Filipino Food - Nilagang Baboy (Pork Nilaga) Recipe (Quick and Easy)

Nilagang Baboy, or Pork Nilaga (pork stew), is perhaps one of the simplest Filipino dishes to cook. Its simplicity is what makes it so delicious. All you need to do is boil some water, add pork meat and vegetables, and season it with a few spices. That may sound bland to you if you haven't tried this dish before. But trust me, this could be one of the tastiest Filipino dishes you can ever eat.

The dish typically uses pork belly (liempo) for the meat, but we prefer to use pork ribs or pork legs and tail because we like the taste of pork on the bone. Also, the marrows inside the bone adds another dimension to the flavor of the broth, which could become mind-blowing if cooked properly. 

We also like to modify the dish by adding a few pieces of Saba banana to it. We also use Napa cabbage instead of the regular cabbage head.

Pork Nilaga is quite a soupy dish so you need to be generous when it comes to adding flavors and spices. Nevertheless, it is perfect for rainy days and nights when the weather is cold.

Here is our version of Nilagang Baboy or Pork Nilaga (pork stew):

Nilagang Baboy Recipe (for 4 to 5 persons)

Ingredients

• 1 kilo pork ribs (or legs and tail)
• 10 cups of water
• 2 pcs. potatoes, medium size, quartered
• 1 pc. onion, medium size, quartered
• 3 pcs. pork bouillon cubes
• 4 pcs. Saba bananas, medium size, halved
• 1/4 kilo Baguio beans
• 1 pc. Napa cabbage, medium size, stripped
• 1 tablespoon whole black pepper corns
• salt

Directions

• Place in a large cooking pot the pork and water over high heat.
• Bring to a boil and simmer for around 45 minutes to 1 hour or until meat is tender. What we like to do in this step is to cook the meat in a pressure cooker for 30 minutes instead.
• Remove foam and excess fat on top of the water.
• Reduce to medium heat.
• Add Saba bananas. Turn up heat to high and let it boil again for a minute.
• Add potatoes, onion, bouillon cubes, peppercorn, and salt. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
• Add Baguio beans and Napa cabbage. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Serve while hot. Eat with rice and some chilies on fish sauce. Enjoy!

Till the next recipe!