Pork Estofado

I like the idea of having plantains in pork and beef dishes. Plantains or “saging na saba” help improve the flavor of a dish and adds a little sweetness to it. Take the beef pochero as an example: the sweetness of the plantains blends well with the other ingredients producing a great tasting dish. Sometimes, I also use plantains in Beef Nilaga to add more life to it.

Do you like the idea of using plantains (saba) in some of the dishes that you cook?

Try this Pork Estofado recipe from Panlasang Pinoy.

Ingredients:
3 lbs pork, cubed
3 pieces dried bay leaves
1 tablespoon whole peppercorn
1 1/2 cup carrot, sliced
4 plantain bananas, sliced diagonally (1 inch thick)
1/2 cup vinegar
3/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 cup water
5 tablespoons minced garlic
1 cup cooking oil

Cooking procedure:
1. Heat a frying pan and pour 3/4 cups of cooking oil.
2. When the oil is hot enough, fry the sliced plantains until the color of each side turns medium to dark brown. Set aside.
3. Pour 1/4 cup of cooking oil in a separate cooking pot then apply heat.
4. When the oil is hot enough, put-in the garlic and sauté until the color turns light brown.
5. Add the cubed pork and cook for 7 to 10 minutes.
6. Put-in the soy sauce, water, whole peppercorns, and dried bay leaves then bring to a boil. Simmer until pork is tender.
7. Add vinegar and wait for the liquid to re-boil. Simmer for 5 minutes.
8. Add brown sugar and carrots. Stir then simmer for 10 minutes more.
9. Turn off the heat and transfer the contents of the cooking pot to a serving plate.
10. Garnish with fried bananas then serve.