Savory Pork Adobo is one of the many plate lunch meals that we grew up eating. When working parents didn’t have the chance to meal prep in advance, plate lunch meals were often the go-to take out dinner. With a little advance planning, you can make almost any plate lunch entrée you are hungry for.
Why you need this recipe
Sometimes you don’t have the energy to plan meals in advance to put in the crock pot in the morning to cook all day. After picking up the kids, you can cook this Savory Pork Adobo while they work on their homework and clean up the dishes while it simmers on the stove.
This Savory Pork Adobo is soft but has a bite to it so it feels more substantial as you eat it. This is not meant to be fall-apart tender like pulled pork or kalua pig. By all means cook it longer or cook it in a pressure cooker/Instapot to make a softer texture if that’s your preference.
Pork Health Benefits
Pork is an inexpensive source of protein that tastes great. While there are leaner meats available, inflation and tariffs are likely increasing the cost of seafood and beef even more. Occasional pork consumption is not going to derail your health goals and can keep you in budget.
For those who have trouble digesting pork, I’ve had success cutting out the tummy issues by limiting pork as a small entrée (less than 3 ounces) to once a week. I’ll skip cooking pork as the main dish if I’m using bacon or ham as part of recipes throughout the week. When I must have some Hawaiian food, I opt for one main dish instead of taking multiple pork dishes and get lau lau (pork wrapped in luau leaf and steamed) because the luau leaf provides tons of nutrients and fiber making pork digestion much more bearable.
Here are other plate lunch main dish favorites that you can cook at home:
Savory Pork Adobo
Equipment
- 1 large cutting board
- 1 chef's knife
- 1 4-quart stainless steel pan or larger
- 1 tongs
- measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- 2 pounds pork butt or pork shoulder, cut into 2 pieces, fat trimmed
- ½ tbsp salt
- ½ tbsp ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 1 head garlic peeled
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 1 cup water
- 2 bay leaves dried or fresh
- ¼ cup vinegar
Instructions
- Cut pork butt into 2” cubes. Trim as much of the pork fat as possible.
- Heat a 4-quart stainless-steel saute pan in medium high heat. Season the pork butt with salt and pepper.
- Add the pork to the dry pan and sear for 3 to 5 minutes on each side. The pork will naturally loosen from the pan once it’s seared enough to flip. You may have to do this in two batches so it sears and doesn’t steam.
- Return all the seared pork into the pan. Add black peppercorns, garlic, soy sauce, water, and bay leaves. Turn the heat to high. When the pan comes to a boil, turn the heat to low-medium, cover, and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add vinegar to the pan, stir, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes more until the pork is tender.
- Serve on steamed white rice with sauce poured on the rice.
