• Home
  • About
  • Recipe Archive
  • Cooking Classes
  • Cookbook
  • Press
  • Contact
  • Plate & Pencil
Menu

Appetite for China

Street Address
City, State, Zip
Phone Number

Appetite for China

  • Home
  • About
  • Recipe Archive
  • Cooking Classes
  • Cookbook
  • Press
  • Contact
  • Plate & Pencil

Pork Adobo

March 10, 2009 Diana Kuan
pork-adobo-3.jpg

I became addicted to adobo while living in Brooklyn. Albert, my roommate from Guam,  made chicken adobo one night and handed me a plate with some fat chicken thighs, a thick brown sauce with onions, and a clump of rice. Keep in mind that at this time, I was making dainty hors d'oeuvres everyday in culinary school and hadn't eaten good home-cooked braised meat in months. One bite and I was in heaven.

"What's in this?" I asked.

"Soy sauce, vinegear, honey, pepper."

"No, there's something else," I insisted.

He whipped out a small spice bottle. Mrs. Dash Original Blend. Just what his mom used to use.

Now, I know Filipino and South Pacific families each have their own ways to cook adobo, a way of stewing meat in soy sauce, vinegar, bay leaf, and black pepper. Albert's method was not the precise formula of cookbooks. He sautΓ©ed his chicken legs and wings until crispy and brown, then threw in a rice-measuring cup filled a third of the way with vinegar and two-thirds with soy sauce. He dumped in another rice cup full of water. After 15 minutes he took a bear-shaped bottle of Busy Bee honey and squeezed enough onto the chicken to make your teeth tingle just to watch. He threw Mrs. Dash into the skillet like he was scattering seeds. This haphazard cooking produced some of the most sublime chicken I had ever tasted.

I made chicken adobo, in this exact manner, every week for the next year. It was easy and hot comfort food, perfect for dinner in a chilly apartment. When I ran out of Mrs. Dash, a single sharp bay leaf provided enough flavor to do without the spice blend. I substituted brown sugar for honey, and tried cayenne, paprika, and chilis.

Recently, I started making pork adobo instead of chicken, mostly for convenience. One-inch pork cubes take half the time of chicken thighs to cook. You can use pork belly or spare ribs or another fatty cut. I threw in some cherry tomatoes, though I've seen other versions with button mushrooms or eggplant. This pork adobo recipe is adaptable and easy. And who doesn't have some soy sauce and vinegar handy?

pork-adobo-1.jpg

_____________________________

Pork Adobo

Serves 4

  • 1 1/2 pounds pork belly or spare ribs, chopped to 1-inch cubes
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup vinegar (white or apple cider)
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 8 to 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
  1. In a medium to large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat and cook the pork until brown and crispy on the outside, about 3 minutes.
  2. Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onions are caramelized, about 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce, vinegar, water, bay leaf, paprika, and black pepper. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until the sauce is slightly thickened. Stir in the brown sugar to melt.
  3. Add cherry tomatoes and cook for another minute. Serve with rice.
In Recipes Tags Filipino, Pork, Recipes
← Mochi SweetsLan Fong Yuen - More than Great Milk Tea →
My newly released cookbook, Red Hot Kitchen!    Amazon    /    Barnes & Noble    /    BAM    /    IndieBound

My newly released cookbook, Red Hot Kitchen! Amazon / Barnes & Noble / BAM / IndieBound

Upcoming Classes in NYC

  • Feb 20 - Asian Chili Sauces! A Lecture and Tasting @ Brooklyn Brainery

  • Mar 8 - Dumplings & Wontons @ Brooklyn Brainery

  • Mar 13 - Vegan Chinese Cooking @ Brooklyn Brainery

Looking for a private cooking class or corporate cooking class? Contact me!

The Chinese Takeout Cookbook: Quick and Easy Dishes to Prepare at Home
By Diana Kuan


Subscribe to my RSS feed

Let's connect on Instagram!

If you just made a big batch of XO sauce from Red Hot Kitchen (or bought a jar somewhere), consider just putting some over plain rice. Such a quick meal and so insanely good! πŸ˜‹ (Like #kimchifriedrice but even better)
For the @bostonglobe review this week @sheryljulian also tested the Korean Chilled Spicy Noodles (Bibim Guksu) and Crispy Tofu with Sweet Chili Peanut Sauce from my cookbook. Love the light and food styling! (Photos πŸ“·: @sheryljulian) 🍜πŸ₯’πŸ₯šπŸŒΆπŸ₯œ
My book was reviewed in The Boston Globe today, with the Sriracha Shakshuka recipe excerpted! Thank you @bostonglobefood & @sheryljulian for the coverage 🍳 🌢
I used to only eat tatsoi in stir-fries and soups, but began using it in salads a couple of years ago. This salad is in Red Hot Kitchen’s Sweet Chili Sauce chapter and features a blood orange and sweet chili sauce dressing. (Using colorful food to brighten up winter!) πŸ₯— 🍊 🌢
"Where can I find the best soup dumplings in New York?" I get this question all the time in classes and sometimes at book events too! If Flushing is too far away, I πŸ’―% recommend Yaso Tangbao (locations in BK & Manhattan). Soooo good, without any of those pesky long lines. πŸ˜‰ πŸ₯Ÿ πŸ’› (First posted this at @nydumplingproject)
Thank you @ediblebrooklyn & @alicialapirata for the interview and for spreading the love for XO sauce! Head to @ediblebrooklyn for my vegan version of XO. 🌢 πŸ‘©πŸ»β€πŸ³
The lovely Hetty McKinnon from @arthurstreetkitchen adapted my Mapo Tofu Ramen recipe from Red Hot Kitchen. This is her vegan version using black rice noodles (the making of it is in her IG Stories). ❀️🌢❀️ Love the beautiful colors in this bowl! (πŸ“·: @arthurstreetkitchen)
Cauliflower steaks with red curry peanut sauce - from the Thai red curry paste chapter of Red Hot Kitchen. A highly recommended easy side dish for weeknights! πŸ₯œ 🌢
Such a wonderful turnout for Red Hot Kitchen’s official launch event at @booksaremagicbk ! Had a really fun Q&A with @taste editor-in-chief @mattrodbard on cooking with Asian hot sauces. Local bookstores are the best. πŸ₯° πŸ“š A huge thank you to @booksaremagicbk for hosting and to everyone who came out! (πŸ“·: @veronicanotvictoria @deboky @jenmess)
Salon also just shared the XO sauce stir-fried rice cakes from #redhotkitchencookbook plus the video of XO sauce making at their studio. These rice cakes are absolutely delicious, especially if you’re into thick chewy noodles! @salonofficial @avery_books