Yes. You read the English title correctly. This is the Portuguese Pork with Imaginary Clams recipe. Why imaginary? Because the great "King" forgot her clams 2 hours after the marination.
Walking into the house after marketing and saying to her Sun; "I knew exactly what to get because I know the recipe so well! That is why I am back so quickly". Then BAM! When she sat down to write the recipe, she forgot the clams. Well, no longer 'Carne Porco Alentejano' but now its 'Carne Porco Portugesa'.
A favorite with the Sun even though I had only made it only once but since there is no Portuguese food at ALL in Singapore (Err, please do not say "Oh we do have Portuguese egg tarts available here." because he will starts on what we have is just so not authentic and frankly, after my most recent one and only trip to Portugal, he is strangely right. The Portuguese egg tarts AKA Pasteis De Nata we get in Singapore do taste totally different with ours really eggy), he thinks this is the best thing from me that reminds him sorely from home. (>_<)
I love making him this dish because its so easy yet flavorful and extremely Portuguese. Oh, and also, because he gives me a big KISS too after this. (Kisses to my baby sun)
CARNE PORCO PORTUGESA
Ingredients:Marination
- 450grams of pork cut into 1 inch cubes (I like using the pork loin, less fats so a little less bad cholesterol)
- 2 bay leaves (Fresh or Dried)
- 2 teaspoon of Pimentao (Yes! Not easily available in Singapore and I had to get mine from Portugal but it can be substituted with Paprika)
- A pinch of sale and pepper
- 3/4 cup of white wine or enough to submerge the pork into. (Please feel free to use the cheapest white wine you see & of course it will be best if you can get the Portuguese Vinho Verde!)
- 5 cloves of crushed garlic (5 cloves because we love garlic! If not, most recipes call for around 3 cloves)
- 1 tablespoon of finely chopped Cilantro (also know as coriander or Chinese Parsley)
Mixed the above well so that the pork get well marinated for dinner.
Marination should be overnight for the best result but I normally do it in the late morning for dinner (I always forget till the day itself).
So what you see in this picture will be what you get!
Oh, remember to cover and refrigerate it.
I usually start the preparation ~45 min to 1 hour before dinner. I begin with the potatoes. No pasta, no rice only potatoes because that's how the Portuguese eat. For serious authenticity, deep fry potatoes that have been cut into cubes. For mine that has been authenticated by my very own Portuguese Sun, I do and use the following:
- 4 medium potatoes cut into 1 inch cubes
- Sprinkle of Rosemary
- Sprinkle of Salt
- Sprinkle of Paprika
- 4-5 cloves of garlic - chopped roughly
- 1.5 inch long of Chourico (Portuguese Sausage)
- Some margarine or olive oil for the roasting pan
That's it! Mix all of the above then put the potatoes into the oven at the highest temperature and roast it for 30 minutes. (Otherwise, just deep fry the potato cubes without all of the above but that means more cholesterol, tsk tsk!)
Now, the porco show begins! You will need
- 1 medium sized onion (I like the purple onion because it taste sweeter)
- 4 cloves of garlic - chopped
- 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
- Pork drained from the marination
Turn your stove to a high fire then add ~1/2 tablespoon of oil into the frying pan. Once heated, put in the garlic and fry it. After the aroma of the garlic hits your nose, add in the chopped onions. Fry the mixture till the onions look translucent. Put the fried onions and garlic on a side plate for later use.
With the same frying pan, add more oil and browned the pork (Pork should be drained from the marinate & dry). The browning should take around 10 - 15 minutes. If the pan is small, do it in 2 or even 3 batches.
Once all pork have been browned, add in the onion garlic mixture and give it a few toss. Throw in the marinate from the drained pork, give it a few stirs then lower the heat to its lowest and cover. Wait for around 5 minutes.
By this time, potatoes would have been done so bring out the potatoes and leave it aside.
Pork will also be done after the potatoes.Serve hot over potatoes and voila! Mine looks like this:
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