"Pinakbet" an exotic Ilocano’s recipe

Pinakbet or pakbet is a popular Ilocano dish, from the northern regions of the Philippines, although it has become popular throughout the archipelago. The word is the contracted form of the Ilocano word “pinakebbet”, meaning shrunk or shrivelled. The original Ilocano pinakbet uses bagoong, of fermented monamon or other fish, while further south, bagoong alamang is used. The basic vegetables used in this dish include native bitter melon, eggplant, tomato, ginger, okra, string beans, lima beans, chili peppers , parda and winged beans. A Tagalog version usually includes calabaza. Most of these vegetables are easily accessible, and are grown in backyards and gardens of most Ilocano households. As its name suggests, it is usually cooked until almost dry and shrivelled and the flavors of the vegetables are emphasized and accentuated by bagoong (fermented shrimp fry). In some cases, lechon, chicharon, or other meats (most commonly pork) are added. It is considered a very healthy dish, and convenient in relation to the harsh and rugged, yet fruitful Northern and Ilocos regions of the Philippines. The history of this dish is derived from such.

Pinakbet according to Gilda Cordero-Fernando in Philippine Food and Life is a vegetable dish known all over the Philippines, but which no one cooks as deliciously as the Ilokanos. The Ilokanos say they can tell if a pinakbet was prepared by an Ilokano or not. Pampangos and Tagalogs cut ampalaya (bitter gourd), the main ingredient of pinakbet, into quarters and this, Ilokanos feel, allows too much water and salt in, which shrinks and toughens the vegetable. Ilokanos cut the ampalaya of their pinakbet lengthwise, and only on one side, leaving the opposite side uncut, like a hotdog bun, so that it opens like a hinge. In addition, Ilokanos include a bit of the stem in the last slice of the eggplant which is cut in four halfway through so it opens like a flower.

This recipe of pinakbet comes from Flavors of the Philippines by Glenda Rosales-Baretto.

Heat the oil in a casserole and saute the ginger, garlic, shallots, tomatoes and pork crackling until the liquid has completely reduced, then add anchovy sauce. From this point on, do not stir.

Continue to simmer until the sauce is thick, then add the okra, ampalaya, and eggplant. Cover the casserole and cook for a further 5 minutes.

To make the bagnet, place the pork belly, garlic, bay leaves and salt in a pot. Add sufficient water to cover and cook for 1 hour. Remove pork and dry in a moderately hot oven for 20 minutes.

Deep fry pork in oil at low heat for at least 1 hour, turning every 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool completely. To finish, re-heat oil until moderately hot and deep fry the pork until crisp and golden brown.

The pinakbet in the picture was cooked by my Nang Jocelyn Inserto-Yerro of Cainta, Rizal.