Today, we will be introducing you to one of the most distinctive Filipino dishes, the pork dinuguan. Read on because we will enlighten you on what makes it unique and why it is popular among the Filipino people despite its slightly unappealing presentation and unusual main ingredients.
What is Pork Dinuguan
Dinuguan comes from the Filipino term “dugo,” which means blood, and dinuguan means “stewed in blood.” Eating this unique food may sound and look disgusting because it is made with pig’s blood and sometimes with offal, but you will reverse that negative first impression right away when you have a single taste of it.
This Pinoy dish has a lot of names: Tinadtad in Pampanga, Dinardaraan in Ilocos, Dugo-dugo in Cebu, Rugodugo in Waray, Tinumis in Nueva Ecija, and zinagan in Ibanag. It is also called “chocolate meat” because of its color, but the most popular name is Dinuguan.
This delectable Filipino food is somehow being compared with the European blood-sausage and Polish Czernina, but we sure have our unique touch to it. You can always spot it on different local celebrations like fiestas, birthdays, and weddings, but it is also available in many restaurants and eateries all over the country.
Ways To Cook The Best Pork Dinuguan
Like any other Philippine cuisine, this pork recipe can also be prepared and made using different cooking methods. Here are easy ways you can try should you want to make our very delicious featured food.
Stovetop Cooking
This method is the traditional way of cooking this particular recipe. You only have to heat oil in the pan and saute the garlic until golden brown. Add the salt, pepper, vinegar, and meat but do not stir them. When the pork is already tender, add long, green chili peppers. Then stir until the consistency of the soup is thick enough for your liking.
Through Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker
If you don’t have enough time to cook or you are too excited to savor this featured food, you can try using this method. Instant pots or pressure cookers tenderize meat faster than the first method mentioned.
To use this electric kitchen tool in preparing our recipe, you only have to put the pork or any meat you desire to use inside it with its condiments and spices: garlic, bay leaves, black pepper, and soy sauce. Add some water that is just enough to cover the meat. Pressure cook it for 20 to 30 minutes until the meat is tender. Then proceed to the remaining steps.
Filipino Recipe Variations
This delicious stew is so versatile that it can be made with different main ingredients but still taste equally good and tasty. Among the most popular variations are with offal, chicken, beef, and tofus with other vegetables.
Offal Dinuguan
Some dinuguan recipes have pork and pig’s offal, but some recipes are made with only the pig’s offal. Offal is the pig’s intestine, liver, and other internal organs. Some people prefer it over the version with pork because it is a lot cheaper, and it has that unique taste that complements the pig’s blood.
Recipe With Chicken
Chicken can also be used as the main ingredient instead of the usual pork meat. Aside from the fact that it is cheaper, it is even easier to tenderize and, of course, a healthier choice.
Recipe With Beef
If you have an extra budget and can afford a more expensive choice of the main ingredient, you may opt to use beef and its innards. But you have to allot more time and patience in tenderizing since its meat comes from cows slaughtered at an older age than pigs.
Vegan Dinuguan
Filipinos are very creative and resourceful that they even made a vegan version of our featured viand. You only have to replace pork with tofu, mushrooms, and black beans. To achieve the recipe’s black color, you need not use pork blood, but instead, use activated black charcoal powder.
Recipe Tips
It is indeed a bold move to cook this particular recipe, and it’s not every day you do it. Thus, here are samples of mistakes and tips to avoid encountering them.
- Raw vinegar- when this happens to your recipe, there’s nothing you can do to save it, and you’ll suffer from a very sour viand. Thus, to avoid this, make sure that you don’t stir after adding the vinegar and cover until it boils to cook this souring agent well.
- Blood Curdles- this happens when you don’t follow the instructions. To reiterate and avoid forming curdles, right after pouring in the pork blood, continue stirring until it boils.
Other Filipino Recipes Great to Serve With
This food can be eaten alone or served with other types of recipes and sides. Here are some other foods to try if you consider leveling up your whole dining experience.
- Steamed Rice - Pinoys always love to pair their viand with a hot bowl of steamed rice, and this pork recipe is not an exception. This food’s soup blends perfectly with this carb’s slight sweetness, making it such a perfect combination.
- Puto or Steamed Rice Cake - This combination is somehow weird, but you will indeed never regret it if you try it. This creamy pork recipe goes very well with the puto’s softness and tenderness. These two staple foods are often served as meriendas and can be spotted at almost every local Pinoy celebration and gatherings. It would be perfect if you tried it sometime and saw it for yourself.
- Sunny-Side Up Egg – Dinuguan recipe has a bit of a sour taste, and a sunny side up egg with its salty and umami flavors can be a great protein to partner with this delectable food for a hearty breakfast. This combination will indeed start yourday right.
- Longganisa- it can be considered as the Philippine sausage. It has a rich flavor because of the ground meat and spices used in it. The richness of the flavor is perfect for the almost bland but sour taste of the stew. Yum!
- Pancit Guisado- the savory flavors of Pancit Guisado is just a perfect partner for this luscious pork dish. Together with Puto and Dinuguan, these three will indeed form an excellent and very delicious team your children will love.
- Lumpiang Shanghai - Lumpiang shanghai goes very well with any food and viand. Eating our featured food with lumpia will add a rough and crispy texture making your meal a lot more savory and delightful. Do not forget to try this!
- Chicharon or Fried Pork Rinds- the saltiness this kind of cracklings brings supplements our featured recipe’s flavors. Also, having cracklings means adding a crispy texture to your meal, making it a lot more delicious and savory.
- Fish Sauce with Chilies- rice with Dinuguan may be a complete meal for some people, but most Pinoys have spicy fish sauce on the side, a liquid to counteract the bland-to-sour flavors of this pork dish. It’s also a cheap way to add saltiness and another flavor to your viand.
- Orange or Pineapple Juice - Drinking orange or pineapple juice will not only refresh you but will also complete your hearty meal. These refreshments will also take away the after taste of the food you have eaten.
- Beer- weird it may sound, but this food counteracts the beer’s somehow distastefulness for some Filipinos. Thus, if you want to eat this dish the Pinoy way, prepare this excellent Filipino pork meal for your next drinking session with friends.
Conclusion
Savoring this featured food with the pleased and satisfied looks of your family will indeed make your day bright and will make you want to serve the most delicious ones for them. But for now, we hope that we have given you enough guidance and information into making the most mouth-watering version of this featured food. Be sure to share this with your family and loved ones.
See you on your next cooking journey! Happy eating.
For more of this Recipe Please visit Eat Like Pinoy!
Recipe
Best Pork Dinuguan Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 ounces Pork blood
- 1 cup Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Canola oil
- 1 head Garlic peeled and minced
- 2 lbs Pork belly cut into ½-inch cubes
- 2 tablespoon Salt
- 1 tablespoon Black pepper cracked
- 10 pcs Green chilies (siling haba) long
Instructions
- In a pot, heat cooking oil then sauté garlic until golden brown.
- Add sliced pork belly and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Add vinegar, then cover the pot and don't stir. Simmer for 20-30 minutes or until meat is tender.
- Add green long chilies and simmer for about 1-2 minutes.
- Stir while pouring the pork blood into the pot, continue stirring to distribute it equally until it boils.
- Let it simmer for about 5 minutes or until sauce becomes thick.
- TIP: In a pan, fry remaining garlic cloves and once cooked, put it on top of Dinuguan for a more enticing smell.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
I LOVE THIS MEAL ALMOST AS MUCH AS ADOBO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!