Few things are more delicious than a ½-inch thick, bone-in, deliciously marinated, char-grilled piece of pork belly.
Inihaw na liempo, aside from adobo, is another way I enjoy pork.
Here are some of my recipes and tips. (All best enjoyed with Lipitor!)
Local liempo/pork is tastier.
I like mine cut ½-inch, skin-on, bone-in.
Pick liempo that is pinkish, with an even layering of fat and meat.
Marinate your pork overnight. If you can’t, try getting a nine-minute marinator (available at Gourdo’s and Home TV Shopping). I use it and it works like a charm, especially when I teach. One cycle is nine minutes, I do a couple of cycles, at least three.
In general, I do not marinate longer than 16 hours. If you’ve marinated the meat and changed your mind about grilling it immediately, take it out of the marinade (if liquid) and freeze the meat. For dry rubs, just transfer meats to the freezer.
Marinate in the refrigerator using large and sturdy freezer bags that can hold all the liquid marinade.
Use light soy sauce, especially when a recipe calls for a lot. There’s no bigger turn-off than a soy sauce-blackened piece of liempo.
Always taste your marinade. If you are not happy with your marinade or rub, you will not be happy with the result. So adjust salt, pepper, sugar, chilies to taste.
To prevent meat from drying out, brush both the meat and the grate with oil before grilling.
Arrange your charcoal—low to high, left to right. Charcoal on the leftmost side should be about five inches from the grill grate; this is where you first lay your liempo. Increase center coal distance to four inches, then by the end of the griller, the distance between coal and grate should be three inches. This is where you grill the meat for the perfect golden color; the meat stays shortest on this setting.
Do not keep turning your pork; grill three to four minutes per side on the leftmost side of grill. The idea is to gently “caramelize” the outer portion before turning. As you cook from left to right, turn your meat more often. Keep a close eye on it.
Half-inch liempo takes 12-15 minutes approximately. Wait patiently for the oil to ooze out. The slow grilling helps make your inihaw soft and succulent.
Grill slowly, especially if there’s a lot of sugar in your marinade or basting sauce; it burns easily.
Soak a couple of charcoal pieces in denatured alcohol or lighter fluid. Use these chips to start your fire.
Coals should have been burning for at least 15-30 minutes (depending on which griller you use) before you start grilling. This works best for me. By then, the heat the coals emit is stable and perfect.
If you have a lot to grill, use coconut briquettes; they burn longer and can be dumped in water when done and reused.
Keep coals burning by adding three to five or seven pieces of coals (depending on the size of coal and your griller) at a time, before the burning coals are extinguished, or it would be a long wait.
Vinegar and Garlic Liempo
Make basting sauce.
When pork is half-cooked, start basting the pork with sauce.
Basting sauce:
To serve, add chopped garlic, onions and chilies to your favorite vinegar
Tamarind Liempo
Marinate. Grill. Serve with pickled vegetables.
Pickled vegetables
Pickling solution:
Add vegetables.
Vegetables:
Liempong Dilaw
Inihaw na liempo, aside from adobo, is another way I enjoy pork.
Here are some of my recipes and tips. (All best enjoyed with Lipitor!)
Local liempo/pork is tastier.
I like mine cut ½-inch, skin-on, bone-in.
Pick liempo that is pinkish, with an even layering of fat and meat.
Marinate your pork overnight. If you can’t, try getting a nine-minute marinator (available at Gourdo’s and Home TV Shopping). I use it and it works like a charm, especially when I teach. One cycle is nine minutes, I do a couple of cycles, at least three.
In general, I do not marinate longer than 16 hours. If you’ve marinated the meat and changed your mind about grilling it immediately, take it out of the marinade (if liquid) and freeze the meat. For dry rubs, just transfer meats to the freezer.
Marinate in the refrigerator using large and sturdy freezer bags that can hold all the liquid marinade.
Use light soy sauce, especially when a recipe calls for a lot. There’s no bigger turn-off than a soy sauce-blackened piece of liempo.
Always taste your marinade. If you are not happy with your marinade or rub, you will not be happy with the result. So adjust salt, pepper, sugar, chilies to taste.
To prevent meat from drying out, brush both the meat and the grate with oil before grilling.
Arrange your charcoal—low to high, left to right. Charcoal on the leftmost side should be about five inches from the grill grate; this is where you first lay your liempo. Increase center coal distance to four inches, then by the end of the griller, the distance between coal and grate should be three inches. This is where you grill the meat for the perfect golden color; the meat stays shortest on this setting.
Do not keep turning your pork; grill three to four minutes per side on the leftmost side of grill. The idea is to gently “caramelize” the outer portion before turning. As you cook from left to right, turn your meat more often. Keep a close eye on it.
Half-inch liempo takes 12-15 minutes approximately. Wait patiently for the oil to ooze out. The slow grilling helps make your inihaw soft and succulent.
Grill slowly, especially if there’s a lot of sugar in your marinade or basting sauce; it burns easily.
Soak a couple of charcoal pieces in denatured alcohol or lighter fluid. Use these chips to start your fire.
Coals should have been burning for at least 15-30 minutes (depending on which griller you use) before you start grilling. This works best for me. By then, the heat the coals emit is stable and perfect.
If you have a lot to grill, use coconut briquettes; they burn longer and can be dumped in water when done and reused.
Keep coals burning by adding three to five or seven pieces of coals (depending on the size of coal and your griller) at a time, before the burning coals are extinguished, or it would be a long wait.
Vinegar and Garlic Liempo
- 1 k liempo
- 3 tbsp garlic, pounded
- 1 tbsp each garlic and onion powder
- 3 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 bay leaf, crumbled
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 chili, sliced to taste
- ¼ c brown sugar
- 1 tsp freshly cracked pepper
- 1 tbsp oil
Make basting sauce.
When pork is half-cooked, start basting the pork with sauce.
Basting sauce:
- 2 tbsp patis
- 1 tbsp garlic puree
- 2 tbsp suka
- 2 tbsp liquid seasoning
- 1 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp oil
To serve, add chopped garlic, onions and chilies to your favorite vinegar
Tamarind Liempo
- 1 k pork belly
- ¼ c garlic paste
- 1 tbsp tanglad
- 2 tsp ground pepper
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 3 tbsp sugar
- Juice of 2 pc calamansi
- 1 tbsp kecap manis (dark sweet soy sauce, available in Unimart or Santis)
- ¼ c Tanduay Rhum
- 2-3 tbsp tamarind water or 2-3 tsp tamarind sinigang powder mix
- 2 tbsp oil
Marinate. Grill. Serve with pickled vegetables.
Pickled vegetables
Pickling solution:
- ½ c water
- ½ c + 2 tbsp white sugar
- 1/3 c white vinegar
- 1½ tsp salt
- 2 green chilies or siling pang-sigang
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 3 thin slices ginger
- 6 garlic cloves, sliced
- 2 tsp peppercorn
Add vegetables.
Vegetables:
- 2 cucumbers, sliced or medium dice
- 1 small radish, thinly sliced
- 1 large white onion, large dice
- ½ carrot, julienne
Liempong Dilaw
- 1 k liempo
- 2 tsp salt
- 3 tsp liquid seasoning
- 2 tsp black pepper
- ½ c pounded garlic
- 2 tbsp lemongrass hearts, pounded
- 3 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/3 c Sprite
- 2 tbsp achuete oil
- ½ tsp turmeric powder or 1-inch root (luyang dilaw) fresh, pounded to a paste.
Mix ingredients and marinate liempo. Grill.
When liempo is half cooked, brush with achuete oil.
Serve with vinegar, soy, chilies and calamansi on the side.
Serve with Pickled Vegetables.
When liempo is half cooked, brush with achuete oil.
Serve with vinegar, soy, chilies and calamansi on the side.
Serve with Pickled Vegetables.
