Serving and eating Lechon (roast pig) is a must during the holidays. Anthony Bourdain doesn't put the Philippines on top of the pork hierarchy without good reason. He said this after tasting lechon from Cebu.
The way lechon gets devoured is by skinning it one greasy pinch and bite after another. But once the entire skin has been removed, you are left with soft, but rather bland, tasting meat. Without the skin, I can only eat a few bites of the meat portions. A typical pig good for roasting is about 30 to 40 kilos (yes, that much meat!), so it is not surprising to find leftover lechon.
But what do you do with leftover lechon? The standard recycled dish is known as lechon paksiw, or leftover meat cooked in the sweet liver based gravy it is served with.
This Christmas, my uncle introduced me to a different way of recycling lechon, that is, to deep fry it. I didn't think it was actually going to be good until after I tried it. I was totally blown away. I absolutely love it. Goodbye lechon paksiw. Hello deep fried lechon!!!
The best part to deep fry are those meat close to the bones, especially the rib area. You fry the meat until it is golden brown and you dip it in a sauce mixture made with vinegar, soy sauce, onions and chili. You eat it with lots and lots of rice. It is like crispy pata but more tender and flavorful.
So lechon in my book will go from this:
To this:
Cooked twice. Roasted then deep fried. Double the cholesterol. Double the calories. Double the flavor.
I love the holidays and all the bingeing accompanying it. Can't wait for the next holiday.
