Easy Pork Menudo is a hearty pork stew perfect for chilly and festive days. Fall apart pork simmered in tomato sauce with the addition of tender potatoes, carrots and peppers is comforting and delicious to share with the family for lunch or dinner. It is also great for a crowd to share on special occasions. Serve with rice or bread for a truly satisfying meal.
Pork menudo is a hearty tomato-based stew often served on special occasions.
When you go to a Filipino party you will most likely find dishes that would feed a crowd. Stews, noodles, Filipino spaghetti and festive macaroni salad to name a few would be served together with rice cakes and some drinks too.
Menudo will also find a way to the table as it ticks a lot of boxes. It is easy to make, uses relatively affordable ingredients, double or triple the recipe to feed a crowd and it will always be a hit.
As with every Filipino dish, every family has their own recipe for menudo. Mine did not add cheese or hotdogs, my parents went for the typical potatoes, carrots and or peas and sweet peppers. So, this recipe is almost like my parents’ the only difference is I fry my vegetables to coat them with oil to prevent them from breaking down as they are stewed.
Do you have family recipes passed down to you that you have tweaked a little to your liking?
Follow along as we work our way through to the recipe below.
Why you’ll love this recipe
1. Easy – This recipe is fuss-free. Fry the vegetables or not, sear the meat or optional although recommended. Frying the ingredients adds flavour to the dish but not essential, dump everything in a pot if you have not much time, simmer away and it will still be delicious.
2. Comforting and flavourful – It may take time to wait for the dish to cook which is the hardest part but you will come up with a comforting and flavourful menudo.
What is pork menudo?
Pork menudo is a Filipino stew with potatoes, carrots and peppers. In Filipino menudo means small or bits. It refers to the ingredients chopped into bits then stewed.
Ingredients to make pork menudo
By using the freshest of ingredients you can find you will find yourself with a big pot of hearty menudo to serve.
Potatoes and carrots are the typical root vegetables that go with menudo. Some people would add pork liver to the dish however, this recipe does not call for as for preference.
Sweet peppers, peas or chickpeas are also added for more vegetables and colour. Some recipes would call for hotdogs or sausages, cheese or raisins so, you can play around with the add ons for a more celebratory mood.
Pork shoulder – flavourful and affordable cut for stews
Potatoes – maris piper was used in this recipe because it does not disintegrate as they are stewed. Use or add other types of potatoes that is good for stews
Carrots – added for heft and sweetness
Sweet Peppers – variety of sweet peppers, use bell peppers or capsicum or any non-spicy peppers
Neutral cooking oil
Garlic – as much freshly minced garlic as you want
Onion – chop fresh brown or white or red onion
Tomatoes – use tinned or canned chopped tomatoes in place of fresh tomatoes too
Bay leaf
Soy sauce – light soy sauce for saltiness, use tamari or salt too
Black pepper – freshly ground black pepper to taste
How to prepare menudo
In a pan on medium-hogh heat, add cooking oil and fry the potatoes. Let the potatoes brown on all sides then set aside. Do the same with the carrots. Add the peppers, stir to coat with oil.
In the same pan, add some oil and brown th meat on all sides. Set aside.
Add a little oil to the pan, saute the garlic until aromatic. Add the onion and saute until soft. Add the chopped tomatoes, stir and cook until soft.
Put the meat back to the pan then stir. Pour enough water to cover the ingredients. Add the bay leaf and soy sauce then put the lid on. Bring it up to a boil, turn the heat to low and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Check the meat is soft and tender.
Add the potatoes and carrots. Put the lid back and cook until the meat and vegetables are fork tender. Season to taste. Turn the heat off.
Serve with rice or bread of choice.
How to serve menudo
It is a meal in itself but no dish is complete at a Filipino table without a bowl of rice. Serve this stew with pandesal, crusty bread, pita or naan for a satisfying meal.
Leftovers and Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container. Keep in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for a month. Thaw and heat properly before serving.
Watch how to make pork menudo
If you prefer to learn by watching, you can find a video of this recipe on Youtube.
Try these stew recipes next
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Let’s get cooking!
Easy Pork Menudo
Ingredients
- 250 grams pork shoulder cut into 1-inch cubes
- 100 grams potatoes cut into 1-inch cubes
- 100 grams carrots cut into 1-inch cubes
- 50 grams sweet peppers seeded, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 5-6 tbsp canola oil
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 4-5 medium onion chopped
- 1 leaf bay
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce to taste
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a pan on medium-high heat, add oil and fry the potatoes. Set aside. Do the same with the carrots.
- In the same pan, lightly coat the peppers and set aside.
- Brown the pork on all sides and set aside.
- In the same pot or pan, saute the garlic until fragrant. Add the onion and stir-fry until soft.
- Add the tomatoes, stir until softened.
- Put the pork back into the pan and stir to coat with the aromatics and tomatoes.
- Pour enough water to cover all the ingredients in the pot. Place the bay leaf on top. Pour the soy sauce.
- Cover with the lid. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the meat is tender.
- Add the potatoes and carrots. Continue to simmer until all the vegetables are tender.
- Add the sweet peppers. Sprinkle the ground pepper. Season to taste. Turn the heat off.
- Serve with rice or bread.
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