Adobo, a beloved and popular Filipino dish, is commonly made with chicken or pork that is traditionally braised in vinegar, soy, and garlic. There are many variations to the recipe based on each cook’s individual style and taste preferences. Some add coconut milk, others add spices, some use salt instead of soy sauce. I’ve even tried a version that is fried. But the most distinguishing feature of this dish is a rich sauce that perfectly balances acidity, saltiness, and sweetness. In this version, I included puréed and caramelized pineapple, inspired by my childhood trips to Tagaytay, a city South of Manila, where the air is cool and sweetly fragrant fields of this tropical fruit are plentiful. It’s a festive way to spruce up adobo yet keep it simple enough for a weeknight meal.
Ingredients
4–6 servings
1
2
2
½
6
⅔
½
2
1
5
Preparation
Step 1
Peel and core pineapple. Cut half of pineapple into bite-size pieces (about 1"); set aside. Chop remaining pineapple into small pieces and transfer to a small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until very soft and broken down and nearly all juice is evaporated, 15–18 minutes. Transfer to a blender and add ¼ cup water; purée until smooth.
Step 2
Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high. Lightly season pork with salt and pepper. Working in 2 batches, cook pork until well browned on all sides, 5–8 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate.
Step 3
Reduce heat to medium-low and add onion and garlic to same pot. Cook, stirring often, until fragrant and softened, about 5 minutes. Return pork to pot and stir in pineapple purée. Add vinegar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, peppercorns, bay leaves, and ¾ cup water and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and cover pot. Reduce heat so adobo is at a very gentle simmer and cook until pork is tender, 45–50 minutes.
Step 4
Meanwhile, heat remaining 2 tsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook reserved bite-size pineapple pieces, tossing occasionally, until golden brown all over, 5–8 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
Step 5
Uncover pot and skim off any fat from surface. Increase heat to medium and cook, uncovered, until sauce is thick and shiny, about 15 minutes. Gently stir in caramelized pineapple. Remove and discard bay leaves.
Step 6
Serve pork adobo over rice, topped with scallions.
Leave a Review
Reviews (120)
Back to TopExcellent! Made as written and pork was so tender. Will definitely make again.
Darcy Crimmins
Folsom, CA
9/20/2023
First, when I make Asian food, I use peanut oil instead of vegetable oil. I used 1/2 cup of water based on reviews. And c1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar (because that’s what I use when I make chicken adobo.) and 1/4 cup of Mango Sriracha White Balsamic vinegar from OMG from Seattle but trust me, given the sweetness of the pineapple, you could use the full 3/4 cup of Apple cider vinegar. I used a whole white onion, two teaspoons of freshly ground pepper in place of the pepper corns and 1 1/4 teaspoons of dried thyme instead of using bay leaves because I don’t like to fish out bay leaves out of sauce. From there, I cooked the pork “low and slow” in a 300 degree oven for 45 minutes, added the bite size pineapple and then baked for 15 minutes more. Served on brown jasmine rice with steamed broccoli. Delicious!
VA FUDI
Williamsburg, VA
7/6/2023
I cooked the recipe as written, which turned out delicious, but I could not obtain the burnished color like in the photo. My pineapple wasn't very ripe, so that may explain it. The finely chopped half finished as a less-than-straw yellow. I noticed some commenters described the outcome as watery, but I think you can increase the reduction time in step 5. I was also pretty liberal with skimming the fat from the top, starting with the foam, then with the clear fat that began to pool along the side of the dutch oven. The whole peppercorns made for a nice, peppery bite with the sweet salty pork and pineapple. I will add this dish to the rotation.
Greengo
Falls Church, VA
1/19/2023
The combination of pineapple and pork is a classic. Al pastore in central America is common. This method of using the pineapple for the sauce and as a vegetable really accentuates the flavor. This knocks the pants off of any other adobo dish I've ever had without the pineapple. I presume this basic dish can be made with chicken thighs in lieu of the pork for those who don't eat piggy.
Anonymous
CT
9/19/2022
I will make this again. Used the rice wine vinegar and soy sauce substitutes. Cooked for way longer than the recipe called for, just because I was in a holding pattern until I was ready to serve. Tasted great! Too sweet for my husband but nothing a little Sriracha can’t fix. Added charred white onion and bell pepper for some crunch. Sticky rice, green onion, and done!
Jenna C.
Los Angels, CA
3/11/2022
I made this dish this weekend and it was divine! I reduced the water to 1/2 cup as other reviewers mentioned and I cooked it in the oven at 300F for about 45 minutes and then 275F for another 15-30 minutes. The meat was tender and delicious. I didn't have to thicken/reduce the sauce on the stovetop as it had reduced enough in the oven. My pineapple was really ripe and delicious. I didn't find the dish to be overly sweet at all. I used the Datu Puti vinegar and soy sauce, so maybe that makes a difference in overall sweetness and color (my dish was dark like the image shown). Great recipe! Will definitely make again.
Stephanie
Georgia
2/28/2022
This is so, so good. Followed the recipe exactly except I was lazy and cooked it in the oven for just over an hour in a 160 oven (Celsius)then finished it off on the stove. Such depth and complexity and the vinegar made for the most tender pork ever! I will be making this over and over again!
Miranda
Perth, Australia.
1/15/2022
This is one of the best BA recipes I've ever made. I made this almost exactly as written. The only changes were from helpful commenters below; 1/2 cup water instead of 3/4 cup; ground pepper in place of whole peppercorns to save our teeth, and a hefty sear on the pork (without burning it). The flavor was incredibly good, with no one ingredient overpowering the other. The pineapple complemented the dish perfectly, too. I'll be making this one over and over again until the end of time. It's that good! Thanks, Louiie & BA!!
Anonymous
Colorado
11/15/2021
This was absolutely fantastic. So richly flavored. I was a bit perplexed trying to brown the pork cubes. They became way overdone. Searing them was very dicey for me. I didn't use a heavy dutch oven. Just a regular dutch oven. Maybe I needed to use my cast iron frying pan? Any suggestions? I wanted them to be rich and brown and carmel-ly but not so over done. My husband told me at least ten times..."This is delicious, but the pork is over done." Help? Of course we ate it happily and will eat the leftovers tonight. So good. Mmmmm.
Charlotte Gusay
Los Angeles
10/1/2021
I was so eager to make this recipe.. I love pork. I couldn't find datu puti.. but substituted it for the unseasoned rice vinegar (as the recipe suggested) . I did not like it at all.. I found myself having to add brown sugar when caramelizing the pineapple as the sauce was too tangy for my taste.. I will not be making this one again.. so sad..
Carmen
New York
9/29/2021
Outstanding. So so so so good. Relatively easy to make for so much flavor. Notes: — Get a hefty sear on the pork for good color! — I added sriracha to get a little heat in there to balance the sweet — It was a bit watery at the end of the suggested cooking time, even with the reduction. Not a problem. I took out the meat and cooked down the sauce another 5-10 minutes. I seasoned the sauce to my taste with a bit more ground pepper. — I didn’t have oyster sauce so i used a tbsp of fish sauce and a tbsp of black garlic umami sauce. — I didn’t add the caramelizad pineapple chunks. Instead I took the other half of the pineapple, sliced it, grilled it. Served it with some Valentina hot sauce and vanilla ice cream.
Medic6408
NYC, NY
8/17/2021
Great flavor and interesting balance of sweet and savory, but the sweetness was just too much. Each time I got a bite of pineapple it was just far too sweet compared to the sauce. I'd make it again, but I'd cut the bite-size pieces of pineapple smaller and use more like 2/3 to 3/4 of the pineapple for the puree instead of 1/2.
Anonymous
Seattle
8/2/2021
Delicious! I actually forgot to add the 3/4 cup of water in step 3 and it turned out perfect, so I can definitely see why other folks found it too watery. I also cracked my peppercorns instead of putting them in whole. Only had about 1 T of oyster sauce left in my bottle so added a dash of fish sauce as well. I took the comments advice and cut the pork into fairly large cubes so I could put a super hard sear on them. I would definitely make this again, and I can easily see it doubling nicely for a dinner party.
Anonymous
Berkeley, CA
5/20/2021
This recipe is incredible. I followed it to the letter but for I did chunk up my peppercorns in a mortar and pestle. Not that it matters, but my end result looked like the picture, and for people who wished it did I would say to not be afraid to sear the crap out of that pork. If you've cubed up a shoulder, that meat can take it. I took mine to a nearly-burnt stage and it paid off. Small batches in a wide pan. Everything in this recipe is going to take longer in your wonky home-kitchen than stated in this recipe. Totally fine and super fun if you have time and maybe want to take time and have a couple of drinks between stages. There is a deglazing step missing from this recipe but I think it's intuitive. To the reviewer who switched out gochujang paste for oyster sauce, I honestly think that's the move and will do that next time, although culturally speaking it's probs no longer adobo at that point. All the stars, loved this. As is 10/10.
Jessamin
Raleigh, NC
5/15/2021
I would love to know which magazine this iteration of adobo is actually in. The March 2021article is by Melissa Miranda and is a completely different Oven-Roasted Chicken Adobo, so basically completely different ingredients, prep and, method. It would be great if you could accurately site this actual recipe creator. Thanks!
Anonymous
5/2/2021