Scrambling for Vinegar

There are days when I long for good home-cooked meals. But sometimes, just thinking about what it entails to prepare a decent meal, from grocery shopping to actual cooking, makes me reconsider. A Chinese take out becomes much more appealing. But not this week. I was in the mood.

I listed down dishes I wanted to prepare for the week. Well, I was referring to just 4 days of the week, from Monday to Thursday. I also need the weekend off, right?

One of the dishes I planned on preparing was requested by the wife -- her mom's version of chicken & pork adobo. The plan was to have the adobo on Wednesday. On Tuesday, it was picadillo with torta. Well, it's actually a variation of the picadillo, prepared as a soup, with sauteed ground beef and Chinese cabbage. The torta was some sort of omelette mixed with the same sauteed ground beef, served as another dish.

My wife suggested that I cook the adobo at the same time I do the picadillo because adobo is always good (if not great) the next day, and the next, and the next. It always is. So, off I went and prepped for both dishes. There was a lot of chopping and slicing and cutting and dicing. Both dishes weren't really hard to prepare. With a bowl of sauteed ground beef set aside for the torta and the rest simmering for the soup, it was on to the adobo.

The version I made required frying the meat after it had been simmering. This makes this adobo quite different from everyone else's because it had that texture. I will share the recipe in a little while. First, let me tell you what happened next.

With the cut chicken and pork belly (the best) in the pot, mixed with tons of minced garlic, peppercorns, and bay leaves, I realized I was missing the most important ingredient -- vinegar. The vinegar I use is made of sugarcane. Adobo won't be an adobo without vinegar. I searched all over the place -- the pantry, kitchen cabinets, under the sink, in the garage, my secret storage for emergency supplies. None!!! No vinegar. Not a drop.

As I pondered on my next move, various scenarios played in my head. Either I go to a regular grocery store or an Asian store. Since most grocery stores now carry Asian food and condiments, I rushed to my nearest Safeway. I ran up and down the aisles but found nothing. Time was ticking. I evaluated my next options -- go to another Safeway, call a friend, or head for the Asian store.

I phoned my friend, Lou, because I wanted to ask her if she knew if the Safeway store near her house carried the vinegar I needed. I was also hoping she might have a spare bottle of vinegar lying around. But the call went to voicemail. I had to decide quickly. Rather than taking my chances at another Safeway, I went straight to Marina, an Asian grocer in Warm Springs. With a bottle in hand, off I went to finish my dish. I guess I should have gone straight there instead. I had hoped to "save" some time by going to the closest store, but I ended up wasting more. My bad.

My version of my mother-in-law's adobo is simple. I like mixing chicken and pork. Pork belly to be specific. With the meats in the pot, I added lots of minced (or crushed) garlic (the more, the merrier), diced onions (to add a little sweetness) peppercorns, and bay leaves. I then added 1 part soy sauce (mostly for color and a little saltiness) to 3 parts vinegar. I even added freshly-cracked black pepper for good measure. Lastly, I added 3 parts water. I let this come to a boil, then simmered over medium heat till meats are tender.

The chicken became tender faster, so I had to take it out, while the pork continued to cook. With the pork out and drained, along with the chicken, I fried the meat to create this crisp, firmer texture. Then, I placed the meat back in the pot for a final simmer. The sauce that was created was a mixture of the soy sauce-vinegar reduction, infused with all the spices added, and the natural juices and fat from the chicken and pork. Adobo is best eaten with a plate of hot, steaming white rice. If you want a little saltier taste, you can have fish sauce as a side dipping sauce.

Talking about it makes me hungry.