Humba / Braised Pork with Palm Sugar and Black Beans

After cooking a few dishes for my family...my father expressed that he wasn't too excited about my modern and westernized cooking so I decided to choose something more traditional and Filipino. Upon announcing my choice for our Sunday lunch, he was...at a loss for words unlike the usual snotty comments that he throws here and there. So, here goes...Humba it is.

Humba is a traditional Filipino sweet pork dish which originated in the Visayas and Mindanao regions. Its basically the Adobo of the south. As I prepare this dish for our family's lunch tomorrow (I started writing this a night before since the pork needed to be marinated and our family is having a potluck lunch at my sister's house with her husband), our house help who are both "bisaya" both expressed that they are familiar with Humba. Humba recipes vary from household to household and there is no standard recipe for this dish much as the popular Adobo. However it does come close to the Chinese Hong-Ba, hmm...I wonder if the name was just a coincidence anyway, the preparation and flavors are relatively the same and is usually eaten with cua-pao (plain steamed dough similar to siopao without the filling). I have never made humba before, though I am quite the expert in making Adobo (a recipe which I plan to include in this blog as well), nevertheless I set out and spent two days to find a standard and acceptable recipe but I just ended up using ingredients and methods from several different sources (books, people, internet). This is Humba ala Krystle and I am very tempted to have it patented. *wink*

Serves 4-5 hungry people
Ingredients
1 1/2 kilos pork knuckles and pork bellies (fatty is good, very good! and the added flavor of the knuckles are to die for!)
3/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup pineapple juice
1 large white onion, diced
1 tablespoon whole peppercorns
1 head garlic, cracked or smashed
1/2 to 3/4 cup palm sugar
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons salted black beans or "tahure"
2 small packs of native mushrooms or tenga ng daga
2 small packs banana blossoms (puso ng saging)
2 pieces star anise
4 pieces bay leaves

1. Marinate pork knuckles and pork bellies in vinegar, soy sauce, peppercorns, and garlic for at least an hour (I marinated mine overnight cause I didn't have time to do it in the morning). When the pork knuckles and pork bellies are fully marinated, dip each piece in palm sugar and generously coat them.

2. In a large pan, sear the pork, bellies first on medium heat. Let it sweat and caramelize for a bit. There is no need to add oil at this point, the bellies will cook in its own natural juices, also known as fat! Carefully add in the knuckles, making sure not to over crowd the pan. Remove and put each piece aside until all pieces are done and seared on both sides.

Seared Pork

3. In the same pan, put all the meat back and add the onions, let it sweat and caramelize. Then pour in all the marinade plus the water. Make sure the meat is fully covered by the sauce. Bring this to a boil then lower flame immediately to medium to low then to a simmer to tenderize the meat. After simmering for about 20 minutes, pour in the pineapple juice, star anise and black beans (make sure not to add the sauce of the beans). Continue to simmer for 30-45 minutes or until the pork is tender. The sauce will noticeably start to thicken, so watch the liquid levels and add some water if necessary.

4. In a separate bowl, soak the native mushrooms and banana blossoms in water for 15 minutes. Once softened, add to the simmering pot of meat. Cook until the meat is tender and the sauce is thick or has reached your desired consistency. (I like my sauce thick but watery enough to pour over my rice) Add ground pepper and palm sugar to taste.

5. Serve hot with rice. Enjoy!


Overall, the Humba is a comfort food perfect for family meals. The aroma that fills the kitchen while cooking this dish alone is enough to excite and make everyone within a mile's radius hungry. The slightly burned dark brown and reddish color plus the fall-off-the-bone and melts-in-your-mouth tenderness of the pork...and the wonderful marriage of the added textures of the earthy native mushrooms and banana blossoms...then you get the saltiness of the black beans which balances out the tangy sweetness of the sauce...and all together, makes this dish simply divine.

Our house help said she usually adds Sprite or lemon-lime soda. I used unsweetened pineapple juice instead but maybe next time I'll add a few spritzes of Sprite as well. Let's see how that turns out!

HUMBA VS. ADOBO...both nalang! Yummy in tummy.