Recipe #12: Ginataang Alimasag - Remembering 4th grade

My favorite among my grade school years is grade 4. During this time, lolo Iking ang lola Chicha from Zamboanga spent long months at our home in Lucena. They were attending to their immigration papers then. Since it would be costly to fly to and from Mindanao each time the US embassy needs them, it was a wise choice to stay in Lucena instead. During their stay, our dinner table was a smorgasbord ...always. I mean it. There was never a dull moment for my palate. My mama frequently cooked seafood for my grandparents then. So, there'd be inihaw or ginataang seafood, vegetables on the side, my uber favorite appetizer mangga at bagoong, and then an equally appetizing sawsawan, patis-mansi with sili, and dulce, havenly ripe mangoes for dessert. Yum!!! I loved the fact that food was always plentiful when my grandparents were around. I hated though, the fact that a lot of food is directly proportional to the number of dishes that need to be washed. And little dishwasher me was always left in the kitchen, past my bedtime, to discard the evidence of another sumptuous meal.

I developed my fondness of gata and bagoong during this period. I love how coconut milk and shrimp paste are a perfect pair. They are like the yin and yang of Filipino food. Gata in viands is imperfect without bagoong, and vice versa. These two ingredients are exactly what we will use in today's recipe

You'll need:

alimasag
gata
bagoong
garlic and onions
salt and pepper
squash
string beans
patis

How to:
Saute the garlic and Onions in a hot pan
Add about 3 spoonfuls of bagoong for 1/2 kilo of alimasag - I prefer Barrio Fiesta Regular Bagoong
add about 2 globs of patis
add in about 1 cup of coconut milk - unang piga
simmer for about 2 minutes.
Add the crabs

cook on low heat for about 10 minutes
Add about a quarter of a whole squash, peeled and chopped
cook for another 5 minutes
add the chopped string beans and cook for 2 minutes
adjust taste with salt and pepper

Serve.

Kain na!

My grandparents are now US citizens and are living a happy life. When I miss them, all i'd have to do is cook a pot of this colorful seafood dish, and it's as if they're at the dinner table, eating with their hands and telling stories of WWII.

Who says you have to spend for a great meal? This dish costs P280.00 all in and can feed 4 hungry people. So get your cooking gear out and start the fire.

Your hot cook,
Hahan

Recipe #11 : pancit lucban - Papa's bomb

It is father's day tomorrow so I find it timely to share with you a dish which papa has mastered. Pansit Lucban has a Tagalog origin. Papa, being Tagalog, beats mama, I have to admit, when it comes to cooking this, despite the fact that mama is the cook at home.

Sometime when I was in 2nd year college, papa stayed at home for more than a year (I think). His work contract abroad had expired, and while waiting for new employment prospects, he spent quality time with us his children, and with our kitchen. I remember during summer of that year, when he'd cook pansit lucban, just like that, I don't feel like eating rice and ulam anymore. His pansit is meal enough.

There is another fond memory I have of him during my college days --- I was sick, down with the flu. I was home then for the weekend. It was the first time I ever got sick without mama, and papa instead was at home to take care of me. Mama has her way with me when I'm sick, which is strict yet nurturing. Papa's style though is different. I remember him waking me up to enjoy a hot cup of tea with choco butternut doughnut from Dunkin Donuts. I couldn't eat anything, but somehow, he knew that chocolate doughnuts would do the trick. It was the first time I was bribed with doughnuts in exchange of getting up to eat. It worked. It was very heartwarming. Sometimes when I get sick now, I'd tell my husband to get me Papa's tea-doughnut cure. It is my new favorite elixir.

I miss my papa. It's nearly a decade now since he left for work in the US.

You'll need:

lechon kawali about 1/8 kilo
Lucban noodles
garlic
onions
carrots
pechay
patis
toyo
salt
pepper

How to:

• Deep fry your salted chopped liempo to make lechon kawali, set aside

• separate the meat from the crunchy pork fat and skin (chicharon)
• in a hot pan, saute garlic and onions
• add the separated meat from the lechon kawali
• drizzle about half a glob each of toyo and patis
• add water, salt and pepper, bring to a boil, reduce heat
• add noodles, cook covered for about 5 minutes
• add chopped carrots, mix everything up

• add chopped pechay, cook covered for two minutes
• turn off the heat, top with the separated chicharon from the lechon kawali

Serve.
Pansit Lucban is more popularly known as the habhab.
To enjoy a true tagalog experience, eat this the "habhab" way, meaning without utensils. Set your pansit on a banana leaf and sprinkle it with a little vinegar, then literally dig in with your mouth.

Kain na!

Happy Father's Day papa! We wish we had enjoyed this pansit with you. You may be far from us, but I hope through this entry, you feel our love and longing for you. We love you so much!

Who says you have to spend for a great meal? this dish costs about P180.00 all in. It can feed 4 people for merienda. So get your cooking gear out, and start the fire.

Your hot cook,
Hahan

Recipe #10 : the lomi substitute - Run home, lonely!

I was in grade 9, 15 years old. I won the district level impromptu speaking contest sponsored by the Rotary Club (yes you read right. Impromptu. What can I say? I was well read and well informed back in the day...back in the day). I took on at least 10 other contenders from different schools in Lucena. I was onto regionals. And because the Rotary club of Lucena was thrilled that they'd make a name through me at regionals, they sponsored my transportation to Batangas as well as lunch. And they did allow me to bring along my coach, Antonette de Villa-Jalbuena, and my mama. I was under a lot of pressure. Three guys from the Rotary Club of Lucena-South insisted on tagging along to witness my "win". My stomach churned badly. Based on my public speaking experience, stomach churning before a competition is a bad omen. It signals failure. At lunch that day, the only thing I could get down my esophagus was Lomi. It was warm and silky as it glided through my throat and it gave me a little sense of comfort. Just a little.

When I finally received my topic, kaboom! it was about the millennium bug! Of all the things I prepared for and read about, this is one area I have not touched. Then, I thought the millennium bug was actually a bug. There was no backing out. Eyes were on me. I had to speak. I spoke about the millennium and its challenges, but that was not what the judges were looking for. They were looking for a tech-y drift in my line of thought. There was none. So I lost. I lost in front of the rotary club of Lucena-South. I lost in front of my coach. I lost in front of my mom. BUt did I put up a fight? Yes I did. I went to center stage and spoke with ardor! Only, I missed the topic assigned to me.

**Lomi is usually cooked with miki noodles, shrimp, chicken and chicken liver. Since I did not use any of the above, I call this dish 'the lomi substitute'.

You'll Need:
noodles. I wasn't able to find miki in the supermarket yesterday, so I used canton in this version.
patis
toyo
garlic
onions
meat (you can use chicken, chicken liver, pork) - Im using my left-over liempo from the sinigang I made last week.
veggies - cabbage and carrots
two eggs
salt and pepper
water

How to:

• In a hot pan, saute the garlic and onion,
• add the meat, sprinkle with a little salt and pepper, and brown on all sides
• add a drizzle of fish sauce,
• follow with a drizzle of soy sauce (smell that? fantastic right?)
• add water

• cook covered till meat is tender.
• adjust the patis-toyo combination till desired taste is achieved.
• add the carrots. you can also add sayote. cover for two minutes.
• add the eggs. stir well until thick.

• Add the noodles. about 200 grams is fine.
• stir in low heat until your noodles are cooked.
• Add the cabbage. stir for another two minutes.

Serve.

Kain na!

Though I lost that day, Learning how to appreciate lomi was a sure winner.

I cooked this yesterday while waiting for my husband to come home. He loves this for merienda. He brought pan-de-sal from Pan de Manila when I told him what was waiting for him at the table. He ate a heartful. So did my brothers. Oh joy!

Your hot cook,

Hahan

Recipe #9: Bulalo - Welcome Rainy days!

And it's June! School starts! Since I am skipping school this year to attend to more pressing concerns, I will be dedicating June to food that reminds me of school.

To start the month off, we are having bulalo. Shame on me for failing, after tedious attempts, to remember, the eatery in Laong Laan were I really began to appreciate bulalo. I was in first year college. A friend of mine, Anthony, introduced me to this awesome bulalo karinderia. It was superb! For those of you who'd been to the UST area in the rainy season, you probably know how flooded it gets when it pours. And yes, despite the fact that we'd have to walk at least 300 meters from the boarding house to the karinderia, we'd do so, submerging our feet, just to warm our stomachs with this earthy beef marrow stew.

You'll Need:

• About half a kilo of beef shank. yup shank, with the bone marrow still intact.
• 10 peppercorns
• salt and pepper
• fish sauce
• onion chives
• 1 whole onion, halved
• water
• veggies - pechay (bok choy), cabbages. 
• Mama likes adding corn and camote. I love how these two add texture and sweetness to the stew. I would have used these two except that since it rained cats and dogs when I cooked this, I was not able to go to Paco Market for my supplies. I had to make do with what was available in SM supermarket.

How to:

• In a potful of water, cook the shank with the halved onion and a sprinkle of salt and pepper until it becomes tender. (Since I don't have a pressure cooker, it takes me an hour and a half to tenderize two shanks)

• once tender, add the fish sauce. adjust to taste.

• Mommy says that the secret to making bulalo taste like bulalo is the onion chives. Without it, you're just making nilaga, not bulalo. Add Chopped Chives. About two handfuls is fine for half a kilo of shanks

• add peppercorns
• If you have camote and corn, now's the time to add them in and cover pot until cooked.
• add your veggies last, and simmer on low heat for no more than two minutes.

Serve.

Kain na!

My brothers came home from school that day and almost drained the pot off it's broth. Who wouldn't kill for a hot tasty broth on a gloomy rainy day? We had fried matambaka to go with the soup, and of course the patis-mansi-sili sawsawan. Of that feast only little morsels of meat are left, which I will eat as left over lunch today.

Your hot cook,

Hahan

P.S.
Careful with the bone marrow sucking! watch your cholesterol! :D

Recipe #8: Beef Broccoli- My fave Chinese dish

It was Richard's college graduation in 2007. I was 5 months pregnant and had a feisty appetite. After a long wait for Richard to take his diploma (it was pretty long since his last name begins with an "O"), I was ready to eat a horse. To celebrate, Daddy took us to a Chinese restaurant in Malate, close to where he works. "Hap Chan". It is one of his favorite Chinese restos. I do not remember everything we ordered, but I do remember two things which made an impression: the sweet and sour hotpot and tender beef broccoli (And since this is a post about oyster sauce, i won't be talking about the hotpot). I had never eaten broccoli ever in my life and was surprised at how good it was. I remember thinking that it was like cauliflower, only fluffier, and had a sweet milky taste to it after you've ground it in your mouth.

Ever since, I make sure to order beef broccoli in every Chinese resto I go to, especially in Chowking where it's a load more affordable. It was mommy who first tried imitating the dish. After watching her cook her version several times, I thought to myself..."that's easy. I can do that too!"

You'll need
About half a kilo of beef sirloin
garlic, crushed
Onions, diced
oyster sauce
water
salt
pepper
broccoli

How to:

• In a hot pan, saute the garlic and onions,
• Add the beef sirloin strips
• sprinkle with salt and pepper and allow to brown on both sides.

• Add water, reduce heat and cook covered until meat is tender (about 45m-1h)
• Pour about 6-7 globs of oyster sauce (adjust to taste)

• stir in and simmer covered for another 10 minutes
• Add broccoli, stir it in for about 2 minutes
• add more salt and pepper accdg to preference

Serve.

Kain na!

This is a perfect ender to our aphrodisiac month. Isn't it a wonder how many things you can do with oyster sauce? I am yet to be a fan of the actual oyster, but for now at least I am a worshiper of its extract. And as for me, as long as it brings out flavors that make my husband happy, then it is ipso facto, an aphrodisiac!

Your hot cook,
Hahan

Recipe #7: Chicken in Brown Sauce - Eat Pray Love

First of all, I sincerely apologize for my 4-week absence. My absence was due to a combination of factors - flu, work, prior engagements, trips, schedule, unstable internet connection, bad news, good news... It all boils down to the fact that I was unable to plan my schedule ahead so when it got really busy, I could not manage blogging anymore. I promise this will never happen again. I'd do all it takes to make sure that you have a new entry every Saturday at noon. This might include hiring an assistant...anyone interested? :)

A few changes: instead of seeing bon appetit at the end of each recipe, a reader suggested to change it to something more Filipino, and so I did. And I'm ditching the introductory photo beginning this post. Enjoy!

***

I was watching Eat, Pray, Love on dvd (thanks ate Sigrid) early this year when I came up with this dish. I arrived at it mostly due to scarcity of resources, so I had to make do with everything in the fridge as of that moment. I had chicken in the freezer, I had spring onions in the veggie compartment and oyster sauce. I could have just fried the chicken plain and simple, but that would have put the spring onions to waste. So I had to think fast, and think I did.

You'll need:
Fried chicken - seasoned the usual way with salt and pepper
garlic, crushed
cooking oil
onions, diced
oyster sauce
water
spring onions, chopped
salt and pepper

How to:

• Saute garlic and onions in a hot pan with little oil
• pour about 5 globs of oyster sauce
• add a little water
• season with salt and pepper and simmer for about 3 minutes
• turn the heat off, and add the chopped chives
• Top the sauce over fried chicken

Serve.

Kain na!

My husband woke  up to the smell of cooking garlic, which he loves. This was his first time to ever taste something like it, and he loved it instantly.

Your hot cook, 

Hahan