So with Easter looming ahead of me, I, of course, was trying to determine what we should have for dinner. The truly traditional lamb was not to be. Not only am I not a fan of lamb, but I have never made it for my family, nor have I ever forced them to eat it. It would have been an incredible waste of time and money for something they may or may not like, and I most definitely would not like.
The next option was a ham. I know my oldest would have loved it, but while she and my husband would have eaten it, my other two would not. My love for side-dishes notwithstanding, it would also have meant that I would have had to come up with at least 3 sides that we would all agree on. I can whip up some killer sides, but the time and labor involved…no thank you.
So I resorted to the (for me) non-traditional. My soon-to-be SIL had given me a book for Christmas that I had requested, called I am a Filipino by Nicole Ponseca and Miguel Trinidad. My hope was to learn some classics associated with my cultural heritage and instill a love for them in my husband and daughters.
This year, our main course was chicken and pork adobo. I planned ahead (by days). I did my shopping, and got everything I needed. I really don’t think I missed out on anything. And I have been reading. I didn’t get through a lot of the narrative at the beginning of the book yet, because I wanted the food. Have I mentioned I’m all about food?
Now I’ve made adobo before. It was always more stew-like, what I would liken to a stove-top braise. But this recipe had to be started well ahead of time, with the protein marinating for at least 6 hours. I let it sit overnight. In the fridge of course. And it was, let me go see what she called it, a “dry” adobo. This means less saucy.
I do have another recipe for adobo from a friend of mine who lives three states away. Hers calls for pork belly, and I’d always had a hard time finding pork belly. Nicole Ponseca’s calls for pork belly as well, and I went out of my way to find it (not very far, mind you). It was, and is delicious. You can see from my picture that the sauce really adhered to the proteins, as well, that is not “burn” or “char.” It is pure deliciousness.
The cooking process was challenging to time, with everything else I was cooking on Easter, but I managed. In future, I may lower the heat when I add the pork – that seemed a little bit overcooked and slightly tough, but I gotta say, so delicious that I’ve eaten the leftovers cold anyway.