Let’s cook pork

CEBU, Philippines — Perhaps it is safe to say that Filipinos are voracious pork eaters. Big celebrations in the Philippines are not deemed complete without a pork dish in the main fare. The lechon, for instance, is always present in big food events.

And yet, lechon is just one of the many ways that Filipinos cook their pork. There are many, many other ways – pork barbeque, pork adobo, pork afritada, pork binagoongan, chorizo, longganisa, pork lumpia etc. And there’s hamonado, which is the closest option if lechon is not possible to have; although at times both lechon and hamonado are present, proof of Filipinos’ great penchant for pork.

Hamonado is a Filipino dish consisting of meat marinated and cooked in a sweet pineapple sauce. It is a popular dish during special occasions, especially in areas where pineapple is grown. The Spanish spelling of the word would be “jamónado,” but “hamonado” in the Philippines as the dish has since become very Filipino. “Hamonado” is also a general term used for savory dishes marinated or cooked with pineapple, but the word is most commonly associated with pork.

Hamonado is not to be confused with the Spanish “jamón,” meaning ham, although the term suggests “prepared like jamón.” Both hamonado and ham are also commonly cooked during the Christmas season in the Philippines. The name hamonado (or hamonada) conjures an idea of something sweetened – and usually pork. But, in fact, the term is at times also used for other sweetened dishes, like chicken or beef.

Typically the meat is marinated overnight in a sweet sauce made with pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, and various spices. It is then pan-fried until the meat is browned. The meat is then simmered in stock and the marinade with added pineapple chunks until the meat is very tender. It is good served with freshly cooked white rice.

Certain variations of the dish do not include a marinating period, and instead the pork is cooked slowly until very tender, especially when using cuts with tough meat like pata (ham hock) or beef sirloin. Some family recipes would have calamansi juice, carrots, raisins, pickles, longganisa, and hotdogs added. There are also hamonado variants cooked afritada-style, using tomato sauce or banana ketchup.

The following recipe is a slight tweak from the one shared at the website www.panlasangpinoyrecipes.com. It’s simple enough to try at home.

Pork Hamonado

Ingredients:

A slab of pork with fat

Crushed garlic

½ cup of soy sauce

1 small can of pineapple chunks in syrup

Peppercorns

A dash of salt (optional)

1 tbsp sugar (optional)

Spring onion, cut into small ringlets for garnishing (optional)

Procedure:

• Drop pork slab into a large saucepan with just enough boiling water to cover, and simmer.

• Skim the surface of the water continually until the broth is clear.

• Simmer for an hour, and then pour in soy sauce, fruit syrup and all the other ingredients.

• Simmer with lid closed over low fire, turning the meat from time to time, for hours or until the rind is tender enough to quite literally ‘melt in the mouth’.

• Leave little sauce to keep the meat moist. Slice and serve with rice and blanched vegetables.

Note: Any cut of pork will do for hamonado, but for a richer flavor and velvety soft texture, the parts with a thick cap of skin and fat – such as hocks, belly or shoulder – is preferred. The hamonado may be cut to serving pieces.