Filipino Chocolate Meat (Dinuguan)

cali_love's Note:

This may sound bizarre or even disgusting to some people since it uses edible pork blood [found in most international grocery store's freezer aisle], but many cultures use blood as an ingredient (ie: European blood sausage, British black pudding) so don't knock it before you try it! =] I found this recipe online and posted it here for safekeeping and because this website hardly has any Filipino recipes. It's called "chocolate meat" because of the way the cooked pork blood resembles a chocolate sauce. It was also a good way to get your younger kids to try it out! It worked on me... haha!

• Total Time: 45 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 1 ½ lbs pork belly (pork butt is fine)
• 10 ounces edible pork blood
• 2 cups chicken stock (water is fine)
• 1 cup cane vinegar (I use Datu-Puti brand)
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 4 garlic cloves , peeled and smashed
• 1 medium onion , sliced thinly
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 jalapenos , sliced
• ½ tablespoon ground black pepper
• Accent seasoning , to taste
• ½ tablespoon kosher salt
• oil , for sauteing

Directions:

1. Prepare pork blood by straining it and separating the blood that is in a jelly form in a separate bowl.
2. Next add ¼ cup of water and break up the jellied blood with your hands and set aside.
3. Slice pork into small bite sized pieces and set aside.
4. Heat 1 tbsp of corn oil, add the pork, and spread it evenly on the bottom of the pot. Cover and let it cook on medium low heat for three minutes without stirring it.
5. Remove cover, stir the pork, and drain the liquid accumulated. Add garlic and sauté for one minute, then add the onions, stir, and cover.
6. Let it cook for another minute. Next add fish sauce and bay leaf and sauté for 3 minutes.
7. Then add ½ cup of vinegar, cover, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer for 3 minutes.
8. Add the chicken stock and salt and let it simmer for five minutes. Add the jelly formed pork blood first, stir for about a minute, then add the rest of the pork blood and the jalapenos.
9. Continue to stir for about two minutes, cover, and let simmer for another five minutes. Add another ½ cup of vinegar. Again cover and let it simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
10. Adjust the taste by adding salt & pepper if needed. For extra flavor, you can use Accent flavor seasoning. Serve with white rice.

Reviews

[shen_nanigans]

Great Recipe! I made this for the first time using this recipe & it came out fantastic! I've always been accused of being the "white washed American born island girl who can't even speak the dialects" in my family. Now, I can proudly say, I can cook a main "soul food" dish from my heritage. I wish I had taken pictures. I will next time. Now that I know the basics of this dish, I can try to incorporate other areas of the pig to add more of a texture. Thanks for sharing this! Definitely highly recommend this recipe to any newbies. Happy Cooking!

[Chef #1365086]

Very good recipe you have there! Ingredients are not completely authentic, but they are close enough. The main ingredient, the blood, makes or breaks this dish. I have tried frozen pork blood they sell in some grocery stores. This is fine, but it will affect texture and somewhat the taste. I was fortunate to ask my butcher for fresh pork blood. "Fresh pork blood? What do you need that for?" he would say. And I would explain that it is for a Filipino dish, similar to that of blood pudding. Anyway, if your butcher at a meat market does slaughter their own pork, they may be able to sell you fresh blood. It is very important to stir in about 1 cup of vinegar with the fresh blood! This will prevent any coagulation, which is key in this dish. Otherwise, you will have clumps of coagulated blood in the sauce. With fresh blood, sauce is nice and smooth. =) Technically, this dish incorporates pork innards, like small intestines or liver. I make mine with pork intestines. I've never used chicken stock. Water is fine. Nice use of jalapenos! That's the closest pepper to the original. Very good explanation of the dish. Yes, this is usually called, "Chocolate Meat" at many parties. That's how I was introduced to this dish when I was young.