Stewed Mung Beans with Coconut Milk [Ginataang Monggo]

this recipe is a long overdue request of my friend Joey.  i hope he enjoys cooking it and enjoys eating it more. =D

Ingredients:

1-2 Tbsp. cooking oil

4-5 cloves [or more] garlic, minced

1 medium [or large] onion, roughly sliced

2-3 [or more] ripe tomatoes, seeded and quartered [optional]

1/4 kilo [or more] pork belly or pork ribs, cut in bite-sized pieces, rubbed with salt and pepper at least 30 minutes before cooking time

1/4 kilo raw mung beans, precooked [how to at the below]

coconut milk squeezed from 2 coconuts or 1 pack/can of coconut milk

chili leaves [as much as you want]

squash [as much as you want] cut in bite-sized pieces [optional]

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

Heat cooking oil in pot or saute pan.  saute garlic, onion, and tomatoes, when wilted, stir in pork belly. When pork is cooked, stir in precooked mung beans, upon simmering put in squash cubes.  when squash is almost cooked, pour in coconut milk, add salt and pepper to taste, simmer for 5 minutes.  switch off fire and drop in chili leaves. cover for 5 minutes and your dish is ready to serve.

How to precook mung beans:

wash mung beans, soak in water and remove any floating dirt or beans.  top up mung beans with tap water.  bring to a boil.  mung beans are cooked when the beans have split or are soft to the bite.

short cut version:

cook pork belly/ribs with mung beans in water.  drop in garlic, onions, and tomatoes, upon simmering drop in squash, when squash is almost cooked, pour in coconut milk, add salt and pepper to taste, simmer for 5 minutes.  switch off fire and drop in chili leaves. cover for 5 minutes and your dish is ready to serve.

my take:

i love eating this dish steaming hot with left-over rice and with vinegar as a "side sauce".  try it.  maybe you will like it.

adobo de campesino from Yummy magazine september 2010 issue

 

this dish was a revelation.  but not in a way i expected.  i realized that i was already cooking this dish for the longest time and only now did i find out that it had a special name.

my mom used to stir-fry sitaw for us.  with or with-out meat we loved it because it had all the rich flavors of the spices it was cooked with.  actually the taste of soy sauce blending with the spice-infused-oil, was already ulam to us kids.  dribble a bit of this 'liquid gold' on steamy, hot rice and we were sure to ask for seconds and even third helpings.

to make my version more substantial i added big pieces of meat which were marinated adobo-style.  and voila, i unwittingly cooked adobo de campesino.

According to Yummy Magazine: 

Ingredients:

• 8 cloves garlic
• 3 tablespoons annatto oil
• 700 grams pork belly (liempo) or leg (pigue), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 3 tablespoons vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce (patis)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup yard-long beans (sitaw), sliced into 1-inch lengths

How to Cook:

• Saute garlic in annatto oil. Add pork and stir-fry until brown.
• Add vinegar and simmer; don't stir until vinegar boils and releases its acidic odor. Add pepper, fish sauce, and salt and continue simmering over low heat until pork is tender.
• Before serving, ladle out the pork into a serving dish. Toss beans in the pan and cook until tender. Add beans to the pork and serve together on a platter.

My version:

Ingredients:

• garlic, chopped
• shallots, sliced
• tomatoes, seeded and quartered
• canola oil
• pork belly (liempo) cut into 1/2-inch cubes [rubbed down with smashed garlic, salt, pepper, spanish paprika, soy-sauce, and vinegar the night before]
• soy sauce
• sitaw, cut into 1-inch lengths

How to Cook:

• Saute garlic and onion in oil. Add pork and stir-fry until brown. add tomatoes
• Add soy-sauce and simmer;add sitaw and cook until tender.
• serve with steaming-hot rice.

i know, my ingredients are somewhat different but i swear, they taste the same.  i know, because i tried the yummy magazine version, the one you see in the picture.

i prefer my version though because i love onions and tomatoes.

chicken curry

i know.  it's like the most basic dish ever.  but i don't want this to be a one-time-hit so i'm writing every little thing i did.  so can repeat the perfection again, and again, and again.

at least 4 hours before:

• rub chicken pieces with salt, pepper, spanish paprika, fennel powder, curry powder, and cumin.  sprinkle dried sage,  rosemary, oregano, and whatever herb whose bottle says it is good for poultry.
• rough chop some onions, garlic and ginger and slip in the pieces in between the skin and the flesh of the chicken
• keep in the ref till cooking time so the chicken can absorb all the flavor.

2 hours before mealtime:

• heat a bit of oil in a deep, wide pan and slide in your seasoned chicken.  keep the fire on low, switching the chicken on its sides to evenly brown and cook.  let simmer for an hour tops.

an hour before mealtime:

• remove chicken pieces, add about a cup of water so the drippings get unstuck and all the flavor goes to the sauce, add a carton of coco cream [i used Karo], salt and pepper, and slivers of red bell peppers.
• drop in equally sized potato and carrot slices,  scrape off the bottom as you bring the sauce to a simmer [now all that flavor will get into the potatoes and carrots as well.]
• taste-test and add more water if it is too rich, and more salt and pepper if needed.
• add back the chicken pieces when the potatoes and carrots are half-way done. keep to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes to allow the chicken to soak the flavor back in.

serve hot, with plenty of rice, and with a tangy or tart side dish to help cut the richness of the dish.

Laing by a Bicolana in Amersfoort

This is Laing.  and it suddenly just got achievable to me.

These are what it is made of:

This is the main ingredient, which gives it it's distinct, unique flavor...

Dried Gabi Leaves which are not that easy to come by

... when combined with these.

\

Coconut Milk, Coconut Cream, and Salted Shrimps

This is what makes it sinful.

Pork slices with just the right amount of fat. =P

This is what makes it hot, and i mean REALLY HOT!

Chilies, with all the seeds in them!*pursing my imagination induced inflamed lips*

Read the full story/recipe [a.k.a. labor of love] here.  keep a hanky in your hand, to wipe your chin, because i guarantee you will drool.  The author/cook is an online buddy who i'm still trying to convince to start a food/recipe blog.

Laing By Malou Prestado

and you can thank me... right about now. =D  You are all WELCOME!