The Unofficial Cook

Adobo is the acknowledged Philippine national dish.

When Eldest Sister went on a diet years ago, you could ask her kids what her favorite dish was and they’d all say, “Adobo Kangkong.” Yup, you can cook vegetables, meats, seafood (mussels adobo is fantastic) and fish using this method.  You’ll probably find this dish anywhere you might  land on any of the 7,100 islands of the Philippines.

Chicken and Pork Adobo is the most common and favored.  I came up with my own version a couple of years back.  It’s nothing complicated, just a last minute splash of balsamic vinegar before turning off the heat.  Then a sprinkling of extra virgin olive oil before serving.  But my goodness…it does make a difference. The Ilocanos in northern Philippines must be familiar with the taste.  Balsamic vinegar tastes very similar to basi vinegar of the region.  This recipe is the regular adobo.

Start by marinating a pound and a half pork ribs cut in bite-size pieces, 3 skinless chicken thighs in 1/4 c. soy sauce, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, 6 crushed, big cloves of garlic , a bay leaf, a pinch oregano, salt and a few black peppercorns.  Cover and marinate in the refrigerator at least 4 hours.

Transfer to a heavy pan or kawali (Philippine-made wok) with half a cup of water and bring to a boil.  Cover and let simmer for an hour and a half or until pork is tender.  Stir occasionally and make sure you don’t run out of broth.  When the pork is tender, adjust flavors.  Some people like their adobo sour, some like it darker, as I do.  Some people even prefer their adobo without the soy sauce, and use fish sauce instead.  I’ve tried that and like it too.

Bring up the heat to medium to allow for reduction of the sauce.  The fats will be rendered at this point and you can stir-fry your meats in its own fats until it’s a color and consistency you prefer.  The kitchen will smell very garlicky by then.

My father would add more crushed garlic to brown with the meats at about this time.  Thats’ also very flavorful.  Some people will set aside some of the sauce to put on top of their rice.  You can also fry some cold rice in the same pan you cooked your adobo…this is what we call Adobo Rice and it’s a great way to pick up all the luscious bits left in your pan.

At my parent’s home, we always had adobo with the Ilocano staple, “dinengdeng” with fresh bamboo shoots and saluyot (Egyptian spinach) leaves.  This time, I’m serving my adobo with steamed jasmine rice and tomato slices.

Pacific Crossings: A Philippine Cookbook