This fall of the bone Pressure Cooker Filipino Pork Adobo is to die for. Try my family’s secret recipe and taste what we have been cooking for generations.
Pressure Cooker Filipino Pork Adobo
Growing up as a first-generation Filipino American, I was exposed to many different flavors and food textures as a child. While some of the flavors were amazing, others were not so amazing; it was all a tasting game at one point.
First Generation Filipino American
I remember eating Pork Adobo when I was little, among the many delicious Filipino dishes I ate growing up. Pork and Chicken adobo are some of my absolute favorite recipes. I fell in love with this dish and couldn’t wait till I would be able to prepare it for myself in the future.
Filipino Pork Adobo Sauce Ingredients
- Soy sauce
- Vinegar
- Brown Sugar
- Garlic
- Bay Leaves
More Filipino Recipes
Try more of my Filipino recipes like this delicious and easy-to-make Maja Blanca dessert.
Pork Adobo Ingredients
Soy Sauce
I use a Filipino brand that is sold in my local Asian market. While my recipe is made using this brand, you can sub it for any other name brand. I personally choose to use the Filipino brand because it is a slightly sweeter version of the classic soy sauce.
Vinegar
I have had many recipe users give me feedback, and I am here to clear the air. I use Filipino vinegar in my dishes and have had no issues. However, I have had some input on users who have used apple cider vinegar.
After testing it on my own, I highly suggest you steer away from this swap out. If you are going to use a sub vinegar, go for the WHITE VINEGAR option. Using apple cider vinegar has been reported to leave a VERY overpowering flavor and odd texture.
Vinegar Note
I know some of you who are new to trying this Filipino recipe, wonder why there is so much vinegar. To clarify, this is my family’s recipe; I know other families make it differently.
For example, others may be sweeter, saltier, or sourer than my family’s version. While my family’s recipe may use more vinegar than others, it still serves up a delicious dish that I have been eating for over 30 years.
Brown Sugar
I use light brown sugar, but you can use any brown sugar you have on hand. Alternately if you do not have brown sugar, feel free to use white granulated sugar.
Garlic
I go crazy with garlic, but please use as much as your family would like. Adding too much garlic can overpower the flavor of the dish, while not using enough can mean less flavor. The more you cook this recipe, the more you will be able to tweak it and make it your own.
Instant Pot Filipino Pork Adobo
When I grew up, I was finally able to properly use a working stove. I sat in my kitchen with my Tita Jho and watched her make this delicious dish using our family recipe.
The one thing she taught me was as a young, bright-eyed teenager. Was that it’s good to sit down and watch or listen to someone who knows how to cook the dish and to learn by interacting with them. Most importantly, it was about trial and error in executing the dish.
Mastering Pork Adobo
After many years of preparing this dish, I finally mastered it in my early 20’s. This dish has become a family favorite in my home and is highly requested by the kids.
One truth about this dish is that making it on the stovetop has always been a multi-hour process for me. And let’s face it, it wasn’t made often because of this.
When I discovered the amazing Instant Pot pressure cooker, I thought wow! My cooking soul mate is finally here, and she is ready to create some delicious food for me.
Common Filipino Pork Adobo Questions
I’m here to answer all of your questions about preparing this delicious dish. This easy weeknight dinner option makes dinner time a breeze.
Do I have to marinate the meat?
No, you do not need to marinate your meat for this Filipino pork adobo recipe. I have never marinated my meat and it always comes out perfect.
Can I prepare the Filipino Pork Adobo over the stove?
Of course, you can prepare this pork adobo over the stove! The cooking time will greatly increase, as I typically cook my adobo dishes on low heat for at least an hour to an hour and a half per 2 lbs. My stepmom would usually throw a metal spoon into her pot over the stove to help break down the meat.
Is this an authentic Filipino Pork Adobo Recipe?
Yes! This is my family’s recipe and has been prepared for generations. Every home has its own version of how they prepare this Filipino dish, this is my family’s version.
Why are we using brown sugar?
Well, simply put, that’s how I was taught to prepare it. My stepmom always added a bit of brown sugar to her recipe. Not only does it help round out the flavors, but it also thickens the sauce and really amplifies the flavors.
Easy Filipino Pork Adobo
I have successfully cut down the cooking time for this dish from two and a half hours to 15 minutes. Seriously, though, that’s a miracle in itself, I tell you.
I really hope you enjoy my family’s take on this super popular dish in the Philippines. I hope you are able to share it with all of your friends and family.
More Pressure Cooker/ Instant Pot Recipes
Pressure Cooker Pork Adobo
This fall of the bone Filipino Pork Adobo is to die for. Try my family's secret recipe and taste what we have been cooking for generations.
Ingredients
- 2 lb's of short ribs, or chicken, beef, pork cuts
- 6 Cloves of Garlic
- 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1/2 Cup of Soy Sauce, I use Filipino brand
- 1 Cup of White Vinegar (I use Filipino brand)
- 1 Tablespoon of Pepper Corn, or ground Pepper
- 4 Bay Leaves
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 Tablespoon of Water
- 1 Tablespoon of Corn Starch
Instructions
- Plug in your pressure cooker and hit Saute or Chicken/Meat. Heat up oil and saute the garlic until about halfway cooked. Add the pork (or chicken, beef, pork cuts) with a dash of salt and pepper and saute until slightly browned.
- Add brown sugar and mix until blended with the meat. Add the Soy sauce, vinegar, black peppercorn (or ground pepper) bay leaves and mix well.
- Cover and apply manual 15 minutes.
- Once the timer has gone off let the pot do a 10 minute resting period and then release any extra steam out of the pot.
- Turn pot back onto saute or press the chicken/meat button again.
- Mix the cornstarch and water into a separate bowl and then add to the pot, mix well.
- Let pot boil for 5 minutes and then switch to warm.
- Serve over a bed of fresh jasmine rice.
- Enjoy!
I made this tonight hoping to have a head start on dinner for tomorrow. WOW, the vinegar is STRONG! ? yeaaaah can’t eat this sadly. Back to the drawing board.
@Cindy, 1 cup of vinegar is insane with that amount of meat…??
Can I use baby back ribs for this recipe?
Hi Jenette,
Yes, you can. 🙂 Please come back and let me know what you thought of the recipe. Have a wonderful rest of your week.
– Jay
Weird to have sugar in a Filipino pork adobo recipe. With that much sugar, this should be called teriyaki. Just saying
since I’m Filipino
Hi Akiko,
Thank you for the feedback, yeah, my stepmom gave me this recipe and that’s what she used in hers to set it apart from others. It’s become my family’s favorite dish when we look for comfort food. Of course, she still makes it better than me even though we follow the same recipe.
My mother in law, a Filipina, also used a teaspoon or so of sugar in her adobo. She even put a little bit of paprika, potatoes and carrots in there. I still make it that way. If you don’t like the sugar, just leave it out!
Can this be used in a slow cooker?
The recipe calls for a 1/3 cup of sugar, it’s just too sweet. Maybe just do around 1/8 cup or 2 tablespoon.
Weird to have sugar in a Filipino pork adobo recipe. With that much sugar, this should be called teriyaki. Just saying dinner since I’m Filipino
I made this today and it came out with a REALLY strong vinegar/ sweet taste. I hope adding more soy sauce will help. I was really looking forward to this and I’m so disappointed.
Hi Nikki,
I am very sorry it didn’t turn out the way you wanted, did you use a Filipino brand of vinegar or did you swap out for a diff brand? I just updated the recipe to reflect more information about the ingredients and my suggestions on what to use. I hope it is helpful, if you need more information please let me know. I can make sure you answer you back ASAP and also update the recipe with that information for other users to utilize as well.
Best,
Jay
What Filipino brand did you use for the vinegar AND soy sauce?
Omgaaahhhh let me tell you!!! This recipe was amazing!!! I recently got a pressure cooker but haven’t really had any ideas on what to cook, I came across this recipe and decided to try it. I only did have the amount since I didn’t know how it would turn out. Now I wish I would have made the whole 2 lbs of pork! The pork is so soft and tender and the think sauce has really good flavor. Thank you for sharing this recipe ??
How many people does this recipe feed? Can’t wait to try it!
Hi Michelle, this recipe feeds my family of 5. However, that depends on how you portion your food when serving. If you plan on having leftovers I would double the recipe just to be safe. I hope you enjoy!
Ps. The leftover are the best part! It tastes better and better as it sits in the fridge overnight.
Is it 1 cup vinegar? Seems like a lot
I used apple cider vinegar because it was what I had. The flavor came out way too strong. I could not eat it ???
I followed the recipe exactly using apple cider vinegar instead and it feels like sand in the food. I don’t know why or how this happened. If it wasn’t like chewing a mouth full of beach sand this is a really good recipe
Hi Kirkulese,
Do you happen to have the brand of the apple cider you used? It’s possible the brand you had caused this issue. If you look at my post there is a link where you can purchase the Filipino vinegar online. Or if you are like me and have an H-Mart or Filipino market near you, they will have the same vinegar in store. My stores typically sell them at $1.69 or above. Very affordable and makes multiple pots of pork adobo. Please come back and follow up with me. I would love for you to enjoy this recipe to the fullest.
~ Jay
[…] Pork Adobo […]
Hi, how much oil did you use? And did you brown the ribs in the pot?
Great recipe, my Filipinas wife loved it. I added a thinly sliced white onion which I half cooked before adding the garlic. I don’t add the cornstarch because I like it runny so the rice soaks up the sauce.
I made this tonight at my mom’s house. She and I loved it, and my dad, who requires pureed foods, ate the entire meal pureed. I made white rice (with a big ass chunk of butter for my dad’s pureed portion) and frozen romano beans sauteed with garlic and crushed tomatoes. My dad’s health care aide who is from the Philippines said it smelled exactly right. : )
My only complaint is that the pork was a teeny bit dry. That said, I used a frozen, defrosted pork tenderloin ’cause that’s what my mom had.
I made this last night for my husband and son. I used boneless pork ribs. I cooked for 10 minute and used a packet of pork gravy mix (powdered) since I didn’t have any corn starch or flower. It was excellent! My family loved it.
I also added 6 medium carrots chunked up during the simmering phase and they were great too!
This was SO GOOD! I cubed pork roast, used tamari and added carrots and cauliflower to make it a complete meal. I will be making this again! Yum!!
I found your recipe online earlier today and ended up making it for dinner. I made a couple slight changes – wife and I like our adobo a bit on the sour side so I put more vinegar. I also wanted to get a good sear on the ribs so I did that on a cast iron pan (after seasoning w/salt & pepper). I also didn’t thicken the sauce as I was too lazy tonight…lol.
Anyways, it turned out great! Wife and kids loved it…and I did as well (I’m usually pretty critical of my own cooking, especially when using a new recipe. By the way, I’m new to the IP world and recently started a Facebook group for Filipino recipes. I searched for one and none came up…so figured I’d start one and see if it can gain some traction. I’m by no means a great cook. I posted a few pictures of what I did, as well as a link to your blog.
I’ll be trying out some of your other recipes – they look great so far. Cheers!
Turned out great.
How much time would you add if you doubled it? Can’t wait to try!
I would start with adding an extra 7 minutes, if it’s not completely fall off the bone after it’s resting period you can boil it in the sauce until it’s to your liking. Please let me know if that worked for you. I can defiantly add it to the recipe above for other’s who want to double theirs as well. Enjoy!
I actually used pork shoulder instead. I ended up increasing time to only 19 minutes because I read somewhere that it’s more about the size of the meat rather than the quantity. I also read something about how you should add a minute for every 2 minutes it took to reach pressure? I didn’t totally understand that one, so I just guesstimated that I didn’t need to fully double the time. I also didn’t move the pressure valve back to pressure, so it basically steamed the whole time and I didn’t know it. ? That all said, it tasted really good and the meat was tender! That flavor really smacks you in the mouth!
TL;DR: Doubled recipe. Increased time to 19.
I have made pork adobo for years, the old fashioned way, and loved it. I used a recipe from Sunset magazine, that I thought was very good. I am not Filipino, but live in a small town in S.E. Alaska with a fairly large Filipino community. I recently bought an Instant Pot and can hardly wait to try this quicker, easier way to cook pork adobo!
Any way to do this without a pressure cooker and still have it come out tender?
Hi ace, you can put it over the stove and cook at a simmer for 45minutes to an hour and a half for ultimate tender meat.
Thank you so much! Can’t wait to try it! 🙂
Can I use a slow cooker?
Hi Christy,
Yes, you can use a slow-cooker, however, I haven’t tested the cooking time yet for the crockpot. I would suggest you do it low and slow for atleast 6 hours.
– Jay
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I’m going to try this tonight – only with 1.63 lbs of boneless pork country style ribs. They were on sale. I assume the garlic is minced?
Yes the garlic is minced, I can’t wait to hear what you think about it!
Hiw much brown sugar?
This is what’s listed
1/3 Light Brown Sugar
Hello! I apologize for that typo, it was meant to be 1/3 Cup. I will go through and update the recipe card, thank you for pointing that out.
I just made this, tonight with country style ribs and I should have purchased more meat – it fell apart and created A LOT of liquid – had to add more cornstarch/water mixture to thicken it up – and more soy – it was VERY sweet. Otherwise, it was good!
Oh yum!!! This looks delicious!!!