The recipe of bopis has continually evolved throughout the years. There are recipes with a little bit of sauce in it, while there are others that require to let all the liquid evaporate. All of the recipes that I’ve tried are good. – But I prefer dry bopis.
I enjoy having this dish because of its spice, unique flavor, and soft texture. The spice depends on the amount of bird’s eye chili used, while the texture is the result of long hours of simmering. The unique taste, on the other hand, relies on two factors: the seasonings and the technique used in neutralizing the pungent odor of the pig’s lungs.
It is a must to neutralize the pungent and gamy odor of the lungs before starting to cook. There are different ways to do this; one is to boil and simmer the lungs with cooking wine, or you can simmer it with lemon grass and pandan leaves. I do both depending on the availability of the ingredients. Since I was in the Philippines when I shot the video, I opted for the freshly cut lemon grass and pandan leaves that I got from our neighbors backyard.
I haven’t tried this recipe for years. I needed to wait for my trip to the Philippines to be able to complete the ingredients. You see, I tried looking for pig’s lungs here in the Midwest but I can’t get it from any store. Finally, I was able to make bopis the way I want it to be.
Try this Bopis recipe and tell me what you think.
Got suggestions or questions? Please type them in the comment box below.
Recipe: Bopis
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs pig’s lungs, boiled in lemon grass and pandan leaves until tender and minced
- 1 lb pig’s heart, boiled in lemon grass and pandan leaves until tender and minced
- 1/2 cup annatto seeds diluted in 1 cup of water
- 1 small carrot, minced (optional)
- 4 to 6 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons bird’s eye chili, minced
- 2 tablespoons ginger, minced
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 to 4 pieces dried bay leaves
- 1 cup water
- 3 tablespoons cooking oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Watch the cooking video:
Cooking Procedure
- Heat a frying pan or wok and pour-in cooking oil.
- Sauté ginger, garlic, and onion.
- Add the bird’s eye chili and cook for 30 seconds.
- Put-in the minced pig’s lungs and heart then cook for 3 to 5 minutes while stirring once in a while.
- Pour in annatto water (water from the diluted annatto seeds) and stir.
- Add the dried bay leaves and pour-in 1 cup of water. Simmer for 30 to 35 minutes or until almost all the liquid evaporates.
- Put-in the minced carrots and stir. Simmer for 3 minutes.
- Season with salt, and ground black pepper then stir.
- Pour-in the vinegar and cook for 8 to 10 minutes more under medium heat.
- Turn-off heat and transfer to a serving plate.
- Serve. Share and enjoy!
Number of servings (yield): 8
My rating
Note: If you want your bopis to taste meatier, try adding 1 beef or pork cube in step 5.
wala po ba itong prok kidney?
Sir, if there is no annatto seeds available what can we use as a substitute?
substitute for annatto- i used yellow food coloring… or a pinch of pabrika, turmeric
I like my bopis with green and red bell peppers instead of carrots.
have you tried using chicken gizzard and heart instead of pork lungs and heart? Try it it’s equally good!
ok lang po ba kahit lemon grass ko lang sya pakuluan? wala po kasi akong mahanap ng pandan leaves.