A recent visit from my friend Linds led to 4 days in the kitchen, cooking foods I haven't had since I lived in Seattle. Here is her recipe, as close as I could get it, since measurements are approximate and everything is tasted along the way. The pork in this dish becomes incredibly tender and the sauce has a richness that seems almost too good to be true since it's basically all veggies. Make a big batch and freeze the extra- it's perfect on a cold, wintery day.
Pork Menudo
2 lbs pork shoulder, fat trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 onion, divided (1/2 diced)
3 bay leaves
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbsp canola oil
1 can tomato paste
2 cans tomato sauce
2-3 russet potatoes, diced
2-3 carrots, sliced into rounds
1 red and 1 green pepper, sliced into 1” strips
1 bag frozen peas
Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add pork and boil for 15 minutes. Pour off liquid and scum, reserving meat in a colander. Rinse meat with hot water, wash pot and refill pot with water. Return to a boil.
Once water is boiling, add the meat, soy sauce, undiced half of onion and two bay leaves to the pot. Boil until fork tender.
Heat oil in a large saute pan or another pot. Slice garlic and stir, cooking until fragrant, about a minute. Add remaining diced onion to pan and cook, stirring occasionally until translucent.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer meat from large pot to second pan, reserving broth. Add tomato paste to meat, stirring to incorporate well and cook for several minutes until fragrant. Add tomato sauce and remaining bay leaf to pan. One at a time, dd the remaining vegetables to the pan, starting with the potatoes and ending with the peas, at several minute intervals so they all finish cooking at approximately the same time. Between additions, add broth from the first pot. You don’t want the menudo to dry out; you want to create a thick sauce, like a stew. After all the vegetables are added and the sauce is the right consistency, taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary. Because of the soy sauce in the broth, you may not need to add much salt at all, if any. Serve over rice.
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 onion, divided (1/2 diced)
3 bay leaves
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbsp canola oil
1 can tomato paste
2 cans tomato sauce
2-3 russet potatoes, diced
2-3 carrots, sliced into rounds
1 red and 1 green pepper, sliced into 1” strips
1 bag frozen peas
Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add pork and boil for 15 minutes. Pour off liquid and scum, reserving meat in a colander. Rinse meat with hot water, wash pot and refill pot with water. Return to a boil.
Once water is boiling, add the meat, soy sauce, undiced half of onion and two bay leaves to the pot. Boil until fork tender.
Heat oil in a large saute pan or another pot. Slice garlic and stir, cooking until fragrant, about a minute. Add remaining diced onion to pan and cook, stirring occasionally until translucent.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer meat from large pot to second pan, reserving broth. Add tomato paste to meat, stirring to incorporate well and cook for several minutes until fragrant. Add tomato sauce and remaining bay leaf to pan. One at a time, dd the remaining vegetables to the pan, starting with the potatoes and ending with the peas, at several minute intervals so they all finish cooking at approximately the same time. Between additions, add broth from the first pot. You don’t want the menudo to dry out; you want to create a thick sauce, like a stew. After all the vegetables are added and the sauce is the right consistency, taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary. Because of the soy sauce in the broth, you may not need to add much salt at all, if any. Serve over rice.
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| Pork menudo, Filipino style. This picture doesn't do it justice! |
I'm glad that you and Jordan enjoyed this! Just thinking about it makes me wanna make another batch soon!
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