Grilled Pork Belly

Sabado (Saturday) night is the best time of the week to unwind. It is the time to be with family and friends – to eat, drink, and be merry. Shrug-off all the stress that accumulated during the past week and prepare for new challenges ahead, recharged.

Whether you are throwing a big party or a simple private get together, it is important to always serve the best pulutan. So, what is the best pulutan? It all depends on you. It can as simple as adobong mani, or something fiery like spicy chicken feet. Some might like grilled squid and chicharon bulaklak.

If you will ask me, the best pulutan (sometimes called finger food, beer food, or appetizer) is always a combination of meat and seafood. For example: baked tahong and grilled pork belly (inihaw na liempo). If I want to have the combination in one dish, I’ll make sinuglaw.

Let’s talk about grilled pork belly at the moment. In my opinion, grilled pork belly has always been the favorite pulutan. Why? Simply because it tastes great; it is easy to prepare; and it is readily available everywhere – you can even have it as a main dish.

My secret in making tasty grilled pork belly is in the marinade. Before I grill pork belly, I see to it that the marinade has been absorbed. There is nothing fancy when it comes to the ingredients, although sometimes I keep the pork marinated for a day or two for better absorption of flavor. I do this by sealing the pork belly and marinade in a plastic or freezer bag such as ziplock, and keep it inside the refrigerator. It is important to refrigerate meat while being marinated to keep it fresh and to avoid contamination.

There are many choices when it comes to grilling. You can always grill the pork belly over a charcoal grill, a gas grill, or a grilling pan. During winter when it is almost impossible to grill outside the house, you can use the oven to broil it.

We all have our preferred dipping sauce. Sinamak or spicy vinegar dip is on top of the list, along with toyomansi (soy sauce and calamondin combination). There are some who like it with Asian dipping sauce, while others prefer no dipping sauce at all.

Whether you like to dip your grilled pork belly in any dipping sauce or not, I’m sure that you agree that this dish makes a good pulutan.

Do you like grilled pork belly?