Inihaw na Liempo (Grilled Pork Belly)

Inihaw na Liempo is made by marinating fresh pork belly with soy sauce, oyster sauce, banana ketchup, calamansi juice, garlic, black pepper, red chilies, brown sugar and lemon soda and grilling it over a charcoal grill with basting sauce made with left over pork marinade, banana ketch up, soy sauce, and sugar. Follow our Inihaw na Liempo or Grilled pork belly recipe and enjoy your long-awaited vacay with some Inihaw na Liempot. Yum!

What Is Pork Belly

Pork belly is a boneless, fatty cut of meat that comes from the underside—or “belly”—of a pig. It’s the same part of the pig used to make bacon, but unlike bacon, pork belly is typically sold uncured and unsmoked.

Key Characteristics:

• High fat content: It has alternating layers of meat and fat, which gives it a rich, tender texture when cooked properly.
• Flavorful: The fat renders during cooking, adding a deep, savory flavor.
• Versatile: Can be braised, roasted, grilled, or fried.

Common Uses:

• Asian cuisine: Widely used in dishes like Korean samgyeopsal, Chinese red-braised pork, and Filipino lechon kawali.
• Western cuisine: Often slow-roasted or sous-vide for crispy skin and tender meat.
• Street food: Sometimes deep-fried or grilled and served with sauces or condiments.

Ingredients

For the grilled liempo:

1. 1 kilo pork belly
2. 1 whole bulb of garlic (minced)
3. 1/2 cup soy sauce
4. 1/2 cup banana ketchup
5. 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
6. 1/3 cup calamansi juice
7. 2 tablespoons of sugar
8. 1/2 cup Sprite (or any lemon soda)
9. 1 teaspoon black pepper
10. Red chilies (optional)

For the basting sauce:

1. 1/4 cup banana ketchup
2. 1 tablespoon soy sauce
3. 1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
4. 1 to 2 tablespoons cooking oil

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, banana ketchup, calamansi juice, minced garlic, ground black pepper, red chilies, brown sugar and lemon soda. Mix until well combined.
2. Next, add the pork belly slices in the marinade. Mix and coat them with the marinade. Allow them to marinate for at least 4 hours or better if overnight, refrigerated.
3. For the basting sauce, combine the banana ketchup, soy sauce, sugar (optional) and cooking oil. Mix until well combined.
4. Prepare the charcoal and the grill. Arrange the marinated pork in the grill and let them cook until the bottom part facing the charcoal dries up. Then, flip each piece and brush them with the basting sauce.
5. Flip them again and brush the other side with the basting sauce. Continue flipping and basting until both sides are cooked and smokey.
6. Transfer the grilled liempo to a serving dish. Rest them first for around 5 minutes before cutting into serving pieces. Make papak or pulutan out of it, or serve it with hot steaming rice and special suka! Enjoy!

INIHAW NA LIEMPO

With many of us in the family are working, we highly ensure that vacations are fun, especially the food. Every year during our lola and lolo’s joint birthday celebration, all of in the family automatically files for vacation leave like its a holiday. It is their request for us to always have their birthday either on the  beach or at a resort. For this year, we celebrated their  birthday at a beach in Batangas.

During vacations and celebrations like these, grilled dishes are a must have. What I love about grilled dishes is that you can grill anything as long as it stands on the grill. It can be pork, beef, chicken, seafood, and even veggies!

Me and my brother are the master’s of grilling. I’ve been grilling for a few years now but I really need his help in lighting up rhe charcoal. Inihaw na liempo is our staple when it comes to grilled dishes. Although we also smell smokey and grilled afterwards, the smell was worth it.

Boodle fight is always a part of our celebration. It was really exciting preparing the long banana leaf in a table and arranging all foods for the boodle fight. We put the inihaw na liempo last since people immediately attack this one spotted (coming from someone who eats some while grilling HAHAHA). The boodle fight is the most awaited event in this vacation.

During Christmas and New Year, we still do the grilled liempo using the same recipe and method but in barbecue skewers.

What I love about inihaw na liempo is that it is very easy to prepare (except for the grilling part). It lets you enjoy the natural meatyness of the pork coated in sweet umami sauce made with the most favorite Pinoy condiments. If you wanna know how to prepare inihaw na liempo for personal or for special occassions, continue reading and simply follow the recipes below.

HOW TO COOK INIHAW NA LIEMPO

Making inihaw na liempo is very very easy. The hard part actually is the grilling process (haha).

First, marinate your liempo. I recommend you to score your liempo first so that the marinade will penetrate them more. In this recipe, I used the Pinoy’s favorite seasonings such as ketchup, garlic, oyster sauce, calamansi juice, aromatics, sugar, and extra sweetness from the lemon soda. Once marinated well, your liempo is ready for grilling.

Before grilling, make sure to prepare the basting sauce. This sauce is almost similar to the marinade — only that it is made fresh and has cooking oil in it to help the liempo cook better on the grill.

Light up your charcoal. According to my brother, the technique to do this quick is to use wood charcoal (not the coconut charcoal) and then arrange them lightly. Meaning, do not compress the charcoal pieces and allow some air to pass through. Roll some paper up and then light it while under the charcoal. When lighted, it is much more convenient to use a fan rather than wind it up yourself.

The whole grilling process was a bit messy (and smelly for the grillers) but was totally worth it! Make sure to have some inihaw na liempo on your next beach event! Yum!

Inihaw ng Liempo Recipe (TAGALOG)

Mga Sangkap:

Para sa inihaw na liempo:

• 1 kilo liempo
• 1 buong bawang (hiniwa ng maliliit)
• 1/2 tasa ng toyo
• 1/2 tasa ng banana ketchup
• 3 kutsara ng oyster sauce
• 1/3 tasa ng calamansi juice
• 2 kutsara ng asukal
• 1/2 tasa ng Sprite (o kahit anong lemon soda)
• 1 kutsarita ng paminta
• Siling labuyo (optional)

Para sa basting sauce:

• 1/4 tasa ng banana ketchup
• 1 kutsara ng toyo
• 1 kutsarita ng asukal (optional)
• 1 – 2 kutsara ng mantika

Paano Gawin:

1. Sa isang malaking bowl, paghaluin ang toyo, oyster sauce, banana ketchup, kalamansi juice, bawang, paminta, siling labuyo, asukal na pula at lemon soda. Haluin ng mabuti.
2. Ilagay ang mga piraso ng baboy sa marinade. Haluin ito para malagyan lahat. Imarinate ang mga ito ng 4 hours o magdamag sa loob ng ref.
3. Para sa basting sauce, paghaluin ang banana ketchup, toyo, asukal (optional) at mantika. Haluin ng mabuti.
4. Ihanda ang ihawan at ilagay na ang mga liempo. Lutuin ito hanggang medyo matuyo ang parte na nakaharap sa apoy. Baliktarin ang mga ito at ibrush ng basting sauce.
5. Baliktarin ang mga ito ulit at ibrush ang kabilang side ng basting sauce. Ituloy lang ang pagbabaliktad at pagbbrush ng basting sauce hanggang maluto ang mga ito.
6. Ilipat ang mga inihaw na liempo sa serving dish. Hayaan muna ito ng 5 minuto bago hiwain sa serving pieces. Papakin ito o pulutanin, o samahan ng bagong saing na kanin at special suka! Enjoy!