Homemade Sardines (Bangus)

Ing.
1 kg bangus(milkfish), fresh and small
(about 6 to 8 pieces)
½ c tomato sauce
½ c cooking oil*
2 c water
1 tbsp salt, iodized
2 pcs laurel leaves
1 tbsp pepper corn, black
2 pcs chilli pepper
* if intended to be stored in the chiller, substitute with corn oil or olive oil to prevent from solidifying

Instruction
1. Clean bangus. Cut into serving pieces.
2. Arrange bangus pieces in the bottom of the pressure cooker.
3. Add all other ingredients.
4. Cook for 45 minutes.

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Easy Peanut Sauce

Truly authentic peanut sauce is made from fresh peanuts, but you can still get that authentic taste without all that hard work and time. Here’s a simple recipe that can be ready within minutes.

Ingredients

•    1 cup crunchy peanut butter
•    3 tbsp brown sugar
•    2 cloves crushed garlic
•    1/2  cup water
•    2 tsp vinegar
•    2 tsp sesame oil
•    1/4 tbsp soy sauce

This recipe makes about 1 ½ cups of peanut sauce. 

Preparation

Simply add all the ingredients into a bowl. Use a bowl with an airtight lid if you are going to be storing your sauce.

At first, it may look like the ingredients won’t mix together thorough, but with a little elbow grease, it will come out smooth and creamy.

Serve with satay, Vietnamese salad rolls and more. Store any unused portions in the fridge. Just stir well when you’re ready to serve it again.

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Vietnamese Shrimp Salad Rolls

Salad rolls look fancy, but they’re really not that complicated. They use simple and mostly inexpensive ingredients and are served cold, so you can take them with you to enjoy on the road. The trick is in the rolling of the rice papers, but with some practice, it gets a whole lot easier. We’re still working on our technique, but no matter how the folding goes, the results are always delicious.

Ingredients

•    8 oz package of rice vermicelli noodles
•    ½ pound of cooked shrimp
•    1 julienned carrot
•    Iceberg lettuce
•    8 rice papers

This recipe makes 8 salad rolls.

Preparation

Cook the vermicelli according to the package directions. Then rinse with cold water and strain.

Peel and remove the tails from the shrimp. Then cut them in half lengthwise, so you have a flat bottom to each piece.

Get your julienned carrots and lettuce pieces ready.

Now fill a large skillet or dish with a few inches of water. The skillet or dish needs to be large enough to put the rice paper in as the water will soften the paper, so you can make your roll. Dip the rice paper into the water for a few seconds to soften. Don’t wait too long or the paper will be too soft and will break. After a few tries, you’ll know exactly how long you should dip the papers.

Put the wet paper onto a rolling surface (a cutting board works well) and top with vermicelli, lettuce, shrimp and carrots.

Take the sides of each wrapper and fold them inward.

Then take the bottom and fold it upward.

Then roll the wrapper closed. Serve with peanut sauce and enjoy.

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Beef with Oyster Sauce

Ingredients

1 ½      cups     beef sirloin, pounded with the back of a knife and cut into strips
1  soy sauce
1          cup       chicharo (snow peas)
2          tbsp      cooking oil
1          tbsp      garlic, crushed
1 ½      tsp        ginger, minced
1          pc        onion, sliced thinly
2          tbsp      oyster sauce
1          tsp        gin
2          tbsp      water

Procedure

1.     Marinate beef in soy sauce for about 30 minutes.
2.     Stir-fry chicharo in 1 tbsp cooking oil until golden brown.
3.     In the same pan, sauté garlic in the remaining cooking oil until golden brown.
4.     Add the ginger. Stir-fry.
5.     Add the onion and cook until transparent.
6.     Add the beef and cook until slightly brown. Add oyster sauce and gin. If the mixture seems to be sticking to the bottom of the pan, add 2 tbsp water.
7.     Add the reserved chicharo. Stir and serve hot.

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Fried Rice

Ingredients
4-5             Cups    cooked rice
¼         kl         ground pork
1          med      sized egg
1                      large onion
4          cloves garlic, minced
1          tsp        vetsin
salt to taste
3          tbsp      atchuete oil
1                      red bell pepper, chopped
2          tbsp      chopped spring onions

Procedure
Beat egg, add a little salt. Heat a lite oil in frying pan, spread beaten egg thinly and fry. Slice into thin strips. Set aside.
Sauté garlic till brown in atchuete oil. Add onion, when wilted add pork. Stir in 3 minutes. Season with salt and vetsin. Cook for 10 minutes.
Stir in rice and egg strips. Mix well. Fry for 10 minutes. Serve hot, garnished with chopped spring onions.

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Basic Tempura Dipping Sauce

One of the best parts of tempura is the dipping sauce and it’s a good thing that it’s very easy to make.

Ingredients

•    1 cup water
•    ¼ cup mirin
•    ¼ cup soy sauce

This recipe makes about about 1 ½ cups dipping sauce and can be stored for later use.

Preparation

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and serve with prepared tempura vegetables or seafood.

Sweet Potato Tempura

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Bamboo Shoots with Coconut Cream (Ginataang Labong)

Ingredients

2 cup strips pf bamboo shoots (labong)
1 big coconut, grated
100 grams small fresh shrimps, shelled
100 grams pork belly, cut into small cubes
 2 pcs long green peppers
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tsp vetsin (monosodium glutamate)
salt to taste  

Procedure

1. Soak labong in water for 1 hour. Drain. Squeeze out water. Set aside.
2. Add 1 cup lukewarm water to grated coconut, extract thick cream. Set aside.
3. Add ½ more lukewarm water to coconut; squeeze again. Put this 2^nd extraction immediately in a pan.
4. Add ginger, garlic, onion, pork, shrimps, pepper, and seasoning. Bring to a boil while stirring gently. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Add thick cream, simmer until labong is done and sauce thickens.
6. Mince the green pepper if you want a hot and spicy dish.

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Kangkong Balls

Here’s another inexpensive yet nutritious and delicious recipe. I’m sure your kids are going to love this.

Ingredients:
2 bundle kangkong stems, finely chopped
2 pcs tokwa (tofu), shredded
1 pc onion, finely chopped
1 pc carrot, finely chopped
7 pcs kinchay, finely chopped
2 pcs egg
1 cup flour
½ tsp iodized salt
1 cup cooking oil

Procedure
1. Wash kangkong and drain.
2. Mix all the ingredients except the oil.
3. Take 1 tsp of the mixture and roll into a ball.
4. Fry in oil.
5. Serve with sauce or catsup.

Don’t throw the leaves. Use it in other recipes like Crispy Kangkong or for your sinigang.

Kangkong is also known as river or water spinach, swamp cabbage and water glorybind in English. Filipinos used kangkong as an alternative to spinach.

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Sweet Potato Tempura

This recipe is demonstrated with sweet potato, but you can substitute other vegetables like onion, carrot, beans, mushrooms and more. You can even do seafood like shrimp, carb and fish. Try a variety batch to see what you like best.

Ingredients

    Enough vegetable oil for deep frying
    2 sweet potatoes

Batter:

    1 egg
    1 cup flour
    ½ teaspoon baking soda
    ¾ cup ice water

This recipe makes about 6-8 servings.

Preparation

Fill your pan or deep fryer with vegetable oil. Heat the oil to 375 F.

In the meantime, peel and slice the sweet potato into ½ thick pieces.

Mix the batter ingredients in a large bowl, whisking until well combined. The batter should be fairly runny, but add more flour or water if you need to adjust the consistency.

Dip the potatoes into the batter and let the excess run off.

Carefully place the potatoes in the oil with a fork or tongs. Hold the potatoes above the bottom of the pan for a few seconds to prevent them from sticking. Fry until golden brown on all sides, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove the potatoes from the oil and allow them to drain on a paper towel. Serve with tempura dipping sauce and enjoy.

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Thai Chicken Satay with Curry

Satay is a traditional dish that consists of marinated meat on a skewer that is grilled and then served with sauce. It originated in Indonesia, but is served in a number of different countries. Here’s a delicious Thai version with curry that you can serve with peanut sauce.

This recipe includes lemon grass, which is used often in Thai cooking and gives a lemon scent and flavor to dishes. 

Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken
• 1 tablespoon curry
• 2 cloves crushed garlic
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 stalks lemon grass

This recipe makes about 12 large skewers.

Preparation

Cut the boneless chicken into 1 inch thick strips. Set aside.

In a large bowl with an air-tight lid, add the curry, garlic, vegetable oil, soy sauce, fish sauce and lemon grass. NOTE: To prepare remove the tough outer layers to get to the softer inside. Then cut the bulb off the bottom end. Then you can cut it into thin slices. You can use a food processor or chopper to cut it more finely to ensure the flavor gets into the chicken. 

Place the chicken in the mixture and allow it to marinate for 2 hours or overnight. 

If you are going to use wooden skewers, make sure to soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before grilling. This will keep them from burning.

When you’re ready to start cooking, preheat your grill to medium. While the grill is preheating, carefully thread the chicken onto the skewers.

Place them on the grill, away from direct flame to prevent the marinade from burning.

Cook about 4 minutes on each side or until cooked all the way through. Serve with peanut or another favorite sauce. 

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