One of our favorite meat dishes, carne de cerdo guisada o puerco guisado (braised pork) is juicy, flavorful, and quite easy to make.
Why we ❤️ it
Pork is one of the most favorite meats in the Dominican Republic, I dare to believe even more than beef. It is a juicy meat, less challenging to cook, and more versatile.
Along with pollo guisado and res guisada, cerdo guisado forms the trilogy of Dominican guisados (slow-cooked in tomato sauce). There are other meat, fish, and seafood stews as well, needless to say, but these three are the most consumed.
Pork cuts for guisados
Here you just go to the supermarket, and "carne para guisar" come pre-packaged without having to worry about finding out what they are. Usually already pre-cut into perfectly sized pieces.
For those who can't find it in the supermarket so easily, the most recommended meats for this dish are the economical ones (as is the case in all Dominican stews). The names vary depending on the country, but in general, a relatively low-fat cut is used, without skin, bones, or cartilage. A good choice is "masitas de cerdo". Check with the butcher at the supermarket for pork shoulder, or blade chops, or any suggested cuts for making cerdo guisado.
Serving suggestions
In our country, cerdo guisado dominicano is almost always served with rice. A very common choice is moro (rice with beans in one dish) since it is a drier rice dish that goes well with stews with abundant sauce, but you can also serve it with rice and beans, boiled yuca, or guineítos (green bananas). It also goes great with moro de habichuelas (Dominican rice and beans).
Braised pork in tomato sauce.
About this recipe
This is a relatively simple recipe for the experienced Dominican cook, but if this is your first time preparing cerdo guisaod, our recipe has all the information you need to get it right the first time.
The time it will take for the meat to tenderize will depend a lot on its quality, cut, and other factors, so there is no specific time for it. Generally, the meat and bean dishes are the first things you start cooking in a Dominican meal, to have more flexibility in the preparation time.
And if you like eggplant, we have a similar recipe with eggplant that you will love.
Recipe
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[Recipe] Cerdo Guisado (Braised Pork in Tomato Sauce)
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork, [0.48 kg] (blade chops or any cut for braising cut into small pieces)
- 1½ teaspoon salt, (or more to taste), divided
- ½ teaspoon pepper (freshly-cracked, or ground), (or more to taste), divided
- ½ teaspoon oregano (dry, ground)
- 3 tablespoon vegetable oil, (peanut, soy or corn)
- 1 tablespoon mashed garlic, crushed
- 1 large red onion, cubed or cut into thin strips
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 2 tomato, diced
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons minced parsley
Instructions
Seasoning pork: Season the pork with a teaspoon of salt, a pinch of pepper, and oregano.- Cooking: Heat the oil over medium heat. Add the pork and brown. To brown you must let the meat juices evaporate and brown once they evaporate.Add 3 tablespoons of water and cook covered over medium-low heat until the meat is tender, stirring and adding water by tablespoons as needed to prevent it from burning or sticking to the bottom.Once the meat is tender (between 20 to 40 minutes depending on the cut and quality) uncover and let all the liquid evaporate.
Cooking vegetables: Once the liquids evaporate, add the garlic and stir for half a minute. Add the onion and cook, stirring until it starts to turn translucent.Add the bell pepper and tomato and stir to combine. Incorporate the tomato sauce and 1 cup of water. Cook until the liquids reduce and you have a thick sauce.Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir in the parsley.
Serving: Serve with white rice or any of the options listed above the recipe.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
Published Sep 21, 2011, revised
