Pork Adobo

I had heard of pork adobo before making this recipe, but I didn't really understand what it was or the flavors involved.  When I was paging through Brought, Borrowed and Stolen by Allegra McEvedy, I found this recipe based on her travels in the Philippines.  Once I saw that it contained pork belly I knew I had to give it a try since pork belly is one of the most delicious things I have been eating recently.  I fell in love with pork belly when I first tried it in Hong Kong.  I didn't realize that fat could have so much flavor and literally melt in your mouth.  That being said I became obsessed with trying it again.  It is not something to eat frequently, but it is absolutely wonderful to eat if cooked well.

This is a very rich dish so a little goes a long way.  Also, because of the high fat content of pork belly, I would ration it out because it will melt in your mouth, but also is difficult on the stomach if you aren't used to eating a lot of fat.

This recipe serves 4 easily, but again because it is rich, serve it with plain rice.  A nice green salad would help balance it out as well.

This is the most delicious pork belly.  Make sure you cut it in small enough pieces to enjoy, but not become overwhelmed.  Also, when you cook it up you want it to be crunchy.

Pork Adobo

2 tablespoons peanut oil

5 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced

10 ounces of pork belly cut into chucks (I recommend 1/2 inch x 1/2 inch x 1 inch)

1 red onion, peeled and sliced (length shouldn't be more than 1.5 inches)

1 red pepper, cut into large bit sized pieces

1.5 inches of ginger, peeled and grated

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

4 tablespoons light soy sauce

3 bay leaves

about 10 peppercorns

salt 

Heat the peanut oil in a large skillet over a medium high heat.  Put in half the garlic slices, make sure they are covered and remove once they are golden brown.  These will be your garnish, but also balance out the rich flavors.  Blot the garlic on a paper lined plate.

Add the pork belly to the pan and let them cook for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.  Add cut onions, pepper, ginger and the rest of the garlic slices.  Mix it all together, cover, turn down the heat and cook for about 6 more minutes, stirring once or twice, until the peppers and onions are starting to softened.  Add the paprika and mix again.  Pour in the vinegar and soy sauce and about 1 cup of water.  Also add the bay leaf, peppercorns and some salt.  Turn up the heat to bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down again so it is simmering consistently.  Cook for about 50 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has thickened.  Remove from heat and sprinkle with the fried garlic before serving.

Chinese - Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken
 
I am not a big fan of Chinese food...well not the traditional American Chinese take-away which seems to take 30 seconds to make and doesn't capture the flavors which you can experience in Hong Kong (as Hong Kong food is closer than other traditional Chinese flavors to American Chinese take-away).  However, my husband is a BIG fan of Chinese food and would eat it every week.  So the compromise was for me to find some traditional Chinese food which I could make at home relatively easily and which we would both like to eat.

I found both of these things in Easy Chinese Recipes by Bee Yinn Low.  This recipe for Kung Pao Chicken is adapted from the recipe in this book, which also contains wonderful recipes for dim sum of which I need to try out.  If you have never eaten dim sum, I encourage you to try it out for a brunch some Saturday or Sunday morning as it is quick and delicious bite sized food in a variety of flavors.

Kung Pao Chicken comes from the Sichuan area of China.  It is known for food which is spicy which can be tempered by rice if you so desire.  I didn't eat Kung Pao Chicken when I was in China, but I had some other Sichuan food which was spicy and filling.  This recipe serves two with only 8oz of chicken.  I like to double the chicken as it is so tender I don't want to stop eating it.  However, this does not reheat very well as the peanuts become chewy and the onions wilted.  Note: I use an electric wok to cook with as the temperature is much higher than using the stove regardless of whether it is electric or gas.  The wok heats up quickly and efficiently and everything cooks much better than on the stove top.

Kung Pao Chicken
16 oz. Chicken, boneless chicken breast cut into bite sized pieces
2 teaspoons sherry
3 tablespoons cornstarch (really I make sure that the chicken has been covered lightly)
4 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons sichuan peppercorn oil (made from soaking sichuan peppercorns in oil)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin
About 2 inches of ginger, peeled and sliced thin
30 dried chiles
peanuts (raw or slightly baked to make more crunchy)
2-3 green onions, cut into 1-2 inch pieces

Sauce:
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
2 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
pepper (white is better, but I use black when I don't have white on hand)
4 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Method:
(Be sure you have put the rice on before beginning to stir fry the chicken.)  Tenderize chicken before beginning, if you desire.  Marinate the chicken with sherry (or rice wine) and cornstarch for about 10 minutes.  Mix all the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.  Heat 1 tablespoon of peanut oil in a wok and stir fry the chicken until they are half-cooked.  Remove from wok and set aside.  Heat remaining peanut oil and peppercorn oil.  Add garlic and ginger, stirring quickly.  Add the chiles until you smell the spicy aroma of the chile peppers (don't breathe in too much!)  Return chicken to the wok and stir with spatula.  Add the sauce and stir until chicken is well coated.  Stir in peanuts and green onions until everything is well combined.  Serve immediately with rice.  Serves 2-4 large portions.


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