Slow Cooker Pork Bicol Express

This spicy, creamy pork dish made with chili peppers and coconut milk originated from the kitchen of Cely Kalaw of Malate, Manila according to this delightful online account of the origin of this dish . She grew up in the Bicol region as a child and was enamored by the use of chili peppers and coconut milk in the dishes by the people from this area of the Philippines. She invented this dish to accompany another iconic dish called laing.

I first had the vegetarian version of Bicol Express at the Pamana Restaurant in Pampanga in 2015. I fell in love with the fiery dish despite the fact my mouth was on fire from biting the chili pepper. I encountered this dish again at a turo turo or cafetaria style restaurant where we stopped by for our lunch during our trip to the Banaue rice terraces in the Mountain Province. This magnificent work of  the Ifugao natives was formerly considered one of the seven wonders of the world. It was one of our destinations during the recent road trip I and my husband, Bob, took together with my sisters Bebeng and Menchie and their husbands, Jun and Bubut, during my recent visit to the Philippines this past February.

My photo of a photo of the Banaue Rice Terraces that was hanging at the dining area of the Rock Inn Hotel in Sagada, Mountain Province, Philippines.

I was intrigued with this pork version of the Bicol Express at this restaurant and vowed to make it when I come back to the United States. I also decided to try making it in the slow cooker. The cook at the restaurant gladly enumerated the ingredients listed in the recipe below and I more or less based their amounts from a recipe I found in Panlasang Pinoy.

Another feature of this dish is the use of fermented shrimp or fish we call bagoong. I used a shrimp paste instead I bought at the Asian store since I did not have bagoong.  You can skip this ingredient or just use anchovy paste or patis or just plain salt.  However the bagoong does give it more umami flavor.

Here is my slow cooker version of this delicious spicy and creamy pork dish. It is a flexible dish you can adapt to your taste or sense of adventure into the incendiary world of Bicol dishes.

Slow Cooker Pork Bicol Express

• 2 lb pork meat (note 1), cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 onion, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 inch piece of ginger, minced
• 2 to 6 pieces whole long hot chili peppers (note 2)
• 2 to 4 tbsp shrimp paste or shrimp or fish bagoong (note 3)
• 1 can full fat coconut milk
• Salt and pepper to taste   

Place all the ingredients in the crock pot or you can saute first the ginger, onion and garlic in 2 tbsp oil and then transfer them to the crock pot with the rest of the ingredients.  Cook for 3 hours at high setting or at low for 6 hours. I cooked mine in an Aroma Brand rice cooker/slow cooker for 2 hours.

Serve over white rice. Do warn people not to bite into the hot chili pepper. Hot, hot, hot. Or have a big glass of cold water handy for them just in case.

Notes:

1. Pork belly is preferred but you can use pork shoulder or just pork chops like I did.

2. I used only 2 chili peppers but I have read recipes using 6 or more. I obtained my chili peppers from my friend's garden. As usual the amount one uses or can tolerate is sort of a bragging game for some.

3. The amount will depend on the kind of shrimp paste you have and according to the saltiness you want to attain. The shrimp paste I bought was not that salty and neither was it that fishy so I used 4 tbsp. You can also use anchovy paste but start with about 1 tbsp first. You can skip its use altogether and use salt or fish sauce. As I have mentioned bagoong which one can obtain from the Asian store is preferred.