If you haven't tried pork neck bones before, I invite you to try this surprisingly delicious Pork Neck Bones recipe. When cooked in a pressure cooker, this stew is incredibly flavorful. Serve this mouth-watering stew over vermicelli rice for a hearty lunch or dinner.
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Have you ever been in a rush while grocery shopping and thought you grabbed one thing but instead bought something completely different? I'm embarrassed to admit that I do that way too often. Many times it's because I don't have my reading glasses on so I can't read the labels. 🤓
This was the case last week when I thought I bought country-style pork ribs. A few days later, when I pulled the package out of the freezer, I realized they were pork neck bones instead, oops!
I decided to use them to create this recipe. I didn't imagine that we'd love it as much as we did. The meat just fell off the bones, no knife required!
If you've never heard the word adobo, I'm sure you're not alone. The word has more than one meaning. The one I'm most familiar with is Pork Adobo. A Filipino dish made with succulent pork or chicken, cooked in a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, and garlic.
To learn about adobo spice and Spanish adobo, check out this informative post from Food & Wine.
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🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Pork Neck Bones: If you can't find pork neck bones at your grocery store, you can try asking the butcher or use country-style pork spare ribs instead.
- Chipotle Peppers: Chipotle peppers add a ton of flavor. I decided to add the entire can. If you don't want the stew too spicy, just use less.
- Soy Sauce: Regular soy sauce or light soy sauce can be used in this recipe.
- Vinegar: You can substitute white distilled vinegar or apple cider vinegar for the white wine vinegar if needed.
- Vegetables: I originally planned this recipe without vegetables. At the last minute, I decided to add a few potatoes and a carrot. The end result was fantastic, so I highly recommend adding them. Mushrooms would also be a great addition!
- Seasoning: Sea salt or kosher salt, black pepper, and ginger powder.
- Broth: Choose from chicken broth or use my homemade beef bone broth recipe.
*A full list of ingredients can be found in the recipe card.
🍖 How to Make Pork Neck Bones Adobo
Step 1: Wash pork neckbones and pat them dry with paper towels. Mix salt, black pepper, and ginger. Use to generously season the pork.
Step 2: Add oil to the Ninja Foodi or Instant Pot, and choose "saute." Once the oil is hot, sear the pork neckbones in batches. Add onion and garlic and saute as you scrape the bottom of the pot.
Step 3: Chop at least a few chipotle peppers and add them to the pot. I used the entire can.
Pro Tip: Chipotle peppers are a little spicy, so keep that in mind when adding them to the stew. I used the entire can because our food is never spicy enough, but one or two peppers might be enough for your family.
Step 4: Mix chicken broth, vinegar, and soy sauce together in a medium bowl or large measuring cup. Stir brown sugar and bay leaves into the liquid mixture and pour over the pork neck bones.
Step 5: Cover the pressure cooker and set the vent to "seal." Choose "Pressure Cook" and set the time to 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of natural release.
Step 6: Add chopped potatoes and carrots to the pork neck bones and pressure cook for 5 more minutes. When time is up, do a quick release. You can thicken the gravy with flour or cornstarch if you'd like. Skim the excess fat from the surface, leaving the yummy juices behind.
Garnish with fresh cilantro or Italian parsley before serving!
🎛 Stove Top Cooking Instructions
- Wash pork necks and pat dry with paper towels. Mix salt, black pepper, and ginger, and use them to generously season the pork.
- Add oil to a Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat. Add pork bones in batches and sear on all sides. Add onion and garlic, and sauté as you scrape the bottom of the pot.
- Chop at least a few chipotle peppers and add them to the pot.
- Mix chicken broth, vinegar, and soy sauce together in a medium bowl. Stir brown sugar and bay leaves into the liquid mixture and pour over the neck bones.
- Cover the pot with a lid and simmer over low heat until the neck bones are tender. This should take approximately 1-½ hours.
- Add chopped potatoes and carrot, cover, and cook for an additional 30 minutes. You can thicken the gravy with flour or cornstarch if you'd like. Skim the excess fat from the surface before serving the stew over rice. Garnish with cilantro before serving.
🍽 Serving Suggestions
This pork neck bones recipe goes perfectly with dill rice, or creamy coconut rice. As for sides, try this easy roasted sugar snap peas recipe or this delicious arugula and pear salad! Serve with crushed red pepper flakes if you like it extra spicy.
🔥 Reheating & Storing Instructions
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week in the refrigerator. The stew can also be frozen in freezer bags for longer storage. Reheat the stew on the stovetop over low heat, or in the microwave for a few minutes, depending on the amount.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Pork neck bones can be cooked in a variety of ways. Sometimes pork neck bones are smoked, while other times they are roasted Southern-style and served with collard greens.
Neck bones can also be slow-cooked in stews and simmered in spaghetti sauce. They can also be cooked in adobo sauce, as in this pork neck bones adobo recipe.
A good substitute for pork neck bones is pork country-style spareribs. Both pork cuts have similar marbling. However, country-style pork spare ribs are meatier than pork neck bones.
If cooked on the stove, neck bones should be simmered for a few hours until tender.
Pork neck bones are best when simmered for a few hours. When cooked in a stew, they are similar in taste and texture to short ribs.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- To thicken the sauce further, choose "saute" and cook the sauce down.
- You can also thicken the stew by whisking some cornstarch in cold water or broth and stirring it into the pot. It will need to come to a boil before it thickens.
- If you're not sure how many chipotle peppers to add, start with a couple. When you release the pressure, taste the stew to see if it needs more spice. If so, add more at the same time you add the potatoes and carrots.
- Be sure to remove any bone pieces or cartilage that have detached from the meat during cooking before serving.
🍗 Related Recipes
If you enjoy this recipe, check out these other pork recipes!
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📖 Recipe
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Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Wash pork neck bones and pat them dry with paper towels. Mix salt, black pepper, and ginger. Use to generously season the pork.
- Add oil to the Ninja Foodi or Instant Pot, and choose "saute." Once the oil is hot, sear the pork necks in batches. Add onion and garlic and saute as you scrape the bottom of the pot.
- Chop at least a few chipotle peppers and add them to the pot. I used the entire can.
- Mix chicken broth, vinegar, and soy sauce together in a medium bowl or large measuring cup. Stir brown sugar and bay leaves into the liquid mixture and pour over the neck bones.
- Cover the pressure cooker and set the vent to "seal." Choose "Pressure Cook" and set the time to 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of natural release.
- Add chopped potatoes and carrot to the pork neck bones and pressure cook for 5 more minutes. When time is up do a quick release. You can thicken the gravy with flour or cornstarch if you'd like. Skim the excess fat from the surface before serving.
Nutrition
Notes
- To thicken the sauce further, choose "saute" and cook the sauce down.
- You can also thicken the stew by whisking some corn starch in cold water or broth and stirring it into the pot. It will need to come to a boil before it thickens.
- If you're not sure how many chipotle peppers to add, start with a couple. When you release the pressure, taste the stew to see if it can use more spice. If so, add more at the same time you add the potatoes and carrots.
- Be sure to remove any bone pieces or cartilage that detached from the meat during cooking before serving.
Opal says
I called my mom to let her know I had made neck bones and she didn't believe me. She was very interested in knowing how I made them because I had never before.
The recipe worked out perfectly! I wish I would have looked at how much soy sauce and vinegar was required because the recipe totally depleted my cute little supply 😄. I had to go to the drawer of little packets to top off the cup of soy sauce! But the flavor was great and the meat was tender. I ended up adding just a smidgen of steak sauce to the juice in the pot (my grandmother calls the juice "pot liquor" but this was me just channeling my inner Martha Stewart.
Thank you so much for the recipe. It's a gift that will keep on giving.
Opal
Hilda Sterner says
So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe. I love that you added your own personal touch; that's what makes cooking fun, so great job!
Stephanie P says
Love love this recipe. I make it for my family about once a month. Really flexible too, I've tried adding squash, turnips, cabbage, frozen peas, and it always turns out delicious.
Hilda Sterner says
So glad to hear it, Stephanie! You're so creative, I always make it the same way.
Josh says
As a forest raised pig farmer, I'm always looking for good recipes for the "lower cost" cuts - and this one is terrific! The chipotle peppers adobo is terrific, as it sauces the fatty neck bone pieces. Thickening the gravy is well worth the trouble, and the potatoes cubes were saturated throughout with the wonderful sauce. Thanks so much, and hopefully I will be able to convince my customers to buy some pork neck bones and try your terrific recipe!
Hilda Sterner says
Hi Josh, Thank you so much for your comment and review. I wish I was one of your customers, I'd love to buy some. I haven't seen any neck bones in our local grocery stores in quite some time!
Annette says
Can you cook these in the Instant Pot from frozen? Or do you have to thaw first? If from frozen, how long would you suggest? Thank you!
Hilda Sterner says
Hi Annette,
Although I've never tried that, I'm sure you can. However, it's hard to sear frozen meat, so I would recommend defrosting them first for the best flavor!
Donna says
This recipe is a nice twist to the traditional "soul food" neckbones I learned to cook from my parents. This is my 2nd time preparing this. I didn't have Adobe Chipotle peppers the first time but everything else was delicious and so flavorful.
Hilda Sterner says
Hi Donna
Thank you for the review. I bet your traditional recipe is pretty amazing too! Take care!
Ilyana says
I am Puerto Rican and those of us who cook, cook with a lot of flavor and spices, but not spicy at all. I eliminated the peppers, and used half the amount of black pepper. Despite not being spicy, I found this recipe to be sooo delicious and tasty! It was easy to find all the ingredients in one place as famous supercenter stores now bring pork necks! - Thank you so much for sharing it with us Hilda! Definitely one that we will make over and over.
Hilda Sterner says
Thank you Ilyana, I really have to delve into Puerto Rican food more. I'm sure it's delicious! Thank you for your comment, I'd love a star rating too, if you don't mind! 😬
kb says
Fantastic flavor! I had to cook the veg longer. I used 2 chipotle chilis and found the heat to be about average--great for a family with a different heat tolerances. Definitely eat this with the vermicelli rice.
Hilda Sterner says
Thank you so much, KB! Food can always be hotter, am I right? Unfortunately, not all my readers agree. 😉 I'm glad you enjoyed them and thank you so much for the review!
Becks says
This is a great recipe that we have made multiple times with some minor modifications (that are not relevant to mention). Pork ribs are just as tasty as oxtails and cheaper.
Hilda Sterner says
Thank you so much, I appreciate the review!
Kelly Methey says
This sounds delicious although I would probably go with the country style pork ribs as they are always readily available. I can’t wait to try this easy and tasty recipe! Thanks Hilda for another fantastic recipe idea!
Hilda Sterner says
I had a feeling you'd go for the spare ribs instead of the neck bones. 😂