The Lucky Cook: Filipino recipes of a househusband

Pork Sisig

Today I will share one of Filipino's most favorite dish, Pork Sisig. It is made from pig ears that was boiled and grilled with chicken liver. There are many varieties of Sisig in the Philippines, the most popular version is from Pampanga. This dish is a best seller among restaurant's around Manila. It is usually served on a sizzling plate together with fresh egg on top. When we dine out together with my family this is the one that I always pick from the menu. When we go out with our friends for some booze we always have this one on the table. It is the best pulutan for most of us.

I hope you can enjoy this one together with a glass of beer or serve it to your family with steamed rice.

Ingredients

3/4 kilo pig ears

1/4 kilo liempo (pork belly)

1/4 kilo chicken liver

2 medium onion (minced)

3 pcs calamansi

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 knob ginger (minced)

5 pcs chili fingers

1/2 cup butter

2 tsp oil

2 pcs egg

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a large pot, boil water together then put the pig ears and pork belly. Simmer for 45 minutes then drain.
2. Grill pig ears and pork belly until it turns to golden brown. Chop and mince then set aside.
3. In a large pan, heat oil and add butter then saute half of the onion until its soften.
3. Add ginger and chicken liver then cook for 5 to 10 minutes.Crush and break the liver finely.
4. Put the mince pig ears and pork belly then simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Add the soy sauce and chili then mix well.
6. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.
7. Put the eggs and stir it gently until it blends with the pork.
8 Serve it on a large plate and put chili and onion on top. Put calamansi when you're ready to eat.

Just got Lucky!.

This time I will share a budget-friendly recipe that you can prepare for only 10 minutes. This is sauteed beans with longanisa from Lucban. Longanisa sausages are flavoured with indigenous spices, with each region having its own specialty. There are many varieties of longanisa in the Philippines, Lucban is known for its garlicky longanizas ; Guagua for its salty, almost sour longanizas; Vigan for its smoky and galicky longanizas; Baguio longanizas is known for its distinctive sweet taste and small portions.

I love to eat longanisa any meal of the day but my wife doesn't have similar taste buds when it comes to this one. My favorite is the one from Vigan, maybe because I'm Ilokano. This one is the most garlicky and smoky longanizas. You can make longaniza from pork, beef and also chicken. I hope you can enjoy this simple and tasty dish.

Ingredients

3/4 kilo baguio beans (cut diagonally)

1/2 kilo lucban longanisa

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1 red onion (minced)

2 tsp oyster sauce

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp brown sugar

2 tbsp oil

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Remove the pork meat inside the longanisa.
2. In a large pan, heat oil then saute garlic and onion until its soften.
3. Add the longanisa and simmer until the meat is cooked.
4. Put the beans and stir fry for 3 minutes.
5. Combine soy sauce, oyster sauce and brown sugar in a small bowl then pour it to the pan.
6. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.

Just got Lucky!.

In this post I will share the dish that most Filipino's love to eat. Pork Sinigang was a usual viand that was serve during lunch or dinner. If you read my previous post, sinigang has a sour soup base. Its base is usually made from tamarind, guava, etc. You can use most parts of the pig in cooking sinigang. For a creamy texture of the broth you may add smashed gabi (taro). For the vegetables, you may add okra, kangkong, radish (daikon), long green chilis, eggplant, etc. It is better to use the bonier part of a pig to have a rich soup flavor.

Try this recipe and you will surely love this one.

Ingredients

1 kilo pork (cut into serving size)

"Sinigang Mix" for 1 liter soup

2 red onion (quartered)

3 pcs tomato (quartered)

4 pcs long green chilis

1 bunch water spinach (kangkong)

1 medium radish (cut diagonally)

5 pcs. Okra

800 ml water

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a large pot or pressure cooker, put the water, pork, onions, tomatoes and 2 tsp of rock salt. Let boil and simmer for 30 minutes until the meat soften.

2. Add the radish and okra, simmer for 3 minutes.

3. Put the kangkong and long green chilis.

4. Pour the Sinigang Mix and add water depending on the level of sourness that you prefer.

5. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.

Just got Lucky!

Last week we travel to Bulan, Sorsogon for a 4 days vacation with my wife and in-laws. It was a 13 to 14 hours drive from manila. It is strategically located at the southwestern most tip of the island of Luzon and is a premier town in the Province of Sorsogon. Major export of this town are from its coastal waters, agricultural lands produce rice, copra, and abaca fiber. Most bicolano dishes are cooked with gata (coconut milk).

We bought this fresh tuna from Bulan wet market and his uncle prepared the dish. This dish is typically made from fresh raw fish marinated in citrus juices such as vinegar or lime and spiced with chili peppers. Additional seasonings like chopped onions, salt and ginger are also added. The twist here is the coconut milk that was added which is not usually a part of the ceviche. At first I was curious if why did her uncle put coconut milk on this one but when I tasted it all questions was answered. Coconut milk add creaminess on the dish, it is still the usual kilawin but made creamier. This dish is so easy to prepare but make sure that the fish is fresh to avoid food poisoning.

Ingredients

1 kilo tuna

2 thumb ginger (minced)

3 medium red onion (circle cut)

1/2 cup vinegar

1/4 cup coconut milk

2 tsp ground-pepper

5 chili fingers (chopped)

salt

Instructions

1. Fillet the tuna and cut into small pieces. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, put the vinegar and coconut milk.

3. Add the chopped tuna, ginger, chili's and onions

4. Sprinkle some salt and ground-pepper.

5. Stir until all blended together. You may add more chili's for more spicy kick.

Just got Lucky!.

Pork belly or "Liempo" is a boneless cut of fatty meat from the belly of a pig. This pork cut is popular among Asian countries that is used in many different cuisines. Tofu or bean curd originated from China and may Filipino use this as an extender. Tofu is a great source of protein and has a low calorie content which is good specially for vegetarians.

This tokwa't baboy recipe came from my mom's homecooked meals. I remember when this was our lunch or dinner, I assure you that leftovers has no room for us. Try this tasty recipe to add some varieties to your daily meals and this is best eaten with steamed rice.

Ingredients

1 kilo pork belly

1 block tofu

4 cloves garlic (minced)

1 medium red onion (julliened)

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup vinegar

1 cup water

4 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 cup chinese celery/kintsay (minced)

1/4 cup butter

cooking oil

salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Cut pork belly and tofu to your desired serving sizes.
2. In a frying pan, heat oil and fry tofu until golden brown. Set aside.
3. In a medium pot, saute garlic and onion then add the pork belly, soy sauce, vinegar and water. Let boil and simmer until the meat becomes tender. Add water as necessary.
4. Add the tofu and simmer until it absorb some of the sauce.
5. Put the chinese celery and stir well.
6. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.

Just got Lucky!.

You want an easy and tasty shrimp recipe? Yes, the dish was so easy and you can't go wrong in preparing this one. If you already read my previous recipe's, it is given that my wife love shrimp dishes. This was prepared during a weekend lunch together with my mother-in-law. Seafood taste better when cooked together with butter.

"Buttered Garlic Shrimp" is a best seller in dampa style restaurants. In dampa style restaurants, you will be the one who will buy fresh seafood's from their mini wet market. You will also choose if what type of dish it will be coo from their menu. Most shrimp dishes in this type of restaurants are sinigang, tempura and camaron rebosado.

This recipe usually comes with lemon-lime flavored soda (sprite), you can use any lemon flavored soda that is available. I hope you can enjoy this dish together with steamed rice.

Ingredients

1 kilo shrimp

6 cloves garlic (minced)

1/4 cup butter

200 ml lemon-lime flavored soda

2 tsp freshly ground peppercorn

salt to taste

Instructions

1. In a large pot, put the shrimp and lemon-lime flavored soda. Wait to boil and simmer until soda completely evaporate then set aside.
2. In a large pan, put the butter and saute garlic until golden brown.
3. Add the shrimp and mix until it blended with the sauce.
4. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.

Just got Lucky!.

My wife and I love eat-all-you-can or buffet style restaurant. Most of our friends and relatives also loves this kind of food feast. In recent years, buffet style dining are blooming here in Manila. One of our favorite buffet style restaurant is "Dad's Ultimate Buffet". It's a buffet that includes 3 restaurants namely Dad's, Kamayan and Saisaki. Dad's specializes in continental dishes, Kamayan for Filipino dishes and Saisaki for Japanese dishes.

Dad's also offer "Dad's Merienda Buffet", it's an eat-all-you-can merienda (snacks or light meal) where you can enjoy a feast of sumptuous Filipino dishes. The buffet is only available at a certain time which is 3PM to 5PM everyday. We're about 20 persons when we first tried this buffet at their branch in SM Megamall.

When we went to Makati to fix some documents we opted to try their Glorietta branch. Since it's only 2:30PM when we arrive at the place we've decided to buy some stuffs first. It's a late-lunch date with my wife. Here's my first plate.

shawarma, burger, dinuguan (blood stew), fried/steamed siomai, pansit malabon

You will only pay 189 pesos ($4) for over 30 food choices. It includes soup, mami, stiry fry noodles, pastries, fries, dumplings, rice cakes and many more.

My wife's first plate:

puto't dinuguan, tokwa't baboy, fries, okoy, 2 kinds of pansit

Some of the pastries:

Since we are busy munching on this treats I only captured our first plate's. All in all, my wife had 3 plates and I had 5-6 plates. We had a great merienda-lunch that day. Next time when we go here I will surely take pictures first before enjoying the food.

Just got Lucky!.

One of Filipino's favorite comfort food "Papaitan". This dish is mainly compose with innards of beef or goat. It includes small intestines, ox tripe, cow's heart or liver and the bile. The bitter taste or flavor of this dish mainly comes from the bile. It is sometimes bitter-sour stew because other varieties includes tamarind (sampalok). Its a hit among beer drinkers here in our country and it's one of the most requested "pulutan". In manila if you want to eat "Papaitan" just visit the nearest cafeteria or carenderia and I assure that they got a serving for you. Most of my kababayan prefer this as a pulutan but for us it is best eaten with steamed rice.

I've prepared this one on a gloomy afternoon, the richness of this stew can invigorate your body in this kind of weather. You can easily distinguish papaitan meat vendors in the market. Just tell the butcher if how many kilos are you going to buy and they will give you proper portion of the innards. You also need to buy some meat of beef.

My wife enjoyed this one, she even reserve a bowl of papaitan for her to munch while watching TV later that night. I hope you can also enjoy this recipe.

Ingredients

1 kilo beef innards

4 cloves garlic (minced)

2 pcs medium onions (quartered)

5 pcs long green chili

1 thumb ginger (julliened)

sampalok mix

1 sachet Maggi magic sarap

2 tsp freshly ground peppercorn

1 tsp bile

2 tsp oil
5-7 cups water

salt to taste

Instructions

1. Properly clean the innards by washing it through running water. You may scrub it with salt then rinse.
2. In a large pot or pressure cooker, boil water and add the innards. Wait for 45 to 60 minutes until all the innards are tender.
3. Drain the water and cut the innards into small pieces. Set aside.
4. In a large pot, saute garlic and onion until its soften then add ginger.
5. Put the innards and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
6. Add 5 cups of water and let it boil.
7. Put bile and chili's then add salt and pepper to taste. If you want a bitter-sour taste add the sampalok mix.

Just got Lucky!.

Last year when my wife and I unwrapped all the gifts for our wedding we are so excited and guessing what's on the big boxes and small boxes. Appliances are the most common gifts for wedding couples here in the Philippines. First, we opted to open small boxes which consist of a flat iron, kitchen utensils, plates and a lot of glasses. There are also a set of sleeping pillows and two cute small pillows that says "Mr. Right" and "Mrs. Always Right". When we are finished with the small ones, here comes much bigger gift boxes. I told my wife before our wedding if how many rice cooker are we going to have. When we are done unwrapping, we got three different rice cooker. Some of the gifts are an airpot, induction cooker, electric stove and a turbo broiler. The main reason why I come up with this recipe is because of our turbo broiler. First thing that comes to my mind we I saw this thing was a sumptuous baby back ribs. This recipe is easy to prepare it will only take less than an hour or two to enjoy this fancy meal.

By the way here's the gift live in action :)

Ingredients

1 kilo baby back ribs (cleaned)

for the dry rub:

2 tsp rock salt

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 tsp cayenne pepper

4 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp garlic powder

for the bbq sauce:

1/2 cup soy sauce

5 tsp tomato ketchup

3 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp oyster sauce

Instructions

1. Clean the baby back ribs by removing the membrane of the meat. The membrane is a thin skin-like layer on the bone side of the ribs. It will make your dish more tasty and flavorful if this was remove properly.
2. Combine all the ingredients for the dry rub in a bowl. Mix well until it all the powder blended well with each other.
3. Put the dry rub all over the baby back ribs, make sure that dry rub are distributed well on the meat. Put it on a plastic or zip-lock bag and refrigerate for 3 to 5 hours. Overnight is much better.
4. Wrap the meat with aluminum foil, put it on the turbo broiler and turn the temperature to the highest level. Cook it for 75 minutes.
5. In a separate bowl, combine all the ingredients for the bbq sauce.
6. Turn off the turbo broiler then take off the foil on the meat. Distribute and spread the bbq mixture on the meat.
7. Put the baby back ribs on the turbo broiler and wait until its charred for a more smoky flavor. Occasionally put bbq sauce on the meat every 5 minutes.

Just got Lucky!