Pork Adobo (adobong baboy)

Pork adobo is one of the most popular dishes from the Philippines increasingly gaining attention worldwide. S

Some may even say that this is arguably the Philippines’ national dish, competing alongside other Filipino staples such as sinigang, pancit, or lumpia!

Watch the Pork Adobo Recipe Video Below!

This dish encompasses much of what Filipino cuisine offers: a perfectly rich balance of sweet, savory, and tang -all balanced with a hefty serving of rice on the side.

While there are hundreds of different ways to make adobo, this particular recipe was based off of my mom’s version that I grew to love.

What is adobo?

Adobo is an umbrella term in Filipino cuisine that encompasses anything marinated and/or stewed in a mixture of vinegar, salt or soy sauce, and other spices/aromatics.

The most common types of adobo is made with either pork or chicken, while more underrated dishes include adobong sitaw (green bean adobo), adobong kanin (adobo rice), or adobo sa gata (coconut milk adobo).

Adobo was derived from the Spanish word “adobar“, meaning to marinate. Marinating proteins in mixtures of vinegars and salts were a common practice to the Indigenous Filipinos long before Spanish colonization, but the name stuck after Spaniards noted of its cooking process.

Interestingly enough, the precolonial version of adobo only consisted of vinegar and salt, which served its purpose to preserve meat in a tropical climate. This is now modernly known as “adobong puti” or white adobo.

Tips to Make a Great Adobo

Again, there are tons and many different methods to cook adobo, but here’s how I cook mine.

Sear your pork: Initially searing the pork prior to cooking achieves two things. Firstly, it initiates the Maillard reaction, causing browning to occur on the meat and leaves fond on the bottom of your pan, leading to more flavor.

Second, and this is especially helpful if you’re using pork belly, it helps render out excess fats to avoid your final adobo being too greasy/oily.

*Now in Tagalog, this is actually a term in dishes known as “nagmamantika“, meaning “oily”. Sometimes this is desirable, as you can spoon a little bit of that rendered fat/oil onto your rice and it tastes incredible! It’s all up to personal preference. I like to keep a little bit of oil in my adobo, but I scoop out most of it.

Reduce your sauce: After simmering, I like to turn up the heat to boil/reduce the sauce until it becomes thick in consistency. This concentrates the simmering liquid into a deep, luxurious adobo sauce that’s just perfect over rice.

Serve the next day: Adobo is always ten times better the next day since it allows the sauce to deeply penetrate the meat and concentrate its flavors further. What I usually do is cook my adobo the day before I plan to serve it.

I end up reducing the sauce to just about a half (not enough to be a thick glaze), and then I let it sleep in the fridge overnight. When time to serve, I put the pot back on the heat and finish reducing the sauce to my desired consistency.

Cuts of Pork

Pork belly: My personal favorite, and I think this is the best cut, no question. It’s got a nice mix of fat and meat and it’s super flavorful.

Pork shoulder: This is another popular cut for adobo. It’s a bit tougher, so being patient in simmering this is a must to ensure a tender meat.

Pork hock: An underrated version of adobo, but still great. This cut contains a good chunk of skin and fat.

Ingredients (and substitutions!)

Pork belly: As stated above, pork belly is one of the golden cuts of pork for adobo. Feel free to use other cuts if you prefer, however.

Garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns: These are the standard aromatics we’ll need to make a classic pork adobo. As for the peppercorns, there’s been countless debates as to whether you either leave them whole or crushed.

Crush the peppercorns, and you get a sharper, more intense pepper flavor all throughout. Keep them whole, and the aroma and essence of the peppercorn will be milder (this is also the traditional method).

Brown sugar: Brown sugar gives the adobo a deep, caramel flavor that compliments the savoriness of the sauce.

• Substitutions: You may use white sugar as a quick substitute. The adobo will just taste lighter, due to the lack of molasses white sugar has.

Soy sauce: This will form the basis of our adobo. If you can, go for Filipino soy sauce like Datu Puti or Marca Piña.

Otherwise, I’d recommend either using Kimlan dark soy sauce (very similar to Filipino soy sauce) or using regular soy sauce and substituting about 1-2 tablespoons of it with Lee Kum Kee’s dark soy sauce.

Cane vinegar: The key ingredient for adobo, which gives the dish its signature tang. Traditional recipes use either cane vinegar or coconut vinegar.

• Substitutions: Any standard white vinegar can work. In a pinch, apple cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar can also be good replacements.

Instructions

Begin by searing your pork on all sides until golden in color. Scoop out any rendered fat if desired.

Add in the garlic, bay leaves, and black peppercorns. Stir and let the aromatics/spices toast for about 1 minute, or until fragrant.

Add in the brown sugar. Stir and let the sugar caramelize around the pork for another 1 minute.

Pour in the soy sauce, vinegar, and just enough water to cover the pork. Bring to a boil, then let the adobo simmer on medium low with a lid for at least 45 minutes, up to 1 hour.

After simmering, turn your heat to high and let the sauce boil until reduced into a thick glaze (you may reduce the sauce less if you prefer your adobo more soupy).

Serve over rice. Enjoy!

Cooking Tips

Reduce the sauce to your desired consistency: The longer you reduce and boil your sauce, the thicker it gets and the more intense the flavor becomes. You can choose to keep your adobo saucy by reducing it just slightly, or instead make a sticky, glossy adobo (my personal preference) by reducing the sauce longer until thickened.

Control the intensity of your aromatics: Crushing the garlic or leaving them whole keeps their flavor soft and mellow, while mincing them gives you a sharp, pungent garlic taste in the adobo. Similar to the black peppercorns, keeping them whole also mellows out their taste (just avoid accidentally biting into them), while crushed peppercorns allow their flavors to be more pronounced and intense.

Experiment with other ingredients: This recipe is just one of many ways to prepare adobo. While not exactly traditional, other variations include adding five spice, star anise, dried chilies, onion, or even coconut milk into the adobo.

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Can I add anything else to the adobo?

Some common additions you can add to adobo include boiled eggs and potatoes. These are commonly done in Filipino households in order to feed more mouths, but they taste delicious as mix-ins too.

How do I serve adobo?

In its basic form, adobo is commonly eaten with a warm bowl of rice, accompanied with veggies (such as tomatoes and bokchoy) or a boiled egg. Apart from that, you can be a bit more creative and use this as filling for buns (e.g., siopao) or as a protein for fried rice.

How long does adobo keep?

Adobo stays good for up to 4-5 days in the fridge -if you even end up having leftovers.

Here’s a couple more recipes you might love:

• Red Braised Pork Belly (Hong Shao Rou)
• Thai Crying Tiger Steak
• Creamy Gochujang Mushroom Udon
• Mapo Tofu