the full sequence: first, we add the dough to the oil and it bubbles vigorously.

Suddenly, you’ll see it start to puff up. After a few seconds it will be fully inflated, and that’s the moment to flip it over.

Aguanta otros 5 o 10 segundos más y saca el torto del aceite con ayuda de una espumadera y déjalo sobre un plato con papel de cocina para que absorba el exceso de aceite.

Hold it for another 5 to 10 seconds, then remove the torto from the oil using a slotted spoon and place it on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

Now we move on to preparing the fried eggs. This comes down to personal taste, so I’ll explain how I do it in case you like them the same way. Heat a frying pan over medium heat with just enough oil to cover the bottom. When the oil is hot, crack in the egg and cook it for about 1 minute—just enough for the bottom to turn lightly golden, the white to set, and the yolk to remain runny. Transfer it to a plate, sprinkle with a little salt, and repeat with the remaining eggs.

For the chorizo mince, simply open the chorizos and remove the casing. Keep the meat and crumble it with your hands or chop it with a knife.

Cook it in a frying pan (you can use the same one as for the eggs, removing excess oil) with a little oil for a couple of minutes over medium heat.

Place the tortos on a plate accompanied by the fried eggs, the chorizo mince, and a few pieces of Cabrales cheese. You can arrange everything together in the center or serve it directly on each diner’s plate.