THE BEST PORK ADOBO RECIPE

If there's any food that reminds everyone of the Philippines, it's probably Pork Adobo. Even famous foreign celebrities that are being interviewed here, they usually say how much they love this dish. It is actually considered as the national dish because of its popularity.

I want to share this recipe to all Overseas Filipino Workers around the world. I know it's really hard to work abroad and live far away from your family. But having this dish can help you find comfort and relief especially when you are longing for home.

This is very easy to prepare, has long storage life and keeps well without refrigiration. Every Filipino family has its own version of this dish. I want you to try this one and tell me what's on your mind.

INGREDIENTS:

1 kilo pork (I always use pork belly in Adobo), chopped

2 tbsp garlic, minced

6 pcs dried bay leaves

1 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup vinegar

1 cup water

1 tbsp whole peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon sugar

all in one seasoning granules (as usual, I used Maggi Magic Sarap)

hard boiled eggs (optional)



COOKING PROCEDURES:

1. Prepare the marinade of soy sauce, vinegar, water, peppercorns and bay leaves. (do not stir)

2. In a large saucepan combine meat and marinade, cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes or until meat is tender. (Again, DO NOT STIR OR THE VINEGAR WILL HAVE A "RAW" TASTE. MAKE SURE YOU'RE COOKING OVER VERY LOW HEAT.)

3. Remove pork from the sauce. Set aside in two different bowls.

4. Heat up oil in a saucepan. Saute garlic. Cook the pork for about 3-5 minutes.

4. Pour the marinade and hard boiled eggs.

5. Add all in one seasoning granules and sugar to taste. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

ENJOY!! :)

Read more »

PORK ESTOFADO RECIPE

This dish might sound Spanish but this is an original Filipino dish. It was just given a Spanish name and the word "estofado" means stewed or pot-roasted. This is actually similar to Adobo.

Pork Estofado is made up of pork stewed in soy sauce and vinegar, mixed with plantains or saging na saba (a type of banana used in many savory dishes) that adds sweetness to it and really makes the dish more appetizing. Others add carrots and potatoes. Others used to fry the plantains first but I don't prefer doing that because for me, it'll just ruin the true flavour of the banana.

So, let's get down to it and I'm sure you'll love the idea of having plantains in some of your dishes.

INGREDIENTS:

1 kilo pork, cubed

3 pieces dried bay leaves

1 tablespoon whole peppercorn

4-5 plantain, sliced diagonally into 1inch

1/2 cup vinegar

3/4 cup soy sauce

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup water

5 tablespoons minced garlic

cooking oil

all in one seasoning granules



COOKING PROCEDURES:

1. Saute garlic in a cooking pot until it turns golden brown.

2. Add the pork and cook for 10 minutes over low heat.

3. Put-in soy sauce, water, dried bay leaves, whole peppercorns and vinegar then bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes or until meat is tender. (DO NOT STIR OR THE VINEGAR WILL HAVE A "RAW" TASTE. MAKE SURE YOU'RE COOKING OVER VERY LOW HEAT.)

4. Add sugar, all in one seasoning granules and bananas then simmer for 10 more minutes.

ENJOY!!

Read more »

LECHON KAWALI (Crispy Pork Belly) RECIPE

Some of you might get confused because there's this very famous food in the Philippines, which is also the national dish, called Lechon. It is cooked in a pit that is full of flamed charcoal. Unlike this one, Lechon Kawali, is cooked by just boiling and deep frying the pork in a pan. This is also called as pan-roasted pork or crispy pork belly.


I really love this dish although it is very high in cholesterol. It is just very irresistible and once you eat it, you'll surely ask for more.


For the sauce, you can use vinegar with soy sauce, onion and garlic. Others prefer using this famous lechon sauce, called Mang Tomas.

INGREDIENTS:

- 1 kilo Liempo (pork belly)

- 2 tablespoon salt 

- 1/2 tablespoon peppercorns

- 4 cloves garlic; pounded

- 1 bottle soda, Sprite or 7Up (optional)

- Cooking oil

- Water, for boiling

COOKING PROCEDURES:

1. Boil water with salt, garlic, peppercorn, and soda. Add pork and continue boiling until meat is tender. Strain pork and let it cool down for a few minutes.

2. Spread 1 tbsp of salt on the meat, make sure to distribute it evenly on all sections. You can also use All-in-one seasoning granules.

3. Deep fry in hot cooking oil until golden brown and crispy.

4. Chop the lechon kawali. Serve it with lechon sauce or vinegar with soy sauce, garlic and onion.

Read more »

CALAMARES (Fried Breaded Squid) RECIPE

There's a dish in Mediterranean cuisine called Calamari. And now, I want to share with you the Filipino version of this dish. It is called, Calamares.


There's actually no big difference at all between the two, except for the spelling of course, and the dipping sauce. Calamari is sometimes dipped in tomato based sauce while Calamares is often dipped in soy sauce with calamansi (lemon). Others prefer spiced vinegar. Sometimes, I like it more with a mayonnaise based dressing. You can use mayo, a touch of mustard and some drops of calamansi or lemon, then stir. This is really famous in the Philippines either with rice or with ice cold beer.

INGREDIENTS: 


- 1kg medium-sized squid
- 2 raw eggs, beaten
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 5 pcs calamansi or 1pc lemon
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup oil


COOKING PROCEDURES: 


1. Clean the squid very well, remove the head, ink sacs, discard the tentacles. Slice the squid into rings that are about 1/2 inch thick.


2. Combine squid, calamansi juice, salt and ground black pepper and then mix well. Let it stand for about 15 minutes.


3. Dip squid rings in beaten egg, dredge in flour and roll over breadcrumbs.


4. Deep-fry the squid for only 2 to 3 minutes. DO NOT OVERCOOK. It will toughen the squid.


5. Remove the fried squid rings from the wok and drain on paper towels.


6. Serve with your prefered dipping sauce. (see introduction).

Read more »