Some dishes never die. They just become leftovers. Sinigang, nilaga, afritada, caldereta—they are often served not just once but over and over again until they’ve been eaten into oblivion. Because the meats are immersed in some kind of soup or sauce, these dishes reheat well. Which is why some cooks make ample soups and sauces when preparing them. The liquids keep the meats from becoming dry in their next reincarnations.
Some leftovers, though, can be made into entirely new dishes. Roast turkey can be transformed into open-face turkey sandwiches, roast chicken into potpies. Steamed crabs can become crab lumpia, while steamed shrimps can be rejuvenated into fritters. And so it is with pork adobo. Stewed in vinegar and simmered slowly to tenderness, adobo keeps well. In fact, it’s even best eaten the day after it’s cooked. As such adobo lends itself well to several iterations. It makes an excellent filling for pan de sal. When shredded, it becomes pulled pork. Spoon it over a mound of molded rice and it’s suddenly a stylish rice topping.
Recently, wondering what else I could do with leftover adobo, I decided to convert it into adobo rice. This is probably the fastest, easiest way to resurrect adobo. Just a few garlic cloves, some rice and seasoning—and you have a hearty meal. And you know those dishes that end with “log,” such as tapsilog (tapa, sinangag, itlog) and longsilog (longganisa, sinangag, itlog)? Add some eggs fried sunny-side up to this dish and you’ll have your own adobsilog.
Adobo Rice
200 g leftover adobo pork adobo (or any amount available)
2 Tbsp cooking oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
4-6 c cooked rice, preferably day-old
Salt and pepper, to taste
Leftover adobo sauce or adobo oil
To serve:
Chopped tomatoes
4-6 fried eggs (optional)
Slice the pork adobo into bite-size pieces. Heat the cooking oil in a wok or large skillet and add the garlic. Saute the garlic until lightly browned. Add the bite-size adobo and continue sauteing until the pork is tender.
Stir in the rice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon in some leftover adobo sauce or adobo oil. Stir-fry the rice and the adobo meat until the rice is lightly browned. Serve warm with chopped tomatoes and, if desired, with eggs fried sunny-side up. Makes 4-6 servings.
