What would you normally do when you're hit by insomnia? I know someone who vacuumed and changed the arrangement of her living room at 2 A.M. (no, I'm not talking about me...)? Insomnia said hello to me last night. Instead of trying hard to count sheep like what I was taught to do, I started imagining FOOD. Yep, food and how it should taste. Particularly this pork dish sauteed in shrimp paste and some mild long green chilies. What got me excited was the thought of combining 2 almost similar dishes into one meal. This pork binagoongan combined with another region's favorite "poor man's meal" -- kamias or iba sauteed in shrimp paste and bits of rendered-fried pork. The former is a favorite "order" in a lot of hole-in-the-wall eateries while the latter is considered as comfort food. A favorite and a comfort food rolled into one! Now we're talking! I tried the recipe a few days after. OMG! It was like a burst of flavorful fireworks in my mouth! The sweetness of the added sugar tempered the usually salty shrimp paste, which in turn, coated the slightly crunchy-on-the-outside-soft-on-the-inside pork cubes. The hint of tartness from the added kamias / iba / bilimbi as it "fought" with the slightly hot after taste of the green chilies kept the dish from being cloying after awhile. Warning: be ready to consume A LOT of rice on this one.
Ingredients:
- 1 kilo pork butt/shoulder cubes ( around 1.5 inch per cube)
- 1 cup shrimp paste ( actually, the amount of this ingredient will depend on how salty you want your dish to be)
- 6 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 med red onion (minced), divided
- 1/2 c annatto water (atsuete )
- 2-3 tbsp annatto oil (atsuete)
- 2 med ripe tomato ( quartered)
- 1 c kamias / iba / bilimbi
- 3 pieces bay leaf
- 1-2 tsp whole peppercorn
- 2 pieces mild green chili peppers (sliced thinly in diagonal cuts))
- 4 pieces mild green chili pepper
- vinegar
- salt and sugar to taste
- fish sauce to taste
Procedure
- mix enough water, vinegar, salt, half of the onions, peppercorns and bay leaf. Add the pork cubes. simmer until the water evaporates and the meat has started to render its fat. Continue cooking until slightly browned.
- in a clean pan, add the annatto oil, the onions and and garlic. stir-fry until fragrant. add the tomato and cook until soft (do not mash).
- add the shrimp paste and simmer for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, on low-medium fire.
- add the kamias / iba / bilimbi and stir-fry until softened.
- add the sliced chilies and stir again.
- add the annatto water. Simmer until liquid has slightly evaporated.
- add the browned pork and mix gently until well incorporated.
- add the rest of the whole green chili
- adjust the taste with fish sauce, sugar, and vinegar.
- serve together with piping hot rice, and some fried eggplants.