This gising-gising uses okra instead of sigarilyas, paired with pork belly and a bagoong-coconut milk base.
I've been on an okra craze lately — just one of those phases where you fixate on an ingredient and start throwing it at everything. I got tired of the usual steamed or boiled, so I started looking for other ways to cook it. Okra gising-gising turned out to be the best thing I made so far.
Gising-gising is a dish from Nueva Ecija and Pampanga — the name literally means "wake up, wake up," which tells you everything about the heat level. It's usually made with sigarilyas in a spiced coconut milk base, but I wanted to try something different. Okra works surprisingly well here. It has enough structure to hold up against the bagoong and coconut milk without falling apart, and the slight bite it keeps even after cooking makes every forkful more interesting than sigarilyas would.
One thing to watch: the dish can turn brown quickly once the okra goes in. Okra releases a natural pigment when cut and exposed to heat, and the bagoong deepens the color further. It won't affect the flavor, but if you want to keep the green, work fast.
That's also why you sear the okra separately first. High heat, in batches, until the edges char — this drives off excess moisture before the okra ever touches the sauce. Skip this step and you'll end up steaming it instead, which makes it limp and releases even more of that browning liquid into the coconut milk.
Once the okra goes back into the pan, you only need 1-2 minutes. The coconut milk sauce is already thickened by then, and okra continues to cook fast. Any longer and the okra and sauce will get sticky — and at that point, there's no coming back from it.
Sear okra: Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add okra and sear until some edges are charred. Sear in batches so the pan doesn’t overcrowd. Remove and set aside.
Build base: In the same pan, add pork and cook until browned and the fat has rendered, about 8-10 minutes. Add onion and cook for 2 minutes, then garlic and cook for another minute. Add sliced siling haba and sauté for another minute. Add the bagoong and mix well, cook for 1-2 minutes.
Simmer: Lower heat to medium and add coconut milk. Simmer until slightly thickened. Return okra and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Don’t cook it longer than this or the okra and sauce will get sticky.
Finish and serve: Add sliced siling labuyo and season to taste with patis and pepper. Transfer to a serving platter and top with more sliced siling haba and whole siling labuyo.
