These grilled strips of pork belly, or Inihaw na Liempo, are marinated in a classic Filipino barbecue flavor that is sweet, savory, and slightly tangy. Although typically cooked over a charcoal grill, you can conveniently grill them in the oven, too.
What is Inihaw na Liempo? Similar to Filipino Barbecue Pork Skewers, Inihaw na Liempo is grilled pork belly marinated in soy sauce, lemon or calamansi juice, sugar, and lots of garlic. Of course, it won't be genuinely Filipino without a sawsawan or a dipping sauce.
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Why you’ll love this recipe
- This Inihaw na Liempo recipe can be prepped ahead for last-minute grilling.
- Because the pork belly slices are thin, they absorb the marinade well and don't take too long to cook.
- You can grill them in the oven as if they were done on an outdoor grill.
What you’ll need
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Pork belly strips: A cut known for bacon and Lechon Kawali with a melt-in-your-mouth combination of tender meat and juicy fat layers. You can either buy a slab and do the slicing yourself or skip the extra work and buy them already sliced. You want a good fat-to-meat ratio, meaty with enough fat to make them delicious and moist. You can have it with or without the skin, though the skin gets too chewy and inedible for some. If you can, buy them boneless and ideally no thicker than ½ inch.
- Soy Sauce: You can use an all-purpose or light soy sauce for this recipe.
- Lemon or Calamansi: I used lemon but prefer calamansi if I have them. Calamansi (or Kalamansi) is a citrus fruit commonly used in Filipino cuisine. Its flavor is quite sour like a cross between lime and sour orange. If calamansi is not readily available, go ahead with the lemons.
- Banana or Tomato Ketchup: Banana ketchup is commonly used in the Philippines as a condiment or cooking ingredient. Primarily made of bananas, it is sweeter and less tangy than tomato ketchup which you can also use. They both give that reddish color and the acidity that helps tenderize the meat.
How to make this recipe
Prepare the marinade: (1)Grate or finely mince the garlic. (2)In a cup or bowl, combine the soy sauce, lemon or calamansi juice, brown sugar, ketchup, garlic, and ground pepper (to taste). Mix them together. The marinade has to be sweet, salty, garlicky, and a little tangy — taste and adjust.
TIP: I like using a blender to make the marinade into somewhat of a homogenous mixture that the meat absorbs better.
Marinate: (3)Place the pork belly slices in a container or a resealable bag and pour the marinade over them. (4)Make sure the meat is covered entirely. (5)Cover or seal and refrigerate for 4 to 8 hours.
Grill and Make the basting sauce: (6)Preheat the oven to 425°Fahrenheit (220° Celsius). Line a baking sheet with a double layer of aluminum foil for easy cleanup. (7)Arrange the pork belly slices on the baking sheet and bake it in the oven for 20 minutes.
(8)Transfer the leftover marinade to a small saucepan and make your basting sauce. (9)Cook the sauce over medium heat for about 10 minutes, occasionally stirring, to slightly thicken the sauce resembling a glaze and prevent cross-contamination.
(10)After baking initially for 20 minutes, take them out and baste with the sauce using a brush. (11)Turn over the pork belly slices and baste.
(12)Bring it back to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes. (13)Baste the meat once more when you take them out of the oven, then broil on low for about 3 minutes until you get a nice caramelization on the outside. Watch carefully, so they don't burn.
TIP: Adjust your baking time depending on the thickness of the meat. The thinner the slices, the faster they cook.
Make the dipping sauce: In a cup or bowl, combine the vinegar, minced shallot or red onion, chopped chilies, sugar, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir them together. This dipping sauce or sawsawan is so good and versatile that I use it for other dishes like Okoy or Ukoy (Shrimp and Vegetable Fritters) and Filipino Beef Tapa (Tapsilog).
Serve: Grilled pork belly goes best with white rice or Java Rice, a side of Atchara (pickled vegetables) or Eggplant Salad, and a spicy vinegar dipping sauce.
Frequently asked questions and tips
It is suggested to cook pork to 145º Fahrenheit (63º Celsius), but I don't use a thermometer for this recipe, especially because they are sliced thinly and cook in no time. If the pork is no longer pink, then it's already cooked.
Inihaw na liempo is traditionally grilled over charcoal on an outdoor grill, but there are other ways besides that or in an oven like this recipe. You can also grill pork belly on a grill pan or a cast-iron skillet on the stove, in an air-fryer, a turbo broiler, or a toaster oven. Remember to adjust the cooking time and temperature accordingly.
Inihaw is a general term that means "grilled" or "roasted" in Filipino, sometimes referred to as "Filipino barbecue," and is one of the best street foods in the Philippines. It could be meat (including offal), seafood, or vegetables. They can either be grilled whole or skewered directly over charcoal. When there is inihaw, there is always "sawsawan," or a dipping sauce primarily made of vinegar or soy sauce, calamansi, and chilies.
The key takeaway
Basting the meat is an essential step you shouldn't skip. Brushing the outside with the sauce makes the meat more flavorful and creates a barrier so it doesn't dry up.
Watch how I make it here
More pork recipes you may like
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📖 Recipe
Grilled Pork Belly
Equipment
- Oven
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 2 pounds (907 grams) pork belly slices ½"-thick (see note)
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon (103 grams) soy sauce (see note)
- ¼ cup (68 grams) lemon or calamansi juice from 1-2 lemons (see note)
- ⅓ cup (73 grams) packed brown sugar light or dark
- ¼ cup (71 grams) tomato or banana ketchup (see note)
- 6 cloves garlic
- Black pepper to taste (I used about ½ teaspoon)
Dipping Sauce:
- ¼ cup (64 grams) white or cane vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot or red onion
- Bird's eye chilies to taste; chopped
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Prepare the marinade:
- Grate or finely mince the garlic.
- In a cup or bowl, combine the soy sauce, lemon or calamansi juice, brown sugar, ketchup, garlic, and ground pepper (to taste).
- Mix them together. The marinade has to be sweet, salty, garlicky, and a little tangy — taste and adjust.TIP: I like using a blender to make the marinade into somewhat of a homogenous mixture that the meat absorbs better.
Marinate:
- Place the pork belly slices in a container or a resealable bag and pour the marinade over them. Make sure the meat is covered entirely.
- Cover or seal and refrigerate for 4 to 8 hours.
Grill and Make the basting sauce:
- Preheat the oven to 425°Fahrenheit (220° Celsius) and line a baking sheet with a double layer of aluminum foil for easy cleanup.
- Arrange the pork belly slices on the baking sheet and bake it in the oven for 20 minutes.
- Transfer the leftover marinade to a small saucepan and make your basting sauce.
- Cook the sauce over medium heat for about 10 minutes, occasionally stirring, to slightly thicken the sauce resembling a glaze and prevent cross-contamination.
- After baking initially for 20 minutes, take them out and baste with the sauce using a brush.
- Flip over the pork belly slices, baste, and bring them back to the oven to bake for another 20 minutes.
- Baste the meat once more when you take them out from the oven.
- Broil on low for about 3 minutes until you get a nice caramelization on the outside. Watch carefully, so they don't burn.TIP: Adjust your baking time depending on the thickness of the meat. The thinner the slices, the faster they cook.
Make the dipping sauce:
- In a cup or bowl, combine the vinegar, minced shallot or red onion, chopped chilies, sugar, salt, and pepper to taste.
- Stir them together.
Serve:
- Grilled pork belly goes best with white rice or Java rice, a side of Atchara (pickled vegetables) or Eggplant salad, and a spicy vinegar dipping sauce.
Video
Notes
- Pork belly strips: A cut known for bacon and Lechon Kawali with a melt-in-your-mouth combination of tender meat and juicy fat layers. You can either buy a slab and do the slicing yourself or skip the extra work and buy them already sliced. You want a good fat-to-meat ratio, meaty with enough fat to make them delicious and moist. You can have it with or without the skin, though the skin gets too chewy and inedible for some. If you can, buy them boneless and ideally no thicker than ½ inch.
- Soy Sauce: You can use an all-purpose or light soy sauce for this recipe. Lemon or
- Calamansi: I used lemon but prefer calamansi if I have them. Calamansi (or Kalamansi) is a citrus fruit commonly used in Filipino cuisine. Its flavor is quite sour like a cross between lime and sour orange. If calamansi is not readily available, go ahead with the lemons.
- Banana or Tomato Ketchup: Banana ketchup is commonly used in the Philippines as a condiment or cooking ingredient. Primarily made of bananas, it is sweeter and less tangy than tomato ketchup which you can also use. They both give that reddish color and the acidity that helps tenderize the meat.
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