Entree: Philippines – Ilocano – Dinardaraan (Ilocano pork blood stew made with pork meat and offal simmered in savory aromatics and fresh pig’s blood, served with rice)

Serving Size: 4

Approximate Time

Prep 25 min

Cook 55 min

Total 1 hr 20 min

Ingredients

- 1 lb (454 g) pork belly, cut into 1/2-inch (1 cm) cubes
- 8 oz (225 g) pork shoulder, cut into 1/2-inch (1 cm) cubes
- 8 oz (225 g) pork liver, sliced
- 2 cups (480 ml) fresh pig’s blood, strained and lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) cane vinegar or white vinegar (to add to blood and to deglaze)
- 1 cup (240 ml) water or pork stock
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) cooking oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1–3 small Thai chilies (siling labuyo), whole or sliced, optional
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) fish sauce (patis)
- 1 tsp (5 g) ground black pepper
- 1 tsp (5 g) salt, or to taste
- Steamed white rice, for serving

Instructions

1. Prepare the pig’s blood by straining it through a fine sieve into a bowl and gently whisking in 1 tbsp (15 ml) vinegar to keep it from coagulating; set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.
2. Heat the cooking oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown the pork belly and pork shoulder in batches until well-seared, about 6–8 minutes per batch. Remove and set aside, leaving rendered fat in the pot.
3. In the same pot, reduce heat to medium and sauté the chopped onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook 1–2 minutes until fragrant.
4. Return the browned pork pieces to the pot. Add the bay leaves, fish sauce, ground black pepper, and 1/4 cup (60 ml) vinegar to deglaze the pan, scraping up browned bits. Pour in 1 cup (240 ml) water or stock, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until the meat is tender, about 30–40 minutes.
5. Add the sliced pork liver and optional chilies; simmer 5–8 minutes until the liver is just cooked through. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and additional fish sauce if needed.
6. Reduce heat to low. Remove the pot from direct heat for safety and slowly stir in the reserved pig’s blood a little at a time, stirring constantly to prevent curdling; return to very low heat and cook gently until the stew thickens and the flavors meld, about 5–8 minutes. Do not boil after adding blood to avoid coagulation.
7. Remove bay leaves and serve hot with steamed white rice. Adjust seasoning with salt or fish sauce as desired.