This is an all time favourite Filipino dish that everyone in my family loves; just looking at it, who wouldn’t right? The multiple flavours of this dish blend together so well, the sweet and savoury taste layered by a delectable smokey flavour from the charcoal. I remember when I was little, one of my sisters would sometimes make this for me. I would be so excited, waiting patiently to have this, eating a lot of rice with just only one stick, each bite bursting with flavour. No wonder why it is one of the most popular dishes in the Philippines. You can always see this dish served on special occasions and family gatherings. And even until now after all this time, this dish is still my favourite Filipino dish. It seems that my love for it was passed down to my kids too! So last Feb 15, my birthday, I requested my husband to make this for me, handing him my recipe. He did everything by himself, from the preparation to cooking. Actually, he rarely cooks for me, only on my birthday and Mother’s Day, so I greatly appreciate his effort. The most tiring part of making the dish is cooking the sticks over the charcoal grill, so I understand how tired he must have been after. He cooked a total of 3 kilos of meat! making a large batch in one go since we rarely cook this. Initially I didn’t intend to blog this meal, but as you know, the purpose of my blog is primarily for my children to refer to someday when they feel like having my home-cooked meal and this dish being one of their favourites make it necessary to be catalogued as well. I am not a professional blogger, that is why you don’t see me blogging on a regular basis, my only wish is to type out my recipes and share them to everyone who will appreciate it. A lot of people encourage me to do videos but I don’t want to do it. Anyways since my kid can follow the recipe I have written, there really isn’t a need for it.

The recipe I will be sharing is good for one kilogram so just simply multiply if you are making more. =)

Ingredients

• 1 kg pork shoulder (rinsed, drain and pat dry. Sliced into a small pieces, slightly thin)

Marinade

• 1/2 cup light soy sauce ( less sodium)
• 1/4 cup lime
• 1/2 cup tomato catsup
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 tbs minced garlic
• 1 tbs coarse black pepper
• 1/2 cup sprite or 7 up

Other

• barbecue stick or skewers
• charcoal , charcoal griller, igniter, brush for basting

Mix everything to marinate the pork, keep it in an airtight container. Keep it in the chiller overnight. Soak the barbecue stick in water for at least an hour prior to use to prevent it to easily burn during cooking over charcoal.

Sauce for basting

• 200g banana catsup (can be bought at fair price international food section)
• 100g tomato catsup
• 20g oil
• 10g light soy sauce (less sodium)
• 55g brown sugar

Mix everything well and set aside

Method

• Thread 3-4 pieces of meat on the skewer. Do the same for the rest of the meat. Discard the marinate.
• Prepare the charcoal grill with ignited charcoal.
• Cook the meat on skewers over hot coal, while basting it with the prepared sauce in between cooking. Note: I usually baste it 4x each side. The last 2x is when you see the meat loses it’s colour pink. Grill until the meat is cooked through. Use your own judgement me to gauge.
• Serve with hot white rice