Kinilaw – the Pinoy Sashimi

Kilawin or also known as Kinilaw is a native Filipino dish of amazing freshness made from raw seafood soaked in vinegar. Some food experts said that Kinilaw resembles the Ceviche of Central America for the bathing of seafood with citrus juice. However, the ceviche is cooked after soaking for long hours in sour juice, kinilaw is really eaten raw. Kinilaw could be best compared with the Japanese sashimi.

Kinilaw can be varied in style (Photo courtesy of marketmanila.com)

Even though various types of vinegars are best souring liquid for Kinilaw, you can also use calamansi and other lime juices. Spices such as onion, ginger and siling labuyo are also added in the bathe to balance out the sour taste. Some varieties have kamyas and green mangoes for extra sourness.

For the sea food main ingredient, it seems that every known sea food in the Philippine marine dishes can be prepared for a kinilaw. Even raw shells bathed in vinegar or calamansi is a variety of kinilaw.

Even though fresh raw sea food are the most famous type of kilawin, there are other raw food that can be easily soaked in vinegar and can be classified as kinilaw.

For instance, vegetable kinilaw can be made from ampalaya or puso ng saging. There are also kinilaw for pork, beef and goat.

Try this basic recipe for Fish Kinilaw

Serves 2-4 for appetizer

½ cup sukang maasim (white vinegar) or any kind of souring liquid you prefer

1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced

2-4 chili, sliced diagonally

11/2 tsp sea salt or table salt

Black pepper for added spice

1 kilo fish (tuna, tanigue or yellow fin)

Calamansi for extra souring

Cooking procedure

In a large dish, mix the vinegar, ginger, chili, salt and pepper. Cover then store in the fridge for later use.

Cut the fish into medium pieces or about ¼ inch thick

Once ready for serving, place the fish into the dish with the vinegar mixture and toss for bathing. Put all the contents into a serving plate and serve with rice or lots of beer. 

Bubbly Belekoy

Belekoy is a sweet treat that is believed to have came from Bulacan. This is made from flour, sugar, vanilla and covered with sugar bits. I have tried a variety of belekoy covered with sesame seeds and they are really yummy.

I have learned to love this just recently when my yobo got his childish craze over sweet delights particularly this treat. 

However, I am having difficulty in looking for belekoy in the market that is why I buy tons of belekoy whenever I see it in stores.

Belekoy a Bubbly Treat! (photo courtesy of peter albert)

Belekoy is gooey or sticky similar to the western nougat. Probably this is the characteristic highlighted in the expression “makunat ka pa sa belekoy” referring to a person who is very serious in penny pinching. 

The Philippine Native Chicken

The Philippine Native Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is a breed of chicken wildly thriving in the Philippines. However, today they are raised in yard farms as utility bird for their tasty meat and eggs.

Darag is a common type of Philippine Native Chicken (Photo courtesy of DOST)

There are 4 common breeds of Philippine Native Chicken

• Banaba
• Joloanon
• Parawakan
• Darag

These breeds are usually raised for cock fighting but there are several activists who condemn this practice. In rural villages and farmlands, native chicken are mainly raised as food source. They are easy to raise since even if they are not fed regularly, they will look for their own food such as scraps in the ground.

Recently, there are breeders who have tried to cross the native chicken with foreign breeds such as the Cantonese chicken and the sunshine chicken. These fowls are similar to the American breeds particularly the Rhode Island breed. The primary goal of the cross breeding is to boost the mass of the native chicken for more food source.

Native Chicken are also noted for their laying abilities. Even though they can somehow be obstinate at times, they can give up to 250 eggs every year. A healthy layer can give more. This is noted if the native chicken are provided with premium quality feeds.

Try this tasty native chicken tinola

Ingredients

1 kilo native chicken

1 cups of young papaya

½ cup dahon ng sili

2 liters water

¼ cup ginger, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 large onion, julienned

¼ cup cooking oil

¼ cup fish sauce or patis

Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure

Heat oil in a large pot and stir fry garlic, onion and ginger

Add the native chicken and water

Simmer over medium heat, allow to boil for about 20 minutes or until the chicken is tender

Add patis, salt and pepper to enhance the flavor

Put in the young papaya, and simmer for about 15 minutes

Put some dahon ng sili when ready to serve

Serve with rice

Lumpiang Shanghai

Lumpiang Shanghia is a Filipino dish that is primarily made from pork or fish, chopped onions, carrots and other vegetables with the mixture filled in rolls.

Food historians trace the origins of lumpia in China and said to be originally called as lunpia. It is believed that Immigrants from Fujian Province (not Shanghai?) had brought with them this crispy roll.

Lumpiang Shanghai is not really from Shanghai but from Fujian, China (Photo courtesy of Goldilocks)

Today in the Philippines, Lumpia is a customary dish during special events such as fiestas, birthdays and also best any day you want. This is best combined with sukang maasim or catsup.

Try this Lovely Lumpia recipe

Ingredients:

1 kilo ground pork

½ cup shallots

1 cup carrots, minced

1 cup onion, minced

3 tsp soy sauce

2 raw eggs

3 tsp black pepper

11/2 tsp salt

Lumpia wrapper

Cooking Procedure:

Combine all the ingredients with the meat or beef.

Wrap the mixture using lumpia wrapper in tight fillings

Deep fry every roll. Drain on paper towels. Make sure these are evenly cooked and golden brown in color

Serve with sweet chili or sweet and sour sauce.

Superb Sapin Sapin

Sapin sapin is a sticky rice and coconut dessert in the Philippines. Sapin sapin is literal term for layers. Each layer is colored, usually the bottom layer is deep ube color, the middle a golden yellow and the top is white or any order.

Sapin Sapin means layered in Filipino (photo courtesy of filipinofoodstore.com)

Sapin sapin is said to originate from the northern part of the Philippines particularly the province of Abra. This treat is very sumptuous and has been popular for many decades now as a common kakanin in Philippine delicacy.

Ingredients:

3 cups malagkit rice

1 cup galapong

1 cup white sugar

6 cups cooked ube

Shredded coconut

2 cups rich coconut cream

2 cans condensed milk

Food coloring

Instructions

Mix all ingredients excluding mashed ube and food colors Divide this into three parts. The first part should be added with mashed ube. To enhance the color, add some violet food colors. Stir well. For the second part, add yellow coloring, stir well. For the third part, don’t add anything this will remain white.

Add oil to a round baking pan. Place with greased banana leaves. Then, add the ube mixture. Smear evenly. Steam for about 25 minutes or more until tender. You should take note to cover the baking pan with cheese cloth before steaming. Add the 2^nd layer on top of the cooked ube layer. Cover again then steam for 25 minutes. Pour in the 3^rd layer then steam for 25 minutes. While steaming, stir fry shredded coconuts until brown and smother into the sapin sapin. Let this cool down before serving. 

Terrific Taho

Taho or sweet soy bean curd is a sweet Filipino dessert or snack and a usual street food in the morning. The Philippines is said to be the sole country to make this unique delicacy for soy bean curd. There are soy yogurts in the west but this is really similar to yogurt since the taste is similar to yogurt and use soy milk instead of cow’s milk.

The well-loved taho is now part of a business franchise (photo courtesy of watimbox.com)

Meanwhile, taho is comparable to Japanese tofu but softer and breaks easily. This is gelatinous street food and sweetened by sugar syrup or arnibal and sometimes added with vanilla, macapuno and sago.

How to Make Taho

Ingredients:

1 kilo soybeans

7 liters water

4 bars gelatin

500 grams brown sugar

Tools needed:

Blender

Stove

Whisking spoon

Cheesecloth

Kitchen thermometer

Plastic bowl

Sieve

Instructions:

Pick fresh and premium quality soybeans. You can see that the soybeans are fresh if they don’t have spots and free from any stains. Rinse them, and then soak the soybeans overnight. After soaking, rinse the soybeans and clean them thoroughly. You will notice that the soybeans have expanded to at least three times its original size. Drain the beans then remove the hulls.  Blend the beans and make a puree. In the same way, place the puree for the bean curd into a bowl and stir with water gradually, using only a liter of water. With the cheesecloth, sieve the soy puree to get soya milk.

Preparing the gelatin

Put the gelatin bars in a liter of boiling water and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the water reaches 80 degrees Celsius. In this level of temperature, allow the soymilk to simmer for another 7 minutes or until the bean grains disappear.

Put and combine the absorbed gelatin into the simmering soya milk. Discard the foams on top of the milk. Remove from the stove then allow enough time for cool down. With the cheesecloth, sieve the soymilk and eliminate the remains of the gelatin bars. Then pour into a baking pan or a prepared mold.  Reserve this for cool down and let it solidify for about an hour. While waiting, you can prepare the syrup and sago.

To prepare the syrup, heat a liter of water and melt 500 grams of brown sugar. When the soya milk hardens, get several scoops, add sago, pour the syrup then serve while hot.

Kapeng Barako

Kapeng Barako is a variety of coffee grown in the Philippines specifically in Cavite and Batangas. It is really a variety of Coffea liberica. Barako is a Filipino word for a male animal and is strongly associated with the image of a tough man.

According to annals of history, the First Barako tree was originated in Brazil in early 1800s and grown in Barangay Punagtung in Batangas by an Illustrado Family – the Macasaet. Kapeng Barako has aromatic and strong flavor. All coffee native in Batangas is now known as Barako.

In the 1880s, the Philippine coffee industry was heavily experienced setbacks due to a condition called as coffee rust added with a stiff competition from more experienced coffee cultivators in the Americas. This has lead to growers of coffee to make the shift to other more lucrative crops.

Kapeng Barako is prepared using a drip brewing device or simply by adding hot water unto the grounded coffee beans and sieving the mixture. Barako is best served with honey or brown sugar. This is also best in making espresso and other coffee drinks.

Kape Barako is prepared using a drip brewing device, French press, or by simply pouring hot water unto the grounds and filtering the mixture using a piece of cloth. Barako is best sweetened with honey or brown sugar. Barako can be used to make espresso and other espresso-based drinks.

Lechon Kawali

Lechon Kawali is my grandma’s favorite dish during fiestas. Whenever she had the time and the energy to cook for everyone, lechon kawali is definitely part of the menu. I miss my grandma.

Ingredients:

Suckling

2 lbs pork belly or liempo, cut into bite size pieces

6 cloves garlic, crushed

½ tsp pepper

Water

Cooking oil

Sauce

2 tbsp soy sauce

5 tbsp vinegar

2 cloves garlic, chopped

Procedure:

Place pork pieces in a large pot. Add water to boil. Put garlic, pepper and salt to taste. Bring this to a boil over low heat for about an hour or until the meat is tender. Drain. Fry pork pieces in several batches until golden brown and the skin has blisters. Drain using paper towels. Combine all the ingredients to prepare the sauce. Serve with rice or lots and lots of beer. 

Arroz Caldo

Arroz Caldo is really a Spanish phrase for warm rice. This is a kind of rice porridge or lugaw similar to risotto even though this meal has its Chinese roots. The addition of chicken (cut into strips) makes Arroz Caldo special from other rice porridge. Saffron, toasted garlic and scallions are included to improve the aroma and flavor of this well-loved dish during rainy season.

This congee is also served during breakfast. This can also be enjoyed as street food from carts along major streets in Manila especially in China Town. Many small carinderia (restaurants) also offer this in their regular menu.

Ingredients:

1 kilo chicken, cut into small pieces

2 kilos uncooked rice

Water to boil rice

3 tablespoon fish sauce

2 tsp garlic

1 tsp black pepper, grounded

2 cups onion, chopped

6 pieces hard boiled eggs

2 cups green onions, julienned

2 large ginger, sliced thin

3 tbsp wild saffron flower

2 pieces chicken cube

3 pieces calamansi

2 tbsp cooking oil

Procedure:

In a large pot, heat oil then stir fry garlic, onion and ginger. Add some ground black pepper. Put chicken cubes and simmer until the boullion melts. Add the chicken and simmer until golden brown. Put some patis (fish sauce) and uncooked rice. Add water put to boil for several minutes. Stir once in a while and boil for about 35 minutes or until the rice is soft. Add hard boiled eggs, wild saffron to enhance color and aroma. Serve with garlic, spring onions and calamansi. Enjoy while hot!

Is Vegan Eating Right for Me?

When I watched a video on youtube.com about how animals are being slaughtered for human consumption, I rushed into a guilt trip since I love eating meat dishes. And really I am confused. Animal welfare and rights activists such as PETA claim that it is not right to kill animals just to be consumed by humans.

(Art courtesy of Jef Figearo) http://jfigearo.wordpress.com/2011/06/16/vegan-vegetarian-myths/

When I learned the shocking facts about meat dishes, it has become so hard to eat since almost everywhere I go, I find items made from animals and food with meat ingredients. Even choosing a vegetable dish seems harmless but who knows?

To be conscious eater, you should narrow your choices, but to be a healthy heater, you need varied choices. Isn’t this confusing? Do I need to start eating only vegetables? Argh!

In Love with Igado

Igado is really the Spanish word for liver, there is no wonder why this is the name of the creamy meat dish we love during fiestas and anyday events.

This recipe is from my mother. She taught me this recipe several years ago since this is one of my dad’s favorite dish. Maybe she is thinking that I will also cook this for my future hubby. Well I like challenges so I was able to cook her special igado that is well loved in our household.

Ingredients

1 kilo pork sliced and marinated (marinated with soy sauce, ground pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.

1 kilo pig’s liver sliced in bite size

1 pc pig’s heart sliced

1 large can cooked peas, sieved

2 pcs bell pepper sliced thin

5 pcs bay leaf

1 /2 cup dark soy sauce

1 pc medium sized onion, julienned

5 clove garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon ground pepper

How to Cook Igado:

Stir fry onion until clear and then add garlic stir until aromatic. Add the pork and pig’s heart until golden brown. Add the chicken peas, bay leaf, pepper and soy sauce. Simmer for about 15 minutes and stir from time to time until the meat ingredients are tender. Put the remaining peas, bell pepper and liver and boil until the bell pepper is cooked. If you want a darker Igado, add some dark soy sauce. Serve with rice. 

Atsarang Papaya

Atsarang Papaya or Papaya Pickles are normally serves in small servings after a meal. This helps to get rid of the aftertaste of meat and fish dishes.

1 kilo shredded papaya, fresh

½ kilo dried raisins

2 large carrots, sliced in flower shape or whatever you desire

2 large bell peppers chopped into thin strips

1 large ginger chopped into thin strips

1 garlic, skinned and chopped into thin strips

1 liter red cane vinegar

1 cup brown sugar

Instructions:

Combine the red cane vinegar and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl then cook in a medium heat. Continue mixing until sugar has melted. When this starts to simmer, remove from heat and set aside to cool down.

Squash out as many liquid as you can from the papaya then mix the papaya with garlic strips. Extract the juice once again from this mixture. Add some raisins, carrots, and garlic then blend to distribute the ingredients well.

Add the vinegar and the brown sugar concoction. Set aside for overnight. The shredded papaya will naturally be pickled and will be rehydrated with the mixture.

Keep in bottle the next day including the vinegar mixture and serve according to your preference.  

Kutsinta

Kutsinta is a popular Filipino snack, which uses lye water as a main ingredient. This kakanin is a gummy yet chewy (thanks to lye water). This is best served if smothered with freshly shredded coconut meat.

This tasty snack is very easy to make. If you like a delicious kakanin for merienda, this would be a very good recipe you should try.

Ingredients:

3 cups rice flour

1 cup multi-purpose flour

2 cup brown sugar

6 cups water

3 cups lye water

Instructions:

1. In a large mixing dish, mix all the dry ingredients beginning with the rice flour, multi-purpose flour and sugar then whisk all the ingredients.

2. While whisking, add water slowly and continue to blend until all ingredients are evenly mixed.

3. Put lye water slowly then continue mixing.

4. Put the concoction into separate mold and steam for about an hour

5. Serve with freshly shredded coconut meat on top. Serve with hot coffee or chocolate!

Filipino Homestyle Dishes – A Great Filipino Cook Book

I want to promote “Filipino Homestyle Dishes” since it is a great Filipino cookbook that offers clear instructions on how to prepare well-loved home-style Filipino recipes.

(Photo courtesy of abebooks.com 

 In this cookbook, you can learn how to prepare filling snacks to sumptuous seafood, rice and meath dishes. This amazing collection of Filipino recipes highlights the rich and varied culture of the Filipino dish. Making these classic Filipino delights is very easy and the ingredients can be found in a typical Filipino kitchen or at a local wet market. Easy to follow recipes, vivid photographs and a index of ingredients will make sure amazing results every time you are craving for Filipino homemade dish. 

Cora Cooks Pancit

Reading is a very beneficial habit you need to instill to your kids. If you want to teach your kids the value of reading and at the same time teach them culinary arts at an early stage. This book written for children by Dorina lazo Gilmore and illustrated by Kristi Valliant highlights the rich culture of Filipino cuisine.

Dorina Lazo Gilmore and Kristin Valiant (photo courtesy of shens.com)

This is about the story of a young Filipina girl who helps her mother cook in the kitchen.

For parents, this book will definitely surge in curiosity among your kids about our unique cultural dish. Cora Cooks Pancit is a good read. 

Chicken Adobo

I found this easy chicken adobo recipe. So easy I prepared this with my eyes closed =)

Chicken Adobo

Adapted from The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook

1.5 lbs skin-on chicken legs and thighs

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 cup water

In a large pot or dutch oven, combine all of the ingredients and marinate the chicken for 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Place the pot over high heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Using tongs, remove chicken from pot and place on a dish. Keep the adobo sauce on the stove and increase heat to high. Boil sauce for 5 minutes to reduce and thicken.

Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels, then place skin-side up on a sheet pan. Place the sheet pan under the broiler and broil chicken for 2-3 minutes until skin is brown and crisp.

After chicken has browned, pour adobo sauce over chicken and serve over white rice.

Kalamansi Gulaman Shooters

Serves 10-15

4 teaspoon gulaman powder

1 cup water

2 cups fresh calamansi juice

2 cups sugar

1 cup silver tequila or vodka

Sea salt

In a medium saucepan, mix the gulaman powder and water and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Add a cup of calamansi juice and all the sugar to the pan. Simmer this then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, whisking continuously using a wooden spatula and making sure that sugar is melted.

Turn off the heat, and then pour the contents into a separate dish. Add the rest of the calamansi juice to the dish and continue to whisk. Put the dish over an ice bath and continue whisking briskly until mixture cools down.  

When the juice mixture has cooled down, you can add the tequila. This mixture will start setting up and harden, but keep on whisking briskly to make sure tequila is blended.

Pour the mixture into a cake pan with a plastic sheet.

Let the mixture to harden at room temperature about 10 minutes. You can also put the hardened gulaman into the fridge, but once hardened, it will never melt in room temperature.

Once you are ready to serve, pull the gulaman out of the baking pan by pulling the plastic wrap. Dice the gulaman on your preferred size and serve on a large dish. 

Grilled Adidas

In the western world, chicken feet are discarded and considered as waste parts for chicken dishes. But here in Asia, especially in the Philippines, this is known as Adidas and considered a very delicious street food and appetizer.

Makes about 6 to 8 servings

1 kilo chicken feer (about 10-15 chicken feet)

1 cup soy sauce

½ cup calamansi juice

3 tbsp cooking oil

2 tsp chili paste

6 garlic clove, chopped

1 medium size ginger, chopped

1 ½ tbsp brown sugar

Clean the chicken feet thoroughly. Place the feet in a boiling pot of water and simmer for about 25 minutes. While boiling the chicken feet, prepare the marinade by combining the soy sauce, calamansi juice, oil, chili paste, garlic, ginger and sugar in a medium disk. Stir well to blend the flavors.

After the chicken feet have simmered, drain the chicken feet into a large sieve. Rinse the chicken feet under cold running water.

With a sharp knife, cut off the tips of every claw and throw away. If you have noted some black spots on the chicken feet, eliminate these using the knife.

Put the adidas in a medium bowl and surge the marinade over them. Cover the chicken feet with plastic wrapper to marinade in the fridge for about 3 hours.

Remove the chicken feet from the marinade and put on a greased over medium heat. Grill the adidas for 10 minutes, glazing with the marinade. Make certain to tip over the feet every two minutes. Serve while hot. 

Palatable Palitaw

Palitaw is a very easy to cook Filipino snack. All you need to do is to make some dough disks from rice flour and water. Boil these disks, then smother with sugar, sesame seeds and grated coconut meat. These are very delicious and easy to prepare.

Makes 30 palitaw disks

4 tablespoons sesame seeds

1 cup sugar

1 cup grated coconut

4 cups rice flour

3 cups water

Toast sesame seeds in a dry saucepan over medium heat. Whisk the sesame seeds for about 2 minutes or until they are golden brown.

Quickly remove the seeds from the pan and place in a medium bowl. Let the seeds to cool to room temperature, then add sugar and grated coconut. Blend well.

Combine the rice flour and water in a large dish until you form sticky dough. This dough should not be dry or crumbly.

Take about a tablespoon of dough then form small disks about a quarter inch thick. Put these disks on floured surface to avoid sticking.

Boil water then reduce heat to low, and allow water to simmer. Lightly place some disks into the boiling water. Once these disks float, remove them using spoon, drain the disks on paper towels.

Smother these rice disks with grated coconut, and then set them aside to cool. Serve with coffee or hot chocolate. 

Bangus Sisig

Sisig made from bangus is my favorite variety for this classic street food since it does not have the extra fat found on pork sisig.

Bangus Sisig

Serves 4-8 for appetizer

1 cup white cane vinegar

½ cup soy sauce

8 garlic cloves, mashed and peeled

1 ½ teaspoon black pepper, grounded

2 boneless daing nab angus (can be easily found in the frozen section of most supermarkets)

6 tablespoons canola oil, divided

4 shallots, chopped

2 eggs

Kalamansi

Procedure:

Mix the sukang maasim, soy sauce, garlic and ground pepper in a medium bowl. Include the fish, flesh side down for marinade. Let some of the sauce over the skin side for better absorption. Store this marinade inside the fridge for about 7 hours. Don’t forget to turn the fish over during the last two hours.

Put the milkfish, flesh side down on a grill (pre-heated and well-greased) and grill for 6 to 8 minutes. Glaze the skin side of the bangus with 2 tablespoon canola oil, then turn and cook for another 6 to 8 minutes.

Once the grilled bangus is cool enough break the meat into small pieces including the skin and the belly part. Do not include the head and tail. Put the bangus bits into a large bowl and set aside. 

Add a tablespoon of canola oil into a pre-heated hot plate. Add the garlic, shallots, vegetables and sauté for about a minute or until the shallots are soft and the garlic bits are brown.

Put the bangus bits to the hot plate. Form a medium hole in the middle of the hot plate then add a tablespoon of canola oil. Crack the egg into the hole, then remove the hot plate from the heat.

Squash a kalamansi juice over the sisig and serve immediately with rice or lots and lots of beer.