Pork Adobo (Filipino) Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 lbs pork shoulder or pork belly, cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 1/2 Tbsp neutral oil
• 9 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 3/4 cups water
• 6 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1 1/2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar

Brown the Pork

Get a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the oil.

Once the oil is shimmering, add the pork chunks in a single layer. You will likely need to do this in two batches.

Don’t crowd the pan; this will steam the meat instead of browning it.

Sear the pork until it’s well-browned on all sides, then remove it with a slotted spoon and set it aside. Add the second batch and repeat.

Build the Sauce and Simmer

Reduce the heat to medium and add the sliced onion to the pot. Cook for ~5 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, until the onion has softened. Add the minced garlic and cook for another minute until it’s fragrant.

Return the browned pork to the pot. Add the water, soy sauce, vinegar, dark soy sauce, bay leaves, peppercorns, and brown sugar. Stir everything together.

Bring the liquid to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cover the pot and let it cook for at least 1 hour, or until the pork is fork-tender.

Reduce the Sauce

Remove the lid from the pot and give everything a good stir. Increase the heat slightly to maintain a steady simmer.

Let the sauce cook, uncovered, for another ~15-20 minutes.

The sauce will thicken and reduce, concentrating its flavor. You’ll know it’s ready when it’s thick enough to coat the pork.

Before serving, taste the sauce. If it needs more saltiness, add a splash of soy sauce. For more tang, a little more vinegar. If you want it sweeter, add a bit more brown sugar.

Pork Adobo (Filipino)

This version of Pork Adobo uses pork shoulder, which gets braised in a simple mix of soy sauce and vinegar. The key is letting it simmer long enough for the pork to get tender and for the sauce to reduce and thicken around the meat.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Active Time1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

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Ingredients

• 3 lbs pork shoulder or pork belly cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 1/2 Tbsp neutral oil
• 9 cloves garlic minced
• 1 medium onion thinly sliced
• 1 3/4 cups water
• 6 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1 1/2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar

Instructions

• Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
• Brown pork chunks in batches until well-seared on all sides; remove and set aside.
• Reduce heat to medium, cook onions 5 minutes until softened, scraping up browned bits.
• Add garlic, cook 1 minute until fragrant.
• Return pork to pot, add water, both soy sauces, vinegar, bay leaves, peppercorns, and brown sugar.
• Bring to boil, reduce to low simmer, cover and cook 1 hour until pork is tender.
• Uncover, increase heat to medium-low and simmer 15-20 minutes until sauce thickens.

Notes

Adjust seasoning to taste with additional soy sauce, vinegar, or brown sugar before serving.