Pork Afritada

Filipino Pork AfritadaFilipinos love stews because they go great with boiled white rice, which is a staple in every meal.

One of the popular tomato-based stews in the Philippines is afritada. It’s made with chicken or pork, along with potatoes, carrots, and bell peppers simmered in a combination of tomato sauce and water until they’re tender.

There are different variations of the dish depending on the region and the cook. Though closely similar to another tomato-based stews– caldereta and menudo, afritada is the simplest of them all.

For today’s recipe, I am sharing with you my favorite pork afritada dish. It’s so easy to put together, you can definitely make this at home for your family or serve it when somebody is coming over at your house for lunch or dinner. Very hearty stew, tasty, and quite satisfying. Give it a try!

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients:Filipino Pork Afritada 02
2 lbs pork shoulder
2 medium Russet potatoes
3 medium carrots
1 large red bell pepper
1 large green bell pepper
3 cups water
1 can tomato sauce (15 oz)
1 dry bay leaf
1/2 medium onion
2 large cloves garlic
2 tbsp canola oil (or any vegetable oil you have)
1 pork bouillon cube

Tools You’ll Need:
Knife
Cutting board
12″ saute pan or 5-quart Dutch oven
Cooking spoon

Procedure:
1. Peel garlic and mince. Also peel onion, and coarsely chop. Set aside.Filipino Pork Afritada 032. Cut pork into 1-inch cubes.Filipino Pork Afritada 043. Heat pan over medium high heat. Add oil and saute onions and garlic till fragrant, about 2 minutes.Filipino Pork Afritada 054. Throw in cubed pork pieces and saute till no longer pink, about 10 minutes.Filipino Pork Afritada 06 Filipino Pork Afritada 075. Add 3 cups of water, bouillon cube, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. As soon as water starts boiling, lower heat to low and simmer for an hour until pork is tender (test by piercing with a fork or tip of a sharp knife. It should pierce easily without a problem).Filipino Pork Afritada 086. While the meat is simmering, prepare the vegetables about 15 minutes before you throw them into the pot. This way the potatoes don’t turn dark or the bell peppers wilt just sitting on the counter while the meat is getting ready. This is just my preference, though. If you want to prep them ahead of time, make sure you soak the potatoes in a bowl of cold water and refrigerate cut up bell peppers in the fridge until ready to use. So, moving on to prepping the veggies.

a.) Wash bell peppers, then remove the seeds and ribs (the white stuff that runs along the flesh), then slice into 1-inch chunks.
Filipino Pork Afritada 09 Filipino Pork Afritada 10b.Peel potatoes with a vegetable peeler or a paring knife and cut into 1-inch cubes. Do the same thing with the carrots.

Filipino Pork Afritada 11 Filipino Pork Afritada 127. Once the meat is tender, add tomato sauce, potatoes, and carrots into the pot. Stir to mix. Bring to a boil then simmer for 5-8 minutes until almost tender.Filipino Pork Afritada 14Filipino Pork Afritada 15 8. Throw in bell peppers and cook for 3-5 minutes until just limp.Filipino Pork Afritada 16Filipino Pork Afritada 179.Remove from heat and serve immediately.Filipino Pork Afritada 19

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Pork Afritada
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Side Dish
Cuisine: Filipino
Serves: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • 2 lbs pork shoulder
  • 2 medium Russet potatoes
  • 3 medium carrots
  • 1 large red bell pepper
  • 1 large green bell pepper
  • 3 cups water
  • 1 can tomato sauce (15 oz)
  • 1 dry bay leaf
  • ½ medium onion
  • 2 large cloves garlic
  • 2 tbsp canola oil (or any vegetable oil you have)
  • 1 pork bouillon cube
Instructions
  1. Peel garlic and mince. Also peel onion, and coarsely chop. Set aside.
  2. Cut pork into 1-inch cubes.
  3. Heat pan over medium high heat. Add oil and saute onions and garlic till fragrant, about 2 minutes.
  4. Throw in cubed pork pieces and saute till no longer pink, about 10 minutes
  5. Add 3 cups of water, bouillon cube, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. As soon as water starts boiling, lower heat to low and simmer for an hour until pork is tender (test by piercing with a fork or tip of a sharp knife. It should pierce easily without a problem).
  6. While the meat is simmering, prepare the vegetables about 15 minutes before you throw them into the pot. This way the potatoes don't turn dark or the bell peppers wilt just sitting on the counter while the meat is getting ready. This is just my preference, though. If you want to prep them ahead of time, make sure you soak the potatoes in a bowl of cold water and refrigerate cut up bell peppers in the fridge until ready to use. So, moving on to prepping the veggies.
  7. a.) Wash bell peppers, then remove the seeds and ribs (the white stuff that runs along the flesh), then slice into 1-inch chunks.
  8. b.Peel potatoes with a vegetable peeler or a paring knife and cut into 1-inch cubes. Do the same thing with the carrots.
  9. Once the meat is tender, add tomato sauce, potatoes, and carrots into the pot. Stir to mix. Bring to a boil then simmer for 5-8 minutes until almost tender.
  10. Throw in bell peppers and cook for 3-5 minutes until just limp.
  11. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

 

2 Comments

  1. yolomoment July 18, 2015
    • Mia July 18, 2015