Imbao Soup

Imbao is a filipino term for seashells. This type of seashell is a common delicacy in some parts of the Philippines mostly in places where they have a bountiful sea foods catch everyday and sell it straight to the market for a lower price. This shell is very high in Iodine and has a very rich distinctive taste of sweet and salty. Although the flesh may be a bit gooey when chewed, it's not that bad when you pair it with lots of rice. This is a very refreshing soup and it's best paired with grilled dishes.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo Imbao shells
2 pcs ripe tomatoes,  deseed and quartered
1 inch ginger, sliced thinly
lemon grass, knotted
chopped onion leaves
1/2 c malunggay leaves
salt to taste
 4 c water

Procedure:

1. Clean the shells by brushing and washing it in a running water. Set aside.
2. In a pot, Pour the water and put the tomatoes, ginger and the lemon grass. Let it boil.
3. While it's boiling add the imbao shells. Boil for 5 minutes until the shell has opened.
4. Add the malunggay and onion leaves. Season a bit of salt to taste. Cover and let it simmer until the liquid has turned cloudy white. Remove from heat. Serve hot!


Tips: 

• For a more flavorful soup, you may saute the Imbao shells in a butter along with onions, garlic, tomatoes and ginger before adding the water for its soup.

• Chili leaves may also be used as a substitute for malunggay leaves.

Chicken Sotanghon Soup

Sotanghon or also known as Cellophane noodles are transparent noodles. This are made from starch. Sotanghon is geneally used in stir fried dishes or soups like this one. We mixed it with chicken and some vegetables to make it healthier and flavorful. But eventually as you leave it aside for long hours, its liquid are slowly drying out leaving just the sotanghon along with the other ingredients so be sure to consume it while it's still hot.

Ingredients:

200 g sotanghon noodles
200g chicken breast, sliced in small pieces
1 medium carrot, sliced in strips
1/2 c corn kernels
1/2 cabbage, shredded
8 c water
1 onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 bell pepper, sliced in strips
spring onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
cooking oil for sauteing

Procedure:

1. In a medium pot, saute the onion and garlic then add the sliced chicken breast. Cook until light brown.
2. Pour the water, Cover and let it boil until the chicken is cooked.
3. Then add the corn kernels. let it simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add the sotanghon, carrots and the cabbage. Simmer again for 3 minutes. Add more water if necessary.
5. Lastly add the red bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper stir well. Sprinkle with some spring onions. Simmer until cooked.
6. Remove from heat. Serve it while it's hot.

Fried Chicken (Wet Batter)

Who doesn't love fried chicken? the crisp and juiciness in every bite makes you want to have more. But did you know that some other way of preparing the batter is just as easy as dipping it to your favorite sauce? No need for flour dredging, just dip it into the wet batter and your chickens are ready for frying. Sounds easy? Try it.

Ingredients:

1 kilo Chicken (Wings/Drumstick)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup water
Salt & Pepper

Procedure:

1. Mix water, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt & pepper in a mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly.
2. Dip chicken on wet batter until it is completely covered.
3. Tap chicken for excess wet batter.
4. On a deep fryer, fry chicken for 15 minutes until crispy.
5. Serve hot with your favorite sauce and enjoy.

Sweet style Spaghetti

Why is this Spaghetti is such a big hit specially among kids and the kids alike? Probably because of the tempting sweetness of the sauce, the sliced hotdogs and the cheese toppings that most of us can't resist. Every Birthday party should have this. Here's the most favorite style of Spaghetti that we all love! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 kl Spaghetti

1/2 kilo ground beef

1/4 kl hotdogs, sliced diagonally

4 pouch of sweet style tomato sauce (250 g each)

1/2 c evaporated milk

1/4 c white sugar

5 cloves onion, minced

1 medium onion, minced

salt and pepper to taste

grated cheese for toppings

cooking oil for sauteing

Procedure:

1. In a pot of boiling water add some 1 to 2 tbsp of salt then add the pasta. The salt gives the pasta a flavor. Don't put too much water on the pot, just enough to boil the pasta.

2. Stir the pasta during 1 to 2 minutes of cooking to prevent the strands from sticking together. Putting oil doesn't help with this concern, instead it only slides the sauce into it.

3. When it's al dente, remove from heat and put the pasta into the strainer and add some water into it. Set it aside.

4. In a skillet over medium heat, put the oil and saute the onion and the garlic then add the ground beef. Cook until the pinkish color is gone.

5. Pour the tomato sauce and add the sliced hotdogs, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

6. Add the evaporated milk and the sugar, stir well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Give it a taste and adjust the sweetness of the sauce according to your preference by adding more sugar. Simmer for 3 minutes.

7. Remove the sauce from heat. You can either mix all the sauce with the pasta or just top some enough sauce to a plate of pasta and sprinkle with grated cheese. Garnish with a little parsley on top for a final touch and for some Instagram worthy picture! Enjoy!

Calamares

Calamares or deep fried squid rings is one of the top favorite appetizers in the Philippines. Its easy to prepare and cook. The secret to a delicious Calamares is the softness of the squid while its crunchy on the outside.

Ingredients:

1/2 kl squids
1/2 c bread crumbs
1 beaten egg
salt and pepper
cooking oil

Procedure:

1. Clean the squids by removing the skin and the innards. Wash well. Slice it into rings.
2. Season the rings with salt and pepper.
3. Dip the rings into the beaten egg and dredge it into the bread crumbs.
4. Heat the oil in a pan over low heat. Deep fry the squid rings until golden brown. Do not overcook the rings as this will make the squid tough.
5. Remove from heat and drain the excess oil in a paper towel.
6. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Morcon

Morcon is indeed a festive dish in the Philippines. It's traditionally meat rolls stuffed with eggs, cheese, pickles, ham and a lot more. You can choose your stuffed fillings. This dish may take a long time to cook but its worth the wait after you taste all the flavors packed in it.

Ingredients:

1 kl beef sirloin, cut into morcon style

200 grams sliced ham or sausages

1 cup cheese, sliced into strips

2 hardboiled eggs, sliced into quarters

1 medium carrot, sliced into strips

1 pc pickle, sliced into strips

1/2 c soy sauce

2 tbsp Calamansi juice

1 white onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 red and green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 c liver spread

3 tbsp flour

water

cooking oil

salt and pepper

Procedure:

1. Season the beef with soy sauce, Calamansi juice and pepper. Marinate and refrigerate for about an hour.

2. Prepare the stuffed fillings for the morcon. Arrange the ham, cheese, eggs, carrot and pickle into the marinated beef. Roll it and secure it with a string.

3. Dredge the beef roll into the flour.

4. Heat the oil in the pan and cook the beef rolls until brown. remove from heat and set aside.

5. Meanwhile, saute the garlic, onions then add the red and green bell peppers And bay leaf. Return the beef rolls into the pan. Add some water and let it simmer until beef is tender. Stirring occasionally.

6. Lastly add the liver spread and the tomato paste. Stir well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes until cooked.

7. Slice into serving size and serve with the sauce. Enjoy!

Chop Suey ala Jekris

We call it by our own version because of our choice of vegetables and how we cook it. We meant to half cooked the veggies except for the potatoes to retain its vitamins and minerals. The Chop Suey is popularized by Chinese American Immigrants and today it is now being a part of every cuisine around the world with different versions and techniques of cooking it. And now we are sharing our own style of Chop suey. Here it is.

Ingredients:

1 pc pork chop, cut into strips
5 pcs fish balls, cut into half
1/2 c Broccoli, cut into florets
1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch thick
4 small potatoes, peeled and sliced quarterly
5 pcs young corn, sliced lengthwise
1/4 c corn kernels
1 small cabbage, cut into strips
1 small red bell pepper, seeded cut into strips
1/2 c snow peas
1 small onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp chopped celery stalk
1/2 c water for the slurry
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 tbsp butter
water

Procedure:

1. In a pan, cook the pork strips until brown. Add the butter for an aromatic flavor. Then saute the onion and garlic with it.
2. Pour 1 cup of water then add the fish balls and potatoes. Cover and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Add the other vegetables, mix well and add some salt and pepper to taste. Let it simmer until half cooked. Add some water if needed.
4. While waiting for it, make the slurry by adding the oyster sauce, cornstarch and sugar into the half cup of water. Stir it well until the sauce has thickened. Give it a taste. The sauce must be slightly sweet but not too salty. Add more oyster and sugar if needed.
5. Pour it into the pan and give a good stir until the sauce has well distributed into the vegetables.
6. Remove from heat. Serve it while its hot. Enjoy!

Ham

Over the past decades, the Ham is labeled as the star of every feast particularly on Christmas season. Its sweet smoky flavor gives a distinctive taste in every bite. There are wide number of hams worldwide with different specialties. Locally we call it 'hamon' in filipino. We often served it on Christmas eve during 'Noche Buena.' Ham is generally cut from the hind leg of the pig. It is preserved by way of curing, salting, smoking or a combination of wet and dry curing and smoking. The ham we usually consumed is a sweet and cooked ham. (see picture above) Its boneless and round in shape. The fat is removed from this variety, meant to be thinly sliced and used in sandwiches or sometimes used as a main ingredient in cooking. However, there is also uncooked ham available. Its often dry cured and requires more preparation and cooking time. Personally, we still prefer the cooked ham since its more convenient for us and doesn't require a lot of time preparing it.

Shrimp Tempura

I'm a fan of eating Japanese food specially with Tempura. But every piece of it will cost me a lot. Is it really that expensive to make? I bet not. When you prepare it by your own, it's much cheaper compared to those at Japanese restos. Try it today and treat yourself for an exciting crunch of Shrimp Tempura.

Ingredients:

15 pcs medium sized shrimps, shells removed, tails intact
1/2 c flour
1/2 c cornstarch
1 c ice cold water
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 c Japanese bread crumbs
Oil for frying

Procedure:

1. Prepare the shrimps into butterfly cut.
2. Mix the next 6 ingredients into a bowl.
3. Dip every shrimp in the mixture and dredge it to the bread crumbs.
4. Heat the oil in a pan. Cook the shrimps over medium heat until golden brown.
5. Remove from heat. Serve it with your dipping sauce.

Lechon Kawali

Want a heavy pork meal? this dish may be just perfect for you! Lechon kawali or the Pigs Pan. Its a local pork dish that is deep fried in hot oil to achieve the crispiness of the pork skin. This is perfectly served with lots of steamed rice and with your favorite sauce. Hmm.. yummy!

Ingredients:

1/2 kl Pork Belly
2 pcs Calamansi or 1 small Lemon
4 tbsp Soy sauce
1/4 tsp black ground pepper
1 tsp salt
cooking oil for frying

Procedure:

1. In a small bowl, mix the Calamansi, soysauce, black ground pepper and the salt. Set aside.
2. Prick the belly with fork so the marinating sauce will absorb well into the pork.
3. Pour the sauce into the belly. Leave it for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
4. Heat the oil. Deep fry the belly until cooked.
5. Slice the pork belly into serving size.
6. Serve it hot with rice and with your favorite sauce. Enjoy.

Tip:

If you have more time, the pork belly may be boiled first before marinating it and deep frying til crispy and golden brown.