Dinakdakan

Ingredients

Measure and prepare everything before you begin cooking.

• 800 g pork cheek, jowl or skin-on pork shoulder
• 200 g pork liver
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• thumb-size ginger, finely julienned
• 2 long green chillies, sliced
• 1 red chilli, sliced (optional)
• ¼ cup calamansi juice
• 3 tbsp cane vinegar
• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• 1–2 tbsp neutral cooking oil, as needed
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. 1

   Simmer the pork in lightly salted water for 45–55 minutes until tender. Drain thoroughly and cool. Pat the liver dry and season it lightly.

2. 2

   Grill or broil the pork and liver over high heat until smoky and browned at the edges. Cook the liver just through so it stays tender. Rest everything for 5 minutes.

3. 3

   Slice the pork and liver into bite-size strips. Put them in a large bowl with the red onion, ginger and chillies.

4. 4

   Whisk the calamansi juice, vinegar, mayonnaise and fish sauce until smooth. For a more traditional style, a cooked, mashed pork-brain dressing may replace mayonnaise, but it must be handled and cooked carefully.

5. 5

   Toss the warm pork with enough dressing to coat it lightly. Taste and balance with more calamansi, vinegar or fish sauce rather than making the mixture heavy.

6. 6

   Serve warm or at room temperature with rice. Refrigerate leftovers promptly and consume within 2 days.