Pork Sinigang Soup

Pork sinigang soup or tamarind (sampalok in Filipino), a traditional and popular Filipino soup dish. The sour taste of tamarind that makes this dish special, simple and easy to prepare. Only need a few ingredients and you will have a delicious sinigang soup.

Now a days, you can easily make this soup using a Knorr sinigang mix, which is available to any local Asian store. If you cannot find the sinigang mix, a tamarind paste can be substituted, and can be purchase to any local supermarket which can be found at the Asian aisle. When adding the tamarind paste is best to add small quantity until you achieve the desired taste.

Sinigang soup is a versatile dish, you can use any meat other than pork belly, this can be substitute with pork ribs, pork chops, seafood like prawns; fish salmon; barrumundi wings; milk fish, beef and chicken.

With the vegetables, you can add eggplants, radish, kang kong, bok choy. And I used potatoes to replaced the taro.

If sinigang mix or tamarind paste is not available to your area. There are other alternatives to make sinigang soup. Just add more chopped tomatoes, lemon juice or calamansi juice or use kamias (bilimbi).

I like to have a shrimp paste or extra fish sauce with a squeezed of calamansi as a condiments for my sinigang soup.

How to cook Filipino pork sinigang soup ( Tamarind soup)

Ingredients:

• 1 kg pork belly slice in cubed
• 5 cups water
• 1 onion, quartered
• 2 ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 1 bunch bok choy, ends trimmed or kang kong
• 1 cup okra, ends trimmed
• 1 cup long beans, cut into 2 inches long
• 2 medium size potatoes, cut into cubed or taro if available
• 1 packet (20g) of Knorr sinigang soup powder base - available at Asian supermarket
• 1-2 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 long chilies - optional

Instructions

• Place pork and onion in a medium pot with enough water to cover the pork. Bring to boil 25-30 minutes, until pork is tender. Skim any scum from the surface.
• Add the tomatoes and potatoes and let it boil for 15 minutes.
• Add the green beans, okra and sinigang mix simmer for 5 minutes.
• Season to taste with fish sauce, add the bok choy, chilies and simmer for another 2 minutes. Taste and if you need to add more sinigang mix based on your taste.
• Served with steam rice and with shrimp paste or simply fish sauce with squeezed calamansi juice.