ADOBO: Ang Pambansang Ulam

For someone whose passion isn't cooking, well...we do need help. We need kodigo! So here it is, a line up of recipes that are easy to prepare...easy enough for us to survive in the kitchen.

Needless to say, the first easy thing to prepare is...you guessed it right: ADOBO! It's a basic ulam (viand) that has become a Filipino ID. The term adobo actually suggests a way of cooking, that is, to simmer meat (or seafood, or veggies) over low fire in a mixture of toyo (soy sauce) and suka (vinegar) and lots of crushed garlic and paminta (dried peppercorn).You can actually use any edible acid substitute like tomatoes, kamias, etc. instead of vinegar, but the taste will be different for every acid. Anyway, stick to the vinegar for the meantime.

We can always experiment with left-over adobo, especially when there's little of it left. Or when we just want to give it a facelift. Just throw in some diced carrots, or potatoes, or hard-boiled eggs, or red beans, etc., and we're good to go.

There are a hundred and one ways to cook adobo, but there's always the fundamental one. So here's the one I use:

PORK ADOBO/CHICKEN ADOBO

Ingredients

1 kilo pork liempo or loin (or chicken), cut into chunks
1/2 cup toyo (soy sauce)
1/2 cup suka (vinegar)
1/2 cup water
1 head bawang (garlic), crushed
1/2 tbsp paminta (peppercorn), crushed

In a bowl, mix paminta, bawang and toyo. Add in the meat chunks. Toss well in the bowl so they get coated with the marinade. Cover and let stand in the ref for at least 30 minutes. Overnight works well, too.Pour all of the marinade and the meat into a sauce pan. Add water, then stir well.Pour in the vinegar. Cover. Bring heat to a rolling boil then remove the cover. Lower the heat to a simmer for at least 30 minutes till sauce is reduced and meat is tender. Do a taste test and make adjustments as needed.

See how easy it is??? By the way, do not to touch the mixture until after the vinegar has boiled. We have to make sure the vinegar is cooked before we stir the whole thing. And try to keep enough sauce to dribble on the rice when it's eating time. Serve with wedges of one juicy tomato. Sarraaap! Enjoy your adobo and kanin anytime of the day.

Serious about improving your adobo?  Go find this book. I grabbed this copy from a favorite bookstore some years back.   A book worth having in your collection of cookbooks because it's not just  a recipe book of some 200 ways and tips to cook adobo. The authors spiced in some fun to it by including trivia and essays about this national ulam that has already gained international fame.