Adobo, A Great Philippine Food
Have you ever seen the video of a Tagalog speaking American cooking “Adobong Manok”? It just shows that Adobo has reached the other side of the world and is being enjoyed by Foreigners also and have been making their own versions of it, that even food spots abroad have concocted their own Adobo. I’m sure that people have already tried phenomenal dish when visiting the Philippines. It’s impossible to miss it available anywhere in the metro, households and restaurants alike. It has become our national dish so to speak.
Adobo can be categorized as a stew, unlike their counterparts from other countries like Puerto Rico, which sees it as a meat rub that contains several spices. Adobo is a Filipino recipe that contains anything but is not limited to chicken and pork, marinated, along with some hard boiled eggs, for long hours in vinegar, soy sauce and other spices such as garlic, bay leaf and peppercorns. Sometimes pan-fried, it is usually cooked in hot oil and served piping hot with steamed rice. The origin of the dish is still unknown but experts say it came from the Malays’ Ginataan, which is considered a distant relative of the Adobo. Bathed in coconut milk, Ginataan has chicken and pork with vegetables in it and topped with vinegar and garlic. The Spanish occupation brought in new ideas and concepts to the Philippines, one of which is the concept of Adobo, found in dishes all over the world it refers to the sauce marinade or seasoning used in a particular dish. Along with the Soy Sauce brought by the Chinese traders during that time, Filipinos have created such succulent dish. Some say Adobo may have originated from another Spanish dish-Adobado, which consists of cured pork loin cooked in olive oil and vinegar. Reserved for special occasions such as religious festivities and, visits made by governors and friars alike. Adobo can be prepared days before and even with the lack of a cold storage, it can be preserved for latter consumption.
In the different parts of the Philippines, they have their own variant of Adobo depending on the available resources around their communities. Aside from the meal, Adobo has transcended from being on the plate and into bite sized sandwiches, Siopaos or even Puto (rice cakes), or as a snack product marketed as “Adobo flavored”, these include nuts, chips and biscuits. No matter what, Adobo will always be Adobo, an aroma that would tease your sense, a dish so irresistible you definitely need to have a second bite and something we Filipinos can be proud of.
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