Adobo

Adobo or Adobar (Spanish: marinade, sauce, or seasoning) is the immersion of raw food in a stock (or sauce) composed variously of paprika, oregano, salt, garlic, and vinegar to preserve and enhance its flavor. The Portuguese variant is known as Carne de vinha d'alhos.

This article is about a type of marinade. For a method of food preparation indigenous to the Philippines with the same name, see Philippine adobo.
Adobo
Lomo en adobo—pork loin marinated in adobo
TypeSauce or Marinade
Place of originSpain, Portugal
Main ingredientsPaprika, salt, garlic, and vinegar
Chipotles en adobo—smoked, ripe jalepeño peppers in adobo
Peruvian adobo chicken made from dried aji panca (yellow lantern chili, Capsicum chinense)

The practice is native to Iberia, namely Spanish cuisine[1] and Portuguese cuisine. It was widely adopted in Latin America and other Spanish and Portuguese colonies. In the Philippines, the name adobo was given by the Spanish colonists to an indigenous cooking method that also uses vinegar,[2][3] which, although superficially similar, had developed independently of Spanish influence.[4][5][6]

Characteristics

In the years following the discovery of the Americas, meat and fish started to be preserved by new methods. A low temperature facilitated the preservation of food, but the weather often did not provide low temperatures ideal for preservation, so it was necessary to apply other techniques, such as adobo. Animals were usually slaughtered in the coldest months of winter, but surplus meat had to be preserved in the warmer months. This was facilitated through the use of adobos (marinades) along with paprika (a substance with antibacterial properties). Paprika gives a reddish color to adobos and at the same time the capsaicins in paprika permit fats to dissolve to the point of allowing tissue penetration, going deeper than the surface.

Applications

Adobo was employed initially as a method of food preservation, but in time—with the advent of refrigeration methods—it came to be used primarily as a method of flavoring foods before cooking. Traditional preparations were created with the intent of flavoring, such as cazón en adobo (dogfish in adobo, made from school shark and originating from Cadiz, a city in the Cádiz province of Spain); berenjenas de Almagro (Almagro aubergine, a pickled aubergine characteristic of "Manchega" cuisine from the Castile-La Mancha region of Spain, specifically from Almagro, a city in the Ciudad Real province of Spain); and lomo en adobo (tenderloin of beef or pork in adobo).

Variations

The noun form of adobo describes a marinade or seasoning mix. Recipes vary widely by region: Puerto Rican adobo, a rub used principally on meats, differs greatly from the Mexican variety. Meat marinated or seasoned with an adobo is referred to as adobado or adobada.

Mexico

In Mexico adobo refers to a condiment or cooking sauce with a base containing chiles, particularly Chipotle and Ancho peppers. An Ancho pepper is a Poblano chile that is dried after it turns red. These sauces are used as a marinade and to add a smoky, spicy flavor.

Chipotles en adobo

Adobo relates to marinated dishes such as chipotles en adobo in which chipotles (smoked ripe jalapeño peppers) are stewed in a sauce with tomatoes, garlic, vinegar, salt, and spices. The spices vary, but generally include several types of peppers (in addition to the chipotle and most likely those on hand), ground cumin and dried oregano. Some recipes include orange juice and lemon or lime juices. They often include a pinch of brown sugar just to offset any bitter taste.

Puerto Rican

Puerto Rican-style adobo is a seasoned salt that is generously sprinkled or rubbed on meats and seafood prior to grilling, sautéing, or frying. Supermarkets sell prepared blends. There are two types of adobo on the island. The wet rub, adobo mojado, consists of crushed garlic, olive oil, salt, black pepper, dry or fresh orégano brujo, citrus juice or vinegar or a mix of both citrus and vinegar. More widely used on the island is a dry mix, adobo seco. It is easier to prepare and has a long shelf life. Adobo seco consists of garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, dry orégano brujo, and sometimes dried citrus zest.

Peru

Adobo is a typical dish of Peruvian cuisine, specifically in the area of Arequipa. This is a dish of pork marinated in spices and vegetables, which are cooked in a clay pot until it becomes tender. Bread is served alongside for dipping in the sauce.

Philippines
Main article: Philippine adobo
Filipino adobong manok

In Filipino cuisine, adobo refers to a common cooking process indigenous to the Philippines.[3] When the Spanish first explored the Philippines in the late 16th century, they encountered a cooking process that involved stewing with vinegar. The Spanish referred to it as adobo due to its superficial similarity to the Spanish adobo. The Filipino adobo is an entirely separate method of preparing food and is distinct from the Spanish marinade.[3][4][7]

Unlike the Spanish and Latin American adobo, the main ingredients of Philippine adobo are ingredients native to Southeast Asia, namely soy sauce, black peppercorns, and bay leaves. It does not traditionally use chilis, paprika, oregano, or tomatoes. Its only similarity to Spanish and Latin American adobo is the primary use of vinegar and garlic. Philippine adobo has a characteristically salty and sour (and often sweet) taste, in contrast to Spanish and Mexican adobos which are spicier or infused with oregano.[8][5][9]

Uruguay

In Uruguay adobo is a spice mix of the same spices of the Spanish marinade, also adobar is the act of condimenting with this mix. A sauce made of adobo, salt and water is called mojo.

History

One of the earliest references to adobo is found in the Manual del Cocinero, Repostero, Pastelero, Confitero Y Bottilera by Mariano de Rementeria y Fica in 1850.[10]

References
  1. Manuel Martinez Llopis (1989), Historia de la gastronomía española, Alianza editorial, ISBN 84-206-0378-3 (in Spanish)
  2. Susana Aleson, Montse Clavé, (1998), Cocina filipina, ICARIA (in Spanish)
  3. Ocampo, Ambeth (February 24, 2009). "Looking Back: 'Adobo' in many forms". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived from the original on 23 May 2015.
  4. Paul A. Rodell (2002). Culture and customs of the Philippines. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 102. ISBN 978-0-313-30415-6.
  5. Estrella, Serna (June 22, 2013). "Adobo: The History of A National Favorite". Pepper.ph. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
  6. Hosking, Richard (2006). Authenticity in the Kitchen: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2005. Oxford Symposium. p. 299. ISBN 9781903018477.
  7. Alan Davidson & Tom Jaine (2006). The Oxford companion to food. Oxford University Press. p. 600. ISBN 978-0-19-280681-9.
  8. Zulu, Mijon (19 November 2017). "What Is the Difference Between Mexican and Filipino Adobo?". Chowhound. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  9. "This Chicken Adobo Is a Flavor Bomb of Salty-Sour Goodness". CookingLight. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  10. Manual del Cocinero, Repostero, Pastelero, Confitero Y Bottilera by Henri Louis Nicolas Duval
  • Media related to Adobo at Wikimedia Commons
  • Adobo at Wikibook Cookbooks
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