Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

Karen is jumpstarting Lasang Pinoy in an effort to promote Filipino Cuisine around the world. Hey, you don't need to be a food blogger to join. Here are the quidelines. (The idea was Karen's and Stef's, but the title "lasang pinoy" was mine..*wink..wink*). Of course before the inception of this project, it was a series of discussions among Filipino foodbloggers like JMom, Celiak, Stel, Thess, Ajay, and many more..tumatanda na ako)

Food embodies the culture from which it developed. To know a culture, one can start with food. The past year has seen the food blogging community grow tremendously. Each month, I look forward to the Is My Blog Burning? events which reveal some facets of other cultures through their food and eating habits. The sub-events have grown in number, with themes based on ingredients, aesthetics or culture.

A lighthearted discussion of the above, among others, between Filipino food bloggers has kindled the desire for Filipino food to make its mark on the world culinary map. Thus was born Lasang Pinoy, which could mean it "tastes of something Filipino" or short for "the Filipino taste". Launching Lasang Pinoy on Ninoy Aquino Day

The year 1983 was a turning point for the Philippines. On the 21st of August was the culmination of a man's fight to gain his country's freedom. The day Sen. Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. died, Filipinos everywhere were at last emboldened to find their voice to break from the shackles of fear. Ninoy joins the ranks of our greatest heroes in giving us the legacy of our freedom. On his 22nd death anniversary, we celebrate his heroism and dedication to the Filipino nation. In him we have a modern-day hero whose self-sacrifice is worth emulating especially during these days of instability.

For their part, Filipino food bloggers the world over will launch on Ninoy Aquino Day the first Lasang Pinoy Food Blogging Event which aims to bring attention to Filipino food. Just like how Ninoy had much faith in the Filipino, enough to die for us, we are proud to be Filipinos.

All Filipino food bloggers are highly-encouraged to join the event, be they in the country or abroad. Non-food bloggers of Filipino ancestry are also invited; no matter how many generations they have been out of the country or who have never been to the Philippines but still identify themselves as Filipino (or part Filipino, married or related to Filipinos). Entries from other Filipino food and culture enthusiasts are very much welcome. Non-bloggers may also join as long as their entries are hosted in any blog.

Entries should be about food the participant associates with the years (1982-1986) immediately before and after 1983. It could be about food Ninoy ate in prison, family dinners while watching President Marcos on TV or listening to Radio Veritas, food eaten during blackouts or in rallies and the like. (This applies to anyone on either side of the political fence in those days.)

However, for participants who were away from the country at that time, or too young to remember 1983, entries can be about any food they associate with the Philippines or Filipinos and what makes them proud to be one. Tell us what your parents say about Ninoy and his times. Creativity is highly encouraged.

For those who identify themselves as Filipino but believe they do not know what Filipino food is, thoughts on this issue are highly encouraged to be written about. The Filipino is still on a quest to find his/her identity, food included.

Entries have to be posted on or before 18 August 2005 (your own timezone) and the round-up will be posted online by 21 August, Philippine timezone. This announcement may be completely posted on any blog or forum. It would be very interesting to read a blogger discuss the topic with his or her regular readers. However, permalinks of the entries should be e-mailed to lasangpinoy@gmail.com with the blogger's country of location. Bloggers who post this announcement are also kindly requested for an e-mail for coordination purposes.

Leche Flan

Daughter learned how to make this from my cousin. I know this is probably a trade secret because she usually makes this and sells it to her friends. Instructions are from my daughter. I have a lot of objections when she makes this. Nothing to do with the cost but I just find it rich and creamy (and yummy too, I have to admit) and I am trying to keep my kids healthy as much as I can. I couldn't resist posting this though. You only need a few ingredients. Prep time is very minimal and all you needed to do is wait for an hour. Hey, laundry is just half an hour and the dryer about an hour.

When she made this last week, I took the opportunity to buy Halu-halo mix so I can put the flan on my halu-halo. Ah, that's what I call a double whammy.

Ingredients:

4 tbsp of sugar
12 egg yolks (save whites for lemon merinue pie)
1 can of carnation evaporated milk
1 can of Carnation condensed milk
1 tsp of vanilla
lemon zest


Preheat Oven at 350-400.

Caramelize sugar in moulds. You will need two moulds for the above amount of ingredients. Set aside.

Put egg yolks in a bowl together with the milk, vanilla and zest. Stir gently and set the mixture aside for a few minutes to allow the bubbles brought about by stirring to a minimum. In the meantime, fill a foil pan with about 2 cups of water and shovel in the oven for about 10 minutes.

Strain egg mixture into the moulds to eliminate the zest. Place moulds into the foil pan and cover the foil pan with aluminum foil before shoveling it back into the oven. Bake for about an hour. Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes. Let cool and chill before serving.

Blueberry Cheesecake

Crust
1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
3/4 cup sugar

Filling
1 (113-g) package lemon pie filling
1/2 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 large egg, beaten
1 3/4cups water
1 (250g) package cream cheese

Topping

4 cups (about) freds brueberries divided
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 //2 cups whipping cream, whipped

For crust, combine crust ingredients and press on to bottom of 10 x 13 inch baking pan. Bake at 375 F for eight minutes. Let cool.

For filling, combine pie filling, sugar and salt in saucepan. Stir in egg and water. Cook over low heat for about five minutes or until thickened., stirring constantly. Beat cream cheese until softened, then beat into lemon mixture until smooth. Pour over cooked crust.

For topping, sprinkle two cups berries evernly over lemon filling or enough berries to form one layer.

Combine sugar and cornstarch in saucepan. Stir in water. Add remaining two cups blueberries and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until clear and thickened. Remove from heat and add lemon rfind and juice. Let cool.

Spread sauce over filling. Cover and refrigerate until completely chilled.

Just before serving, spread with whipped cream. Makes 12 servings

more views from afar...

these chicken wings were begging to be eaten...










and on this side of our secret spot is a bride...

yes, a reception was held at this place for free.... as long as you come early.. no reservations needed and no fees required.. just come casually..neat idea! there is actually a playground and a garden behind the bushes...

it could get windy, so a light jacket is always a good idea to have

French Version of World Class Cuiscene

How cool is this? My blog can be read in French. Now this truly makes my blog a world-class one.... (wink, wink). Have you got one? Don't ask me how..I discovered it by accident. Please don't leave comments in French or I'll close shop (LOL).

Oh, I now know. Most of my readers are referred by google. I get about 200 searches a day from google including searches in Spanish and French. 'about time I start learning how to speak in French huh?

My husband had a sunny birthday party!

Yes, I finally was able to get a day off this weekend from my normal day off anyway. I have been trying to keep my head above the water for quite sometime. This summer was unusually busy for me at work. In prior years, summer was slack and work starts to come only in fall, just as the rain starts pouring too until the end of well, springtime.

Friday was hubby's birthday. I planned and promised myself I will take a break on Saturday and spend the day at the beach with my family. .. and so we did. Came Saturday. It looked like a storm was about to run amuk. I felt good because I had to go to the office to rush something for my boss for a Monday deadline. As soon as I was done, the sun shone.

Of course my daughter was a big help to me. She had all the marinated meat in the cooler, the goods she baked for her dad on Friday and all the picnic stuff we had to tow. We had to be early to be able to get parking and to get our bestest spot. Hey, enjoy the rest of my story, will you?

Notice my stove? It's a one piece metal that replaced my clay stove from the Philippines. It's quite a neat project my hubby made for me. Everytime I go home to the Philippines, i always bring a stove made of clay back with me. They don't last very long though and they break. Hubby had a chance to make a project and he never had to think twice. This is so handy in campings and picnics. The barbecued pork was what I meant to call your attention to though.

I prepared a few vegetable kebabs..were they ever sweet and juicy?

The inihaw na baboy waiting for us to enjoy. Greek Salad was waiting to be served and so was the rice while waiting for the chicken wings to get cooked. What is a birthday party without a birthday song? All four of us sang the happy birthday song to my husband's chagrin..what with all the people around?

Daughter and I had a very relaxing afternoon lying under the sun reading our books. Intriguing books.

...while he was enjoying a nap! nooootttttt...

and then the boys got bored and thought of a funny idea. Let's hit the cruiseship! Just kidding! Okey, let's see how good marksmen we are! It will be quite a challenge since the cruiseship is quite a distance from our beloved spot. The final decision was to hit the things on top of the log..hehe, they're only a yard away..

so he decided to go pick up some rocks..

for this much needed ammunition..

Ready, aim fire...(there's our treasured uninvaded space..so far..i felt like we were constestants from the reality show Survivor..what with how colorful our Mexican blankets were..)

.......before we called it a night!

Now, if life was like this..we wouldn't need a visa card (Visa ought to pay me for this)!

On second thought..maybe not..

..and yet another tag from Stel!!

1. total number of cookbooks i own

Must be about 20. They're all over the place. My daughter was trying to find out what she can bake for her Dad's birthday and she got so panicky and took all the books out of the shelf.

2. 'last cookbook I bought..

was.."deliciously tempting chicken dishes"..it was on sale for $1.49

3. ' last food/cookbook read..

"The best of the best". Simply easy recipes to follow if you guys don't have this yet. Unfortuately, it doesn't have too many images to support the recipes, but they're easy and yummy just the same.

4. 5 cookbooks that mean a lot to me.

Cooking with Nora Yap Daza, The Best of the Best and The Best of the Rest.

5. 5 other people whom you'd like to see fill in this tag

I am afraid the tag will end with me, unless you guys are willing to wait 'til I finish my bloghopping to find out who hasn't been tagged yet.

Oh no, I got tagged by Mutti!

What are the things you enjoy, even when no one around you wants to go out and play?

SHOPPING! SHOPPING! SHOPPING!

What lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level? Make a list, post it in your journal.

Mellow Music, Music of the 70s and 80s and Piano Music. It doesn't matter whether the song was song by Victor Wood, engelbert and Humperdink or Yoyoy Villame. I used to think that these singers were so baduy then but now that I am older and a little wiser (no violent reactions please), I try to remember why those particular songs were sung and they usually reminds me of my childhood days. As I try to compare the past with today, there was nothing like the days when my childhood was purely "unadulterated".

*Tag 5 friends and ask them to post it in theirs

Hmm...Mutti, mag bla-bloghop pa to see who hasn't been tagged yet, okey?

Etag

When cured to perfection, these pieces of meat will make your pinikpikan heavenly. The slabs of meat are rubbed with coarse salt and usually dried under the sun for about three days before they get kept in a jar called "gusi" for curing. Curing takes about 3 weeks at least and I would say 3 months at the most; otherwise the meat will start to taste bitter. (the slices of meat in the picture are only 2 days old--i sprinkled them with ground pepper)

Etag is a must have in any Igorot canao. This is actually the one that makes your otherwise bland Igorot meal superb. I do not remember very much if the Ibalois made these but I know the Bontocs do. After all, I learned how to prepare this from an "Ibontoc" friend. I do remember my father making these from his "afag" during canaos but most of the time, we were laughing at how he tried very much to become an Igorot. I must admit that from the very little memory I have about etag when I was young, the legumes he cooked with these meat tasted really good.

I am guessing that the origin of etag started way back when there was no electricity in the remote areas of the Mountain Provinces that makes freezing the meat impossible. You see the "highlanders" as we sometimes call them were hunters back in the olden days because of the Mountain Province' geographical location. I am also guessing that if they caught an "alingo" (wild boar), they would try to preserve it for as long as they can to stretch out the days when they can enjoy having meat in their meals. Of course that is just my wild guess, which might just be true. Etag is perfect with "cardis", which I was told is of soya variety.

So how do you make etag? Where I am, sale of meat is very much regulated for health and sanitary reasons so much so that the skin usually has already been discarded even before the meat make it to the shelves. However, an etag is not complete without the skin so I try to buy meat from fly-by-night Filipino meat vendors (shhh). The best part would be the bacon side but a friend of mine actually can make a good etag out of bones attached to even just the tiniest piece of meat.

Rub the meat generously with coarse salt and dry the meat. Please bear in mind that the meat will attract flies so when drying in open air, cover the meat with a screen to keep the flies and bees from contaminating the meat. If you are not very careful, the bees and flies will cause growth of worms that will render your meat worthless.

I dry mine right underneath my oven blower. In that way, I am assured that there will be no flies flying around my science project. Dry for about 3 to 5 days and then keep the slabs in a covered container undisturbed for at least 3 weeks. The meat will turn yellowish when cured.

I hope you'll have the guts to try it.

Seafood Curry Rice

A little daring with my experiments. I had seafood curry a few weeks ago. I wasn't able to get enough of it so I tried cooking it again. I was at the same time thinking of preparing Java Rice. We'll what's wrong with making Java Rice and Seafood Curry in one dish? Nothing, so here I am, presenting to you the outcome.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
400 gms of seafood mix
1 carrot coarsely chopped
3 cups of cooked rice
1/2 green pepper, coarsely chopped
1/2 red pepper, coarsely chopped
1 tsp of curry powder
1/2 tsp of turmeric
1/2 tsp of salt (adjust to taste)

In a fryng pan, heat oil. Add sliced onion and cook until translucent. Add the seafood and cook for about 5 minutes. Add carrot and rice. Cover pan, stirring occasionally to make sure rice does not stick at the bottom of pan. Add the rest of the ingredients. Easy!

Inlambong

Boiled pork in English. Another "delicacy" from the Igorots. If I had to rate this from easy to difficult as far as preparation is concerned, I would rate this not just easy, but super easy. You see when I was young, my mother had to serve in the rural areas of Benguet. That meant we had to live in the community ourselves and interact with the people within the locality.

My mother was not an Igorot but we were welcomed as part of the community and they treated us just like one of them although I can tell that there was this very thin line that separated us when it came to observing their traditions.

In a canao, even if you were an ultra rich Igorot, you would cook all your meat the same way as a poor Igorot would if he had to hold a canao himself. Although food is important to them, the highlight of the canao is the dancing. I could be wrong but that's how I saw it.

I could only speak of one particular tribe with fondness. The Ibalois are natives of Benguet. When I was young, there was this very rich man who owned a lot of cows. You see, in that place, cows were loose and could graze anywhere like the whole barrio was their ranch. I was then a little girl, about 6 years old when one day I saw a lot of people going after these cows. I later on learned that the rich man's daughter was getting married and she was going to have a "boda" for 7 days. Yes, depending on how rich you are, pre-wedding celebrations are celebrated endlessly.

Each day, they would butcher 5 pigs and a cow. They have this tradition to distribute to each house in the area a piece of meat, of about 2 lbs. We were not that many in the community then and we all knew one another. Although my father had a little Igorot blood, he did not practice as an Igorot because he basically grew up in an urban setting. Besides, he was pre-dominantly Chinese and Ilocano.

Everytime we got our share of the meat they called "afag", he would shake his head and say how much meat the host was wasting. Father cooked the chinese way and he came up with too many dishes from our share with nothing else but chinese spices.

You see, Igorots do not cook their meat like other people do in a party. All they do is burn the pig, butcher it, slice it into small pieces and throw them into a big, big pot of boiling water. Once done, they put the cooked meat in a big basket and serve them to the people with salt and chilies. Together with the meat would be basketfuls of rice and boiled yams.

Now, this does not only happen in weddings. Even in funerals, people distribute meat to the community as well. My parents were very much concerned about hygeine but I guess it was the community's least concern. I cannot remember any instance when their food has gone bad or anybody getting sick in their celebrations.

It is so nice to remember all those things. I have to admit that I miss that community. When my brother went home to the Philippines, he set aside a time to go and visit the people there. Some of our parents' contemporaries have all been gone. However, my brother met a former classmate who was still there and is now a teacher herself. My sister who is a nurse herself did a community service there together with her husband's classmates' wives.

Pinikpikan

Not for people with weak hearts.

Ever heard of pinikpikan? This is one of the most exotic food of the people from the highland provinces of the Philippines. Sometimes we call it the "killing-me-softly" recipe because of the way this is prepped before being cooked.

We recently attended a canao, an igorot celebration and I took home some leftovers. We don't get this very often but it was something that me and my husband has learnt to have since we both worked in the mining industry back in the Philippines. The following may not exactly be the way the Igorots do it but this is my son's instructions the way my son saw the guys prepared it.

Put one wing of a chicken on a flat surface. Hold the head, one wing, and the legs in the one hand. Using a club softly beat the other wing from the inside. Beat it so it does not break the bones. Beat the wing from the inside to the tip, and then back again. You must do this twice. Repeat for the other wing. After beating the wings, lay the head of the chicken, on the flat surface, facing one way. Beat the neck from the top to the bottom. You may probably wonder why the chicken has to be beaten. The reason to beat the chicken is to make the blood coagulate on the wings and on the neck. The wings get thick and look big when cooked. It is said that it tastes better as well. Another reason is when the blood coagulates, you then have to butcher the chicken, and blood does not drip as much. If done right, there would be very little blood dripping to the ground.

Now you must kill the chicken. To kill the chicken, hold the chicken firmly by the feet and wings in one hand. Use a club to hit the back of its head, just below the comb. Not too hard, or the chicken will bleed. One blow should do it. Use a torch or fire, burn the feathers off. Keep burning the chicken until it starts to look a little bit burnt. Don't worry, the burnt look is only at the surface because it was only the feathers that got burnt.

Once the feathers are burnt off remove the remaining feathers. Use tweezers if necessary to remove the roots of the feathers. My dad is not an Igorot that's why he does that, but the real Igorots don't bother removing them anymore. Clean the inside of the chicken and then cut the chicken into medium sized pieces and put them into a pot. Add etag if you have any. Cook on high heat until meat is tender. When the chicken is done, add chayote or any vegetables of your choice into the pot. Add salt and remove the pot from the heat. Keep covered. Leave for four minutes minutes. Stir the soup and enjoy.

** To make etag, get a side of bacon and slice it into squares about an inch long. Dredge the meat in coarse salt and put in a ceramic bowl. Cover it and let it dry in open air for about 3 days. Keep in a dry container for about 3-5 weeks.**

You see, back when I was a child, it was explained to me by my father that the Igorots do not use seasonings other than salt. They believe so much that meat is better when seasoned only with salt and chilies.

From my frozen stack of foods, I found cooked mung beans from our dinner a few nights ago. Very helpful if you cook them ahead of time and freeze them. I've said it several times. You see in the Philippines, I have been so tied up with just one idea. Only green leafy vegetables go well with mung beans. Other than that, it's not how you cook mung beans.

I have proven myself wrong. With no vegetables found in my vegetable crisper but celery and carrots, I was doomed. Not! I thawed one of my stacks and warmed this in a pan. Added the carrots and the celery in. Seasoned it with patis. I'm stuffed, need I say more?

Tortang Talong

It must be one of the easiest to prepare for some but quite complicated for others. I do not cook the perfect tortang talong but I take pride in the way my husband and children clean-up their plates everytime I cook this. I add ground pork in mine and uncooked finely chopped onions before I fry them. I think its the chopped onions that give the recipe the perk.

My mother used to just mash the eggplants before folding them into the beaten eggs. It works just as well. Sometimes though, it's nice to add a little look to it. I do it once in a while when I am not really pressed for time.

Ingredients:

2 medium eggplants
250 gms of cooked ground pork
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
3 eggs
2 tbsp of flour
salt to taste

Broil the eggplants in the oven toaster. Once cooked, peel the eggplant and flatten them with a fork. In a big bowl, beat eggs. Add the flour, cooked ground pork, onions and salt.

Heat oil in a frying pan. Pour about half of the mixture in the frying pan and then slowly add the flattened eggplants. Pour the rest of the mixture on top of the eggplants. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the bottom is brown. Flip the eggplants over and cook for another 5 minutes.

I was going to say that you should be careful in flipping the eggplants over, but this was of course just for presentation purposes. Whether it comes out with a good appearance or not, I believe that the taste stays the same.

Spinach Enchiladas

When I had my a surgery in February, a friend of mine brought this to my family for dinner. (Read. My family will starve without me) It was probably the best I ever had while recuperating.

Simple, filling and healthy. A vegetarian officemate loves this so much that she even asked for the recipe. Why should I be surprised? She was not a very friendly figure in the office. I would say this was a gateway to a very good relationship I eventually had with her.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp of cooking oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 200 gm bag of ready to eat spinach
1 250gm tub of ricotta cheese
1 bag of tortilla wrappers
355 ml of salsa, spicy
250 gms of cheddar cheese

In a pan, saute onion. Add the spinach and cook only for about 2 minutes. Discard the juice that comes out of the spinach. Turn off stove and mix the ricotta cheese.

Wrap the mixture with the tortilla wappers. Arrange in a baking pan. Spread the salsa on top of the wrapped spinach. Bake on 300 for 20 minutes. Top it with cheese and bake for another 10 minutes.

Starbucks Coffee

So what's you favorite at Starbucks Coffee? Mine is black regular coffee. Plain, no nothing. Hubby's has a sachet of brown sugar and usually a bit of half and half.

Daughter ordered Vanilla Bean Frappuccino

Son had Java Chip Frap. Well, when we had this, he went for Java Chip but normally, he will have Caramel Macchiato.

Uhmm, all I can say is Starbucks' beans are burnt and they do this intentionally. As with the Frappuccinos, I find them both rich. My boss usually orders mistoe (I don't even know if I spelled the name right..oh well. You can order special coffees or frappuccinos with low fat in them as long as you say it in advance.

These pictures are sentimental to me. Not that we do not go to Starbucks very often. I took these pictures when an important occasion just before the schoolyear ended this year. I opted to keep the reason to myself and a few. If you're one of the few, cheers! Cheers to those who don't too! I was a happy momma. Now you know.

My Cooking Meme

I was tagged by Celiak about my cooking meme. I might have a few and don't get me started because I can be talkative. For now I'll behave.

What is your first memory of baking/cooking on your own?

There might have been times earlier than this but I can vividly remember when mother asked me to cook mung beans in our dirty kitchen. When the mung beans were cooked, I intended to transfer the contents of the black pot to a cleaner pot but I accidentally spilt the whole thing in a pan of coconut milk my mother was trying to reduce to an oil for her kakanin. I couldn’t save hers but I did with mine and actually it turned out delicious.

Who had the most influence on your cooking?

My father, being of chinese descent had the biggest influence in my cooking. He cooked recipes my mother never heard of. For Ilocano dishes, it would be my mother and my maternal grandmother. When I visited her in the province when I was young, she used to cook everything outside. I would grab anything, like yams I can thow in the fire and she would gladly cook them for me. It was not so much of whether it turned out delicious or not, but she had a way of telling when the stuff is cooked already or not yet.

Do you have an old photo as "evidence" of an early exposure to the culinary world and would you like to share it?

Not during my time. We had black and white then and somehow my parents gave me the impression that it would cost us a fortune to have our films developed. Me in my apron would be something my parents thought was just a waste of another film.

Mageiricophobia - do you suffer from any cooking phobia, a dish that makes your palms sweat?

Yes, I seem to be doing alright if I am cooking in small amounts only. But everytime I cook in big amounts, they always turn into a disaster. I always have the best intentions though. My husband knows me very well and so he thinks that I should invite only a few guests at a time. He equates it to fewer guests, more quality time with guests, and better food.

What would be your most valued or used kitchen gadgets and/or what was the biggest letdown?

My garlic press is my biggest let down. I love using garlic in everything I cook that calls for garlic-fresh or fried. My sister bought me one but when I first used it, the handles broke right away so I went back to my most reliable Henckel’s knives to do the coarse or fine chopping.

I love cooking with "uling"(coal). When I was in the Philippines, I loved to cook kare-kare using uling so I have this clay pot stacked outside our house. My mother-in-law thinks that I am weird. What with all the latest models of gas and electric stoves coming out in the market and here I am stuck with my clay pot? If I ever had you for a guest and you knew I cooked the food using my clay pot, that means I cooked it with love just for you. I did bring one here but it cracked after a while. My husband made me a stainless steel one with the same idea of fueling it with coal and believe me, it has attracted attentions here and there. I carry it with me all the time, in the park during picnics, camping, etc.

Name some funny or weird food combinations/dishes you really like and probably no one else.

Adobado. I love adobado. I heard about it from my sister-in-law but actually got the idea of how to cook it from a Filipino Restaurant near our place. Unfortunately, the adobado had a history to it that my kids are connecting to, that’s why they do not like it. It is not the taste definitely but how it was introduced to them. Weird? Sometimes, my kids associate their love for food with the people they meet or interact with. Tama na baka mabasa pa niya.

What are the three eatables or dishes you simply don't want to live without?

Rice, tuyo, and dessert. My meals are not complete until I wash the food with coffee or tea and anything sweet. It could be fruits, cake, chocolates but please, I want something sweet.


3 quickies:

favorite ice cream

Hazel Nut Praline

you will probably never eat (again??)

Snake is supposedly an exotic food in Japan and China but I will never try it for the life me. Rats, yes field mice are eaten in Bicol apparently.

signature dish … My Thai and Malaysian Chicken Curry.

Tag 3 people...hmm will think of someone.. how about Stefoodie, Karen and Dexiekins??

Into the Savory World of Food Blogs

Ms. Annalyn Jusay of Manila Bulletin has included my blog in her section Blog-O-Rama. Yes, get into the savory world of Food Blogs according to Ajay.

Read more about it here.

Steamed Rice

Rice is something we Filipinos cannot live without, even now that I am out of the Philippines. I think it is equivalent to potatoes and bread to the Americans and the Canadians. This reminds me of one funny experience I had with my son's friend.

We invited my son's friend, (a caucasian) camping three years ago. I wasn't quite sure if his mom was going to allow him to join us so I did not include him in my plans. This camping was an all-Filipino camping. Just a day before we left, my son got a call. He was joining us afterall. I rushed to the grocery store to buy bread and hotdogs particularly for him.

Well, in our cooler, I had tocino, longganisa, marinated tapa, daing na bangus and a few canned goods. Our friends brought tuyo, dried squid and daing.

Our breakfast on our first day was tuyo, longanisa, you know the usual Pinoy stuff. He was shocked we had rice for breakfast. That was not it. There's more. Because there were rows and rows of campsites, to get to the lake, my son and his friend would pass through our friends's sites and they would be invited for breakfast. Ah of course, camping to us is indulgence. It's where we could have our tuyo cooked without worrying that the smell would stick to the carpets.

As the day progressed, he noticed that everyone seemed to be eating all the time. In one of our friends' campsites, they got invited for breakfast. He secretly asked my son if it was dinnertime already. "Are you kidding? It's only 10 o'clock in the morning!" is what I heard my son say to him.

He was even offered a fried dried squid. He was a little mortified to eat even just a tiny piece but he tried anyway. "Tastes like chicken" was what he said. Of course, a friend suggested that he try it with rice.

Slowly, as the days went by, he was getting acculturized. No, he was polite enough not to ask for bread but I made sure that he knew that we brought bread for him if ever he was going to find a need to have bread.

I haven't seen this kid for a long time after our camping but latest I heard from my son is he preferred rice over bread and potatoes now.

Seafood Curry

On my way to Indonesia a couple of years ago, I had a lay over in Singapore. In one of the fastfoods in the airport, I had this. Seafood is big in Singapore or that's the impression that I got. I tried it at home and it worked. Here's how I did it:

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of cooking oil
1 medium onion quartered
200 gms of shrimps, shelled and deveined
200 gms of big squid, cut in bite sizes
200 gms of baby octopus
200 gms of abalone
1 medium carrot sliced in serving sizes
1/2 of green peppers, cut into bite sizes
1/2 of red peppers, cut into bite sizes
200 gms of baby corns
1 tbsp of curry powder
1/4 tsp of turmeric
2 tbsp of fish sauce (patis)
1 tsp of corn starch dissolved in 1/4 water

In a frying pan or wok, heat oil. Add onions and cook for a minute. Add the seafood and carrots and let cook for about 5 minutes. Add the baby corns and peppers. Season with fish sauce. Just before serving, add the corn starch. Stir to make sure that the corn starch does not stick at the bottom of the pan. Test if corn starch is cooked before serving.