Super Crispy Pata with Yummy Sawsawan
This recipe post is all about Super Crispy Pata. It is more than just your regular deep fried pork leg. It is tastier, yummier, and crispier. Super Crispy Pata is a good dish to make during the Holidays. I also shared the details on how to make crispy pata dipping sauce which is now my…
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This recipe post is all about Super Crispy Pata. It is more than just your regular deep fried pork leg. It is tastier, yummier, and crispier. Super Crispy Pata is a good dish to make during the Holidays. I also shared the details on how to make crispy pata dipping sauce which is now my new favorite sawsawan.
Crispy Pata is best enjoyed as a main dish with warm white rice. I enjoy mine better when there is a serving of papaya atchara. It makes the meal complete in my opinion. It is also considered as a good pulutan in my book. I like to have it while it is warm and very crispy to the point that it quickly absorbs the vinegar after dipping.
How to Cook Super Crispy Pata
There are two processes involved in cooking crispy pata. The first process involves tenderizing the pork leg by boiling in water. The next is to deep fry it until it turns super crispy. I will detail the steps for each process below.
Boil Until Tender
You will need cooking pot to boil the pata. It has to be wide and deep enough to accommodate the entire leg. Do this by arranging the pork leg in a pot. I add onion, garlic, bay leaves, and whole peppercorn with the pork. These ingredients helps remove the odor from the pork leg while providing additional flavors as it cooks.
Pour enough water into the pot. This means to fill the pot with water until the pork leg is completely submerged. Place the entire pot on a stove top. Cover the pot and apply heat. This is the easier and simpler process between the two. All we need to do is boil the pork for an hour or more until it complexly tenderizes.
The step that transitions between the boiling and frying is important as well. This is where additional flavors are added into the pork. I simply pour and rub Knorr liquid seasoning all over the pork and wait for around 15 minutes for the seasoning to be absorbed. This is the step wherein salt is usually used to flavor the pata. I discovered that seasoning works better because it contains more flavors. You will need to pat the skin dry though using a paper towel before frying the pata to prevent it from browning too much. The flavors from the seasoning should have already been absorbed by the meat during this time.
Deep Fry Until Crispy
The next process is deep frying the pata until it gets crispy. Please be forewarned that extra caution is necessary during this step. I recommend using a deep soup pot during this process. It will help give extra protection from intense oil splatters. Having a splatter screen is also useful.
Start by heating peanut oil to 320F. I am using peanut oil because it has a high smoke point. This means that it does not burn easily when exposed to high heat for a long time. A cooking thermometer is useful during this step.
Why do we need to capture the temperature? It is important to prevent the skin of the pork from sticking to the bottom of the pot. It is unlikely from happening when the oil is very hot, or if you are using a Teflon pot.
Deep fry the pata. Gently put it into the pot. This step can be scary, but please try your best to be as calm as possible. Do not drop the leg quickly as it can cause the oil to splash. Immediately cover the pot while leaving an opening for the steam to escape. Continue to fry for 12 to 15 minutes. You can also cover the pot with a splatter screen when the oil starts to calm down. This will let more steam to escape which helps make the pork crunchy. Turn the pork leg over and do the same thing. This is easier said than done. Make sure to have a pair of tongs on both of your hands in order to easily flip the leg. Remove the entire pork leg from the pot once the oil starts to calm down. This is around the 15 minute timing. Put it on a plate and just let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. You will have to turn off the heat from the stove at this point.
Deep Fry Some More Until Super Crispy
The secret in making Super Crispy Pata, just like our Super Crispy Lechon Kawali, is double frying. This literally means frying the meat twice until the skin gets extra crispy. It sounds easy. However, it involves proper timing.
Double frying is effective when done after the deep-fried pork has cooled down. This is when the skin starts to get crispy and crunchy. Put it back to the cooking pot and deep-fry each side for 5 to 8 minutes. You’ll see a big difference in terms of crispiness. Let the pork leg rest for 15 minutes before serving. This helps the meat regain the liquid making the meat inside juicy.
How to Make Dipping Sauce for Crispy Pata
A good dipping sauce or sawsawan for your crispy pata makes your meal more enjoyable. Luckily, a good dipping sauce for crispy pata is easy to make. It is all about using the proper ingredients that blends well with each other. As I mentioned, this is now my favorite sawsawan.
Simply pour white vinegar into a bowl. Add white sugar. Stir until the sugar dilutes completely. Add onion, scallions, garlic, ground black pepper, chopped chili, or chili flakes. Normally I add soy sauce, but opted to use Knorr Liquid Seasoning for this recipe. It made a huge difference in good way. You should try this to experience what I am talking about.
Try this Super Crispy Pata with Yummy Sawsawan Recipe. Let me know what you think.
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag us on Instagram at @panlasangpinoy or hashtag #panlasangpinoy so we can see your creations!
Super Crispy Pata with Yummy Sawsawan
Ingredients
- 1 piece pork pata 4 lbs
- 4 tablespoons Knorr Liquid Seasoning
- 6 pieces dried bay leaves
- 2 pieces red onions wedged
- 7 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 tablespoon whole peppercorn
- 2 quarts peanut oil
- 3 quarts water
Vinegar Dip (Sawsawan) Ingredients
Instructions
- In a cooking pot, combine pata, onion, bay leaves, garlic, whole peppercorn, and water. Apply heat. Cover and let boil. Cook in medium heat for 1 hour or until the pata becomes tender.
- Remove the pata from the pot. Let it cool down.
- Rub Knorr liquid seasoning all over the pata. Let it stay for 15 minutes. Pat the pata dry using a piece of paper towel.
- Pour peanut oil into a deep and heavy cooking pot. Heat until it reaches 320F.
- Deep fry the pata for 12 to 15 minutes. Note: be extra cautious. Oil will splatter in this step. Make sure to partially cover the pot let steam out while frying.
- Gently turn the pata over to further cook the opposite side. Continue to fry for 12 to 15 minutes or until the pata is crispy.
- Remove the pata from the pot. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Deep fry both sides of the pata for the second time for 5 to 8 minutes per side or until it turns super crispy.
- Remove from the pot. Let it cool down.
- Prepare the dipping sauce by combining all the Vinegar Dip ingredients. Stir.
- Transfer the super crispy pata on a serving plate. Serve with yummy sawsawan. Share and enjoy!
Nutrition Information
Watch How to Cook Super Crispy Pata
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