Lechon Paksiw Sinangag

Sinangag is the Filipino term for garlic fried rice.  Traditionally it is made with the previous night's leftover rice, and cooked for breakfast, usually with fried egg and some processed meat such as tapa, longganisa, tocino, etc. with resulting coined names like tosilog (TOcino, SInangag and itLOG), longsilog (LONGganisa, SInangag and itLOG), etc. 

But while sinangag is the most basic form, it can be enhanced with a few embellishments, usually leftovers too, such as adobo, binagoongan, roast chicken, bangus, and in this particular instance... lechon paksiw.  Hence,

Lechon Paksiw Sinangag.  Here with other breakfast items - sunny-side egg and spiced ham.

This is actually a recipe for a "third" generation lechon...  The original dish ("first generation") was the lechon for lola's birthday lunch.  The re-made dish ("second generation") was the lechon paksiw we had the day after.  And, we obviously had way more lechon than we could finish, so here's another remake (hence, "third" generation)!

4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small native onion, minced
2 cups shredded lechon meat (mine was from the paksiw)
about 4 cups (cooked) day-old rice
salt, to taste

Saute the garlic and onions in a mixture of canola oil and a little "fat" from the paksiw.  When fragrant, add the shredded lechon meat and stir fry a little.  Add the rice and mix well.  Cook until done.  I added a couple of tablespoons of the paksiw broth.

The verdict?  I've made lechon rice (directly) from lechon meat (not paksiw) and while it was delicious, I prefer this version made from the paksiw, because I found the rice more flavorful with the addition of the paksiw sauce.

Paksiw na Pata, Filipino style

Paksiw is a favorite "seasoning mix" of mine but pata (pork leg or hock in English) as a meat part is definitely not one that I prefer.  For one thing, it has too much skin/fat, hence less meat, and it takes a LONG, LONG time to cook until tenderized.  But for some unknown reason, I got some while I was at the supermarket with lola a couple of weeks ago.

I usually make the Chinese style Paksiw, using chunks of pork belly or pork shoulder but this time, however, I wanted to try a different recipe... and the pressure cooker (which is so rarely used!)... since I only had about an hour to cook - to simmer the dish on the stovetop would take a couple of hours!

I decided to follow a recipe found in a cookbook given to me - Our Family Table (Heirloom Recipes & Others, compiled and edited by Carolina Guevarra) - although I haven't seen this for sale in bookstores.

Anyway, here is my dish...

While my basis for this dish was the original recipe found in the book, I found that in order to adapt the recipe to the pressure cooker, I had to make a few changes, the most crucial of which was to change the proportion of the liquids, since I had to have enough liquid to cover most of the meat (I also like a saucier dish!).  Anyway, here is what I did -

First thing is to have a whole piece of pork pata (front part preferred) sliced into pieces (and I discarded the "hoof" part).  Second thing is to clean and parboil the pata.

Then I placed the pata, together with the following in the pressure cooker.

1 cup native vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 pieces bay leaves
about 2 teaspoons dried marjoram
2 tablespoons smashed peppercorns (not ground pepper)
1 whole bulb of garlic, smashed
a lot of banana blossoms, knotted
about 1 to 2 cups water

A note for the water, I initially added a cup but it seemed too little to cover the meat pieces so I added half a cup more.

Another note regarding the marjoram - the recipe specified oregano and I thought I had some in my spice cupboard but I couldn't find it so I used marjoram instead.

Anyway, place the cover on the pressure cooker and pressure cook 15 to 20 minutes (after the cooker begins to whistle).  Let the pressure go down and open the pot.  Check if the pork pata is cooked/soft then check seasonings.

I had to adjust mine by adding a couple tablespoons more soy sauce (because I use a less salty, light soy sauce).

Final note - I found other recipes in other cookbooks where the sugar is a whole lot more than 2 tablespoons.  But while I wanted a hint of sweetness, I did not want an overly sweet dish!

Chinese-style Paksiw na Baboy

Paksiw is basically a stew with vinegar as the main "spice" or seasoning.  So Paksiw na Baboy is pork braised in a vinegar stewing liquid. 

I grew up with the Chinese-style paksiw, always with mushrooms and banana blossoms, occasionally with cinnamon and star anise.  But the dish as I knew it then was more sweet than tangy and to be honest, these days, I like it better when it's tangier and less sweet.

The recipe:

About 1 kilo liempo (pork belly), cubed, parboiled
1/4 to 1/2 cup native vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 to 3 pieces bay leaves
1 to 2 tablespoons smashed peppercorns (not ground pepper)
1 whole garlic, smashed
50 to 100 grams dried banana blossoms, rehydrated
5 to 6 pieces dried shitake, rehydrated
1 stick cinnamon
2 to 3 pieces star anise
about 1/2 to 1 cup water

Place everything in a pot.  For the water, initially add 1/2 cup.  If it is enough to cover all the meat then set aside the remaining 1/2 cup to top up later if too much liquid evaporates.

Simmer everything until tender, which for me was about 40 minutes - this will depend on the thickness of the cut of your meat.  If using pork pata (leg), it could be as long as an hour and a half.

NOTES:

1. pork pata can be used, the front part is meatier than the hind part.

2. I like a tangy, piquant taste, and it reflects so in this dish.  If you wish, use the lesser amount of 1/4 cup vinegar.

3. I also love banana blossoms so I always use the "larger" measure.

4. for the Filipino-style of paksiw, omit the cinnamon, star anise, and mushrooms.  Use the lesser amount of banana blossoms.  Chunks of saba (just ripe and still firm) can also be added towards the end of the cooking time.