How to cook adobo and other classic Pinoy dishes

Learning how to cook adobo is a rite of passage for almost all Filipinos. And for mothers, particularly stay-at-home moms, being able to cook adobo and other classic Pinoy dishes is an important skill to have — even something to boast about.

That’s why we compiled a list of the most delicious and most popular Filipino recipes that your family will absolutely enjoy!

Adobo is a dish that’s so simple to prepare, yet so delicious! | Photo from: wikimedia commons

Adobo is considered by many Filipinos as the unofficial national dish of the Philippines. Every Filipino, even those who were born abroad, knows the taste and craves the taste of perfectly cooked and seasoned adobo.

Filipinos even brag about how their mother’s adobo is the best adobo there is! That’s how big of a role adobo plays in Filipino culture.

But how exactly do you prepare this wonderful dish?

1 kilo pork liempo (cubed, with fat)

1 head of garlic

1/3 cup of water

1 cup sugarcane vinegar/coconut vinegar

1 cup soy sauce

Bay leaves

Whole peppercorns

Rock salt/sea salt

The key to a good adobo is getting pork with a good amount of fat on it. Adobo is a hearty dish, and most of the flavor actually comes from the pork fat that melts during cooking. So it’s a good idea to add some pieces of pork fat when you’re cooking adobo.

1. The first step would be to take the kilo of pork and place it fat side down in a medium-sized pot.
2. Pour 1/3 cup of water on the pork to prevent it from sticking to the pot once you start cooking.
3. Next, take your head of garlic, peel off the outer layer of skin, and separate them into individual cloves. Place them on top of the pork that’s already in the pot.
4. Now pour your vinegar and soy sauce on top of the mixture, add the bay leaves, and the peppercorns.
5. Place it on medium-high heat until the strong acidity of the vinegar starts to burn off. Once you can’t smell the strong vinegar smell anymore and the mixture starts to boil, put the heat on low, cover it, and let it simmer for at least a couple of hours to make sure that the pork is nice and tender.

The key to a great adobo recipe is the ratio of soy sauce to vinegar, so it’s really up to you on how much vinegar and soy sauce you want. The important thing to remember is to let the acid in the vinegar burn off first since it can give your adobo a very sour and acidic taste.

Make sure to also taste your dish every so often during cooking so that you can adjust the flavors according to how you like it.

Additionally, you can also use chicken instead of pork when cooking your adobo. The recipe is largely the same, but the cooking time should be a bit shorter since chicken cooks much quicker than pork.

Now that you know how to cook adobo, it’s time to turn our sights to other Filipino specialties.

Of course, adobo isn’t the only dish that Filipinos love. Learning how to cook adobo is only the start. Since the Philippines is an archipelago, there are a lot of regional cuisines that utilize different ingredients and flavors.

Here are the recipes for other Filipino specialty dishes:

Bulanglang is a dish that’s not only tasty, but also healthy for your family since it consists of different vegetables! It’s also a very easy dish to prepare! Here’s the recipe:

Beef Caldereta is a luxurious dish that’s sure to make any occasion much more special. Though, you can also cook it to give your family a special treat! Watch the video below for the recipe:

Seafood Sinigang is simple to cook, but very delicious. It’s also a great alternative to the traditional sinigang na baka. Check out the recipe below:

Sources: panlasangpinoy.com, marketmanila.com

Photos from: wikimedia commons,

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