Cook It! White Adobo

Tuesday, March 09, 2010 Jonette 6 Comments

Hello, everyone. First off, I'd like to introduce you to Cook It!, a new section of the blog. Every now and then, I'll be writing about recipes I've tried and loved.

Let's start off with Adobong Puti!

I owe all my thanks to the vivacious Ditas for teaching me this recipe.


Early morning Saturdays (and thus, end-of-shift-and-work-week late-night Fridays) always spell house-keeping for me. This is when I strip off the working-girl role I play for most of the week, and put on my Rosie-Riveter housewife face. From then on, it's laundry-duty, dusting, sweeping, scrubbing, and wiping down corners, and by the gods, all that makes me feel alive.

In between chores, I usually try to plan the day's meals, figure out what I'll need to buy from the corner green grocer and butcher, and maybe, just maybe (if I don't feel up to cooking or am simply too tired to do so), what the nearby eateries have to offer.

Last Saturday found me unusually energized -- I'd lasted long into 9am, sweeping the front porch and waiting for the sun to dry the washing. I thought to myself, if I still have enough energy to do this, I might as well head over and pick up some ingredients.

The beauty of adobong puti -- or any kind of adobo, for that matter -- is that you can leave it to marinade for half a day, and it will taste just as great. Cook it, enjoy it, tuck away your leftovers for another meal, and you will find the dish even more savory than the last time. The secret is in the sauce, or rather, that it seeps in deeper and deeper into the meat.

Its sweet and savory aroma is comes from its blend of garlic, white vinegar, sugar and salt.


You will need: 

• half a kilo of pork belly, or liempo, cut into chunks 
• 1 cup of white vinegar (cider vinegar also works well) 
• 1 cup of water 
• 5 - 10 large cloves or garlic, crushed 
• peppercorns 
• bay leaves 
• sugar 
• salt 

Let's get to it!

• Wash your pork belly chunks thoroughly. If you spot any fine hairs, pluck them or shave them. Keep the fat on; that where all the delicious flavor comes from, and may actually be good for you. 

• Marinade the pork in 1 cup white vinegar and crushed garlic. Rub the five crushed cloves all over your pork, and add more to your taste. Marinade for 30 minutes or more. 

•  Put the pork and the vinegar-garlic marinade in a saucepan and add the water, peppercorn, bay leaves, about 3-4 tablespoons of sugar, and a teaspoon of salt. Mix well. 

• Put the saucepan on your stove, and set it to boil at medium heat. 

• Once it starts boiling, turn down the heat and let it simmer. You can choose to cover the saucepan, or you can drive your neighbors crazy wondering just what is that delicious smell coming from your kitchen. Either way, let the pork cook until tender.