Bicol Express Recipe

Estimated preparation time: 30 minutes

Estimated cooking time: 30 minutes

Bicol Express Ingredients:

• 1/4 kilo pork, thinly sliced
• 1 cup Baguio beans
• 3 cups long chili or jalapeno peppers
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 head of garlic, minced
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 cup coconut cream
• 2 tablespoons of cooking oil
• Salt to taste

Bicol Express Cooking Instructions:

• In a bowl of water with salt, soak chili peppers for 30 minutes then rinse and strain.
• In a cooking pan, heat cooking oil and brown sliced pork for a few minutes.
• In another pan, sauté minced garlic and onion.
• Add to the sauté the browned pork.
• Then add the coconut milk, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the chili peppers, Baguio beans and cook until dish gets a little dry.
• Add the coconut cream and simmer until the sauce thickens.
• Salt to taste.
  
  

Laing Recipe

Estimated cooking time: 30 minutes.

Laing Ingredients:

• 25 pieces gabi (taro) leaves, dried and shredded
• 1/2 kilo pork, diced
• 1/4 cup shrimp bagoong
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 red onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons ginger, minced
• 5 jalapeno pepper, sliced
• 1 cup coconut cream (katang gata)
• 2 cups coconut milk (gata)
• 1/2 teaspoon monosodium glutamate (MSG)
• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

Laing Cooking Instructions:

• In a casserole, sauté garlic, ginger and onions then add the pork.
• mix in the gabi leaves.
• Pour in the coconut milk (gata) and bring to a boil then simmer for 15 minutes.
• Add jalapeno, bagoong, salt and MSG and simmer for another 5 minutes.
• Add the coconut cream and continue to simmer until oil comes out of the cream.
• Serve hot with plain white rice.
  
  

Pork Menudo Recipe

Menudo Ingredients:

• 1/2 kilo pork (cut into small chunks)
• 1/4 kilo pork liver (cut into small cubes)
• 5 pieces chorizo Bilbao (also cut in small pieces)
• 4 potatoes (peeled, cut in small cubes, fried)
• 1 green and 1 red bell pepper (diced)
• 1 cup chickpeas
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 cup pork or chicken stock
• 2 teaspoons of patis (fish sauce)

• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon atsuete oil (optional)
• 3 tomatoes (diced)
• 1 small head of garlic (minced)
• 1 medium size onion (diced)

Menudo Cooking Instructions:

• In a pan or wok, heat cooking oil and atsuete oil.
• Saute garlic, onion. Then add the pork, liver, chorizo de Bilabo, tomatoes, bell pepper, paprika, patis and the stock.
• Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes or until the pork is tender.
• Add the chickpeas, potatoes and raisins. Boil of another 2 minutes.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve hot with white rice.

Fresh Lumpia Recipe

Fresh Lumpia Ingredients:

Filling:

• 1/4 kilo pork liempo, boiled and sliced
• 1/2 kilo shrimp, shelled
• 2 squares tokwa (tofu), cubed
• 1/2 cabbage, medium-sized, shredded
• 1 cup string beans, sliced diagonally
• carrot, cut into thin strips
• kinchay, cut lengthwise, half inch
• kamote, medium-sized, cut into thin strips
• lettuce leaves
• 3 tbsp. cooking oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 garlic, crushed
• peanuts, finely chopped (for garnishing)

Lumpia wrappers:

• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• dash of salt
• oil to grease frying pan

For sauce:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• water
• cornstarch
• soy sauce

Seasoning:

• soy sauce to taste

Fresh Lumpia Cooking Instructions:

• Saute garlic and onions. Add pork and shrimp.
• When pork and shrimp are slightly cooked, add tofu.
• Add carrots, string beans, kamote, then kinchay and cabbage. Do not overcook.
• Season to taste. Cool before wrapping.
• To make lumpia wrappers: 
  Mix egg, water, cornstarch and salt thoroughly until smooth. Take about lA of batter to make each crepe (piece of wrapper). Brush some oil on a non-stick pan. Spread the batter thinly by turning the pan around. Cook only one side of the crepe over low heat. (Don’t keep the crepe too long on the pan as it will be toasted. When it turns slightly brown or small bubbles appear on the surface, it’s cooked.) Lift crepe off using a wide spatula, and place on wax paper. Stack cooked crepes with wax paper between them.
• To make sauce: 
  Dissolve cornstarch in water and soy sauce. Put brown sugar in a saucepan. Caramelize by stirring the sugar continually until totally melted. (Don’t scorch the sugar.) Add some water and simmer until the caramel is dissolved. Add cornstarch dissolved in water and soy sauce. Stir until mixture becomes smooth and transparent.
• To make lumpia: 
  Put 2-3 tablespoons of filling in lumpia wrapper. Roll wrapper and seal. Serve with sauce and finely chopped peanuts.

Maruya I (Banana Fritters)

Maruya ("Banana Fritters") is one of my favourite merienda when I was in the Philippines. They sometimes place it in a bamboo stick and sometimes they shape it like a hand fans. I miss that moment especially after siesta that when we woke up, my mom cooks us merienda delicacies like this maruya during hot summer day.
Ingredients :

• 1/2 cup flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 3 ripe saba (banana plantain), peeled and sliced lengthwise
• 2 cups vegetable oil
• flour, for dredging · sugar

Cooking Procedures :

1. In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Add milk and egg, beat until smooth.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan (or a large saucepan) over medium heat.
3. In batches, roll banana slices in flour and then dip in batter. Fry in hot oil until golden brown.
4. Drain on paper towels. Roll in sugar. Place in a serving dish and serve.

Filipino Banana Rolls (Turon) Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

4 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons sesame seeds
4 large ripe plantain bananas, sliced lengthwise thick
8 lumpia wrappers
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 1/2 cups oil
1/2 cup powdered sugar

PREPARATION:

Sprinkle sugar and sesame seeds on a banana slice. Place a second banana slice on top of the sugar and sesame seed mixture. Repeat with remaining slices. 

To assemble, place a filled banana on the lower third of the wrapper. Fold the portion of the wrapper nearest you over the filling until just covered. Turn the wrapper again to enclose the banana securely. Moisten the left and right hand edges of the wrapper with egg. Fold over the corners and press down firmly to seal, making an envelope. Moisten the flap of the envelope with egg and turn, rolling firmly into a cylinder. Seal firmly. Set aside, seam side down. Repeat with remaining slices. 

Heat oil in a wok to 375 degrees. Place 4 or 5 turon at a time in the hot oil. Fry until crisp and golden. Remove with a skimmer and drain on paper towels. Serve hot, sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Watermelon Pie Recipe

Use low-fat ingredients combined withwatermelon to create a delicious no-bake pie that goes together quickly. Plan ahead to chill at least 2 hours before serving.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• Crust:
• 1-1/2 cups low-fat graham cracker crumbs
• 1/4 cup light margarine, melted
• 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
• .
• Filling:
• 12 ounces Cool Whip Free, thawed
• 3 ounces watermelon gelatin powder
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 cups watermelon balls

Preparation:

To prepare crust, combine graham cracker crumbs, margarine, and sugar in a mixing bowl. Press mixture firmly in a 9-inch pie pan. Chill one hour, or until firm. Or, bake in a 375-degree F oven for ten minutes or until edges are brown. Cool on rack before filling.

To prepare filling, combine whipped topping, watermelon gelatin powder, and water. Fold in watermelon balls. Spoon into prebaked crust. Chill pie for two hours.