Recipe for Filipino Pork Adobo

I would like to share my recipe for Pork Adobo. Of course I did not create this on my own, seeing that it's almost completely foreign in this part of the world. This is actually a popular Filipino meat dish where you can also use chicken to replace the pork. I was inspired to try this out after watching Bobby Chinn, World Asia Cafe on Asian Food Channel. Also, hubby loves the Pork Adobo at Cagayan's, so I know if I got this right, hubby will be super pleased.

This is Shortcake's first Pork Adobo.

What I've done here is based on what Bobby Chinn did plus some googling and a touch of personal taste.

The ingredients, this serves 2 to 3 hearty eaters:

1. Approx 500g pork or chicken, estimate more if using chicken on bones or pork ribs. (I had a combination of pork belly and spare ribs, left over in the freezer, so what the heck)
2. 6 to 8 stalks of lemongrass - cut away top parts and crush the bulbs
3. Half cup of white vinegar (I used white rice vinegar as no one seem to specify what kind of vinegar exactly)
4. Quarter cup of light soy sauce
5. Half a head of garlic - finely chopped
6. An inch of ginger - crushed / minced
7. 2 small onions
8. 1 teaspoon of black peppercorn, crushed - or use coarse ground version
9. 3 to 4 red hot chili padi (bird's eye chilies) - sliced off head and slit sides to remove seeds.
10. 2 to 3 tablespoons of corn starch dissolved in water
11. Cooking oil
12. Pinch of salt & some brown sugar (or any kinda sugar)
13. Water

All the main ingredients at a glance.

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a wok (or deep frying pan)
2. Sauté garlic, onions, lemongrass stalks, ginger and black pepper till fragrant.
3. Add the meat to the pan and 'brown'.
4. Add chili padi.
5. Add soy sauce, vinegar and 1 cup of water.
6. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes over medium flame.
7. Add cornstarch dissolved in water to thicken the gravy.
8. Add brown sugar, salt and/or pepper to suit your taste.
9. Cover and simmer for an additional 10 minutes over low/medium flame.
10. Taste check; see if you need to thicken the gravy, then adjust corn starch/water, then simmer again.
11. Serve hot with veggies and steamed rice.
    

Sauté sauté sauté!

Almost there, let it simmer and thicken.

Suggestions, hints and tips:

• I added some brown sugar to balance out the vinegar just a little.
• You can adjust the level of saltiness and color by using less soy sauce.
• Of course you can adjust the flavors by modifying the quantities of peppercorn, salt, sugar etc.
• If chili padi is over the top for you, you can use paprika powder, personally I would have added MORE chili padi but hubby will need a fire extinguisher after that!
• Control the gravy's consistency by adjusting the level of water and cornstarch. We like it thick and rich so it coats the rice nicely!

I hope this is helpful to anyone who loves meat dishes with gravy! If you have any pointers to make this dish better do feel free to share!