Instructions
- In a sauté pan, heat the oil and add the onion. Cook until onion softens. Add garlic.
- Stir in pork; cook until lightly browned.
- Add squash, paste, and water. Bring to a boil. Simmer on low heat for 12 minutes or until squash is soft. Covered.
- Stir in the remaining vegetables. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until almost dry and the vegetables are tender.
Pinakbet is a Filipino vegetable dish that brings together pork, shrimp paste, and a colorful mix of vegetables, kabocha squash, bitter melon, eggplant, string beans, tomatoes, and chili peppers, all simmered together until everything soaks up a rich, savory broth. What makes it work is how the flavors balance each other out: the natural sweetness of the squash softens the bitterness of the bitter melon, the shrimp paste adds a deep, salty backbone that ties the whole dish together, and the chili peppers bring just enough heat to keep things interesting without overwhelming everything else. It’s the kind of dish that turned me from someone who avoided vegetables growing up into someone who genuinely looks forward to a plate of them. And with a 20-minute total cook time, it’s proof that a dish this flavorful doesn’t have to be complicated to pull off.
