ASADO CON LECHE

The word asado means "cooked in an open grill". In the Philippines though, it is a style of cooking which is very similar to adobo. It has the trinity of garlic, vinegar and soy sauce but has other things added to it, which varies from region to region and sometimes even from person to person. The most common additive is bay leaf and whole peppercorns. Some add tomatoes and some add potatoes. There is also a variant with Chinese spices such as cinnamon bark and five spice. 


Here's another version which was inspired by a Spanish dish of pork stewed in milk I saw on TV. I butterflied the pork joint, rolled it and cooked it in milk and asado seasonings. The resulting dish is tender, creamy, yet with the robust taste of the added herbs and seasonings. It goes equally well with rice or potatoes. Simple buttered vegetables are the perfect complement to this dish.

Ingredients:

1 kg. of pork shoulder or butt
1/4 c. sherry
1/4 c. light soy sauce
2 tsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. salt
3 tbsps. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
3 cloves, crushed
1 onion, chopped
few sprigs each of fresh oregano and thyme, or 1/2 tsp. each of dried
1 c. of evaporated milk
2 tbsps. butter
1/2 c. water


Method:


Butterfly the pork joint. Place it in an oven proof dish and add the rest of the ingredients except for the last three. Leave to marinade for at least half an hour. Pre-heat the oven to 350º F/ 180º C.  


Take the pork out of the marinade, Put some of the onion and seasoning bits on top of the sheet of pork and roll like a jelly roll. Tie with string. Sear the pork in butter until browned on all sides. Add the milk to the marinade and place the pork on top of it. Cover tightly with foil and roast for 1 1/2 hours or until tender (when tested with a fork, it should easily pierce the meat). When it's done, transfer the pork to a dish and let rest before slicing into 1 cm. thick rounds. 


Add the water to the cooking juices, puree and strain. Transfer to a pan and cook the mushrooms in the sauce. When done, serve with the sliced pork.

All rights reserved ©Adora's Box Copyright 2011.

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SWEETCORN AND CASSAVA BIBINGKA

We do not eat light in the Far East. Even snacks are heavy and sometimes full meal sized. Carbohydrate rich noodles and rice cakes are very popular choices. Bibingka is a type of sticky and sweet snack (usually made of rice) that is sold everywhere in the Philippines. It is the Eastern counterpart of cakes and a lot of Asian Countries have their delicious array of these type of cakes . 

PANDAN BRINED ROAST CHICKEN

Brining meat before roasting makes it so succulent and infuses it with the flavourings you've added to the brine. I have chosen pandan to be the dominant flavour in this roast chicken. Pandan or screwpine leaves are widely used in Southeast Asian cooking. It is used in both savoury and sweet dishes to add a very unique fragrance and taste to dishes. It is available in Oriental shops in the Western countries and keeps very well in the freezer. The other spices I've added have intensified the flavour of the pandan without masking it. Whilst roasting, the scent of the pandan took me back to someplace redolent of warm breezes, swaying rice stalks and bright sunshine. I can imagine eating the chicken with rice on banana leaves under a thatched nipa awning.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken
4 pandan leaves, cut into 1" pieces
5 whole cloves
1 onion, sliced
5 cloves of garlic, sliced
2" x 2" knob of ginger, peeled and sliced
rind and juice of 1 lime
1/2 c. salt
1/2 c. sugar


Method:


Boil the pandan and cloves in 2 cups of water for 30 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Transfer to a mixing bowl big enough to hold the chicken and leave to cool. 


Put the chicken in, then top up with enough water to submerge the chicken. Push some of the pandan, onions and other bits inside the chicken cavity. Cover with a small plate to keep the chicken submerged in the liquid. Tightly wrap the mixing bowl in cling film. Refrigerate for up to 24 hours. 


Lift the chicken from the brine, drain the liquid from inside the cavity and set aside to bring it to room temperature. Roast in a preheated oven (350º F/180º C) for 1 hour and 20 minutes, turning at half time. Let rest for a few minutes before chopping into serving pieces. Serve with ginger and chilli dip.


Ginger and Chilli Dip:


1 tbsp. of fine ginger slivers
1 tbsp. of minced garlic
1/2 red finger chilli, sliced diagonally
1/4 c. light soy sauce
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tsps. vinegar
2 tsps. of sesame oil


Mix all the ingredients together until the sugar has dissolved. Serve with the roast chicken.

All rights reserved ©Adora's Box Copyright 2011.

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MIXED NOODLE STIR FRY WITH CRISPY PORK (MIKI BIHON CON LECHON)

One of the perks of roasting a joint of meat is having some leftovers to rehash the day after. I never let any go to waste. Aside from the usual sandwiches and salads, I incorporate them in other dishes.

I like using leftover roast belly of pork in fried rice, stir fried with vegetables or like it better still, stir fried with noodles. 

I used a mixture of egg noodles and rice vermicelli for this dish. An assortment of other ingredients such as vegetables, fish balls and black fungus creates a balance of flavour that is essential in a noodle dish. 

A comforting yet at the same time exciting dish that can be served at any meal (yes, even breakfast).

Ingredients:

100 gms. of dry egg noodles
100 gms. of dry rice vermicelli
1 cup of sliced leftover roast pork meat
1 carrot, sliced in thin diagonal slices
3 cloves garlic, chopped
4 fried fish balls, sliced
1/2 c. of soaked black fungus/cloud ear slices
1/2 cup of spring onions cut into 1" lengths, white and green part separated
2 tbsps. light soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. oyster sauce
1 tsp. sugar
4 chinese leaves, halved lengthwise and sliced into 1" wide slices
1/2 c. good chicken or pork stock
cooking oil
crackling (crispy pork skin) for topping

Method:

Cook the egg noodles until al dente. Rinse with cold water and drain. Soak the rice vermicelli until nearly soft. Both noodles should be under done because they are still going to be fried twice. Mix the noodles together. 


Heat a wok on high heat. Add 1/4 c. of cooking oil. When it is very hot, add the noodles and the light soy sauce. Stir fry for 3 minutes on high heat. Transfer to a dish. 


Heat up a clean wok. When it is very hot, add 2 tbsps of oil, then the carrots and stir fry. When the edges start to change color, add the garlic, roast pork meat, fish ball slices, black fungus, the whites of the spring onions, the oyster sauce and the sugar. Stir fry for 1 minute, then add the noodles, chinese leaf, the green part of the spring onions and the stock. Stir this just until the chinese leaves start to soften. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the pork crackling.

All rights reserved ©Adora's Box Copyright 2011. 

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SALMON AFRITADA

Although the word fritada means fried or fry up in Spanish, the word afritada in the Philippine vernacular usually refers to a dish with a tomato based sauce. The meat or fish is fried before being added to the sauce. I made this dish for the Kulinarya Cooking Club's theme for the month which is Filipino aphrodisiac food. Salmon and all oily fish (as well as shellfish), chilli peppers and saffron all stimulate the appetite for food and sexual desires. I can't vouch for its effectivity but I can certainly assure you that it is a really flavourful, tasty and moreish dish that you would want to cook again and again.

LEMON YOGHURT LOAF

There are days when I feel like having cake, or days when I just want to bake one but not necessarily eat it. On ordinary spur of the moment baking fits, I just make something simple, usually with ingredients that are on hand. I have yoghurt and lemons today, so I though of making a lemon yoghurt loaf.

When I saw Ina Garten's lemon yoghurt cake on tv, I instantly fell in love with it. Although I like her recipe, I changed a few things to make it more to my taste. I've substituted condensed milk for half of the yoghurt to give it that extra sweetness to counterbalance the acidity of the lemons. I also used melted butter substitute (Flora Buttery) instead of oil and adjusted the amount of a few of the ingredients. 

It turned out exactly as I wanted it to be. It has a firm outer crust that is sticky with the lemon syrup and a moist and fluffy center. It has the perfect balance of sweetness and tartness. This very simple cake shall be one of my favourite to make and eat from now on.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. plain Greek yoghurt
1/2 c. condensed milk
4 medium eggs
1/2 c. butter or alternative, melted
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2 cups of flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. lemon juice
1/4 c. sugar

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 350° F/ 180° C. Line the bottom of a big loaf pan with baking paper. 


Whisk the yoghurt, condensed milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest and melted butter together. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, then sift over the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined. Don't over mix. Bake for 35 minutes at the preset temperature then lower the temperature to 300° F/ 150° C and bake for a further 15 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Take out of the oven and run a sharp knife around the edges. Turn out onto a serving dish, right side up. 


Combine the sugar and lemon in a pan. Stir to dissolve the sugar before bringing to a boil. Simmer just until it begins to thicken. Prick the surface of the loaf with a skewer in several places and drizzle with the lemon syrup. It is nice served warm on its own, or cold with ice cream.

You can substitute the lemon with lime or orange to ring the changes. Just remember to change the name accordingly.

All rights reserved ©Adora's Box Copyright 2011.

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SWEET AND SPICY BEEF TAPA

Beef tapa is a classic Filipino dish which simply means fried beef slices. It became more popular when it was included in the trio of perfect sinangag (fried rice) and fried egg partners alongside longganiza (Filipino sausage) and tocino (cured pork). 

TANGERINE AND SZECHUAN PEPPERCORN PORK STEW

There is a recent revival of forgotten meat cuts, those that take more time to cook, such as beef brisket, stewing steak, and hand of pork. A lot have probably set it aside because people have busier lifestyles nowadays. 

Although I like old fashioned recipes, I am still a fan of modern conveniences. My trusty kitchen gadgets are my best friends and they enable me to still cook a lot of good home cooked meals even when I'm pressed for time. I bought a whole hand of pork at the market today and I decided to stew it in the pressure cooker. It took a mere forty minutes to tenderize the meat which would otherwise probably take over two hours in a conventional pot. The best way to have it is really falling-apart tender : the meat falls off the bone on its own accord. By then the skin and tendons has become all wobbly and gelatinous and have developed a very intense flavour. The tender, tasty meat and its syrupy sweet sauce goes so well with steamed rice or steamed plain buns.

 Ingredients:

1 whole hand of pork (cut at the joint) or two pork shanks
1/2 c. light soy sauce
2 tbsps. dark soy sauce
1/4 c. shaosing wine or dry sherry
1/4 c. + 2 tbsps. of brown sugar
2 cloves of garlic, cracked
3 segments of star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 small bay leaf
1 tsp. whole Szechuan peppercorns
rind of 1 tangerine
juice of two tangerines

Method:

Clean the pork very well. Make sure the skin is hair free. Trim off excess fat. Cut deep horizontal gashes on the skin and right through the meat so that the seasonings will penetrate inside the joint. 


Put it in a pressure cooker or deep pot. Add all the rest of the ingredients (except for the 1/4 c. of brown sugar) and leave to marinate for at least 10 minutes. Put the lid on the cooker or pot, bring to a boil and simmer for 40 minutes in the pressure cooker (about two hours in an ordinary pot) or until very, very tender. When done , take the meat out of the sauce. 


Strain the sauce. Caramelize the 1/4 c. of brown sugar in a pan. Add the pork meat to the caramelized sugar, turn occasionally and let it take on a uniform deep brown color. Add the sauce, turn the heat up and let the sauce reduce until syrupy. Check the seasonings. This is now ready to serve with steamed rice or steamed bread buns.

All rights reserved ©Adora's box Copyright 2011

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SWEET POTATO AND RED BEAN MOCHI

Rice is a symbol of wealth and plenty. Anything sweet and sticky brings family unity. Mochi, a popular Chinese new year dessert ticks all the boxes. The  Japanese, Korean , Cambodians, Thai, Chinese and other Orientals always feature this sweet in their traditional ceremonies and celebrations. They may vary in cooking technique and ingredients but basically it is a sweet filling encased in a glutinous rice powder pastry. The pastry of this mochi has cooked sweet potato in the pastry and the filling is made with red beans or aduki beans. Lotus seed paste can also be used. This mochi is cylindrical instead of round and is coated with sesame seeds before frying.

Ingredients for the pastry:

1 cup steamed and mashed sweet potato
1 1/2 c. glutinous rice powder
1 tbsp. oil
1/2 tsp. salt

For homemade red bean paste:

1/2 c. red beans
2 c. water
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 t. vanilla
1 tbsp. butter

Method:

Red bean paste can be bought in tins in Oriental supermarkets. To make home made red bean paste, you have to soak the beans for a few hours. Drain the beans. Mix the beans and with 2 c. of water in a pot, bring to a boil and simmer until the beans are very soft. Stir occasionally to ensure that the beans do not stick to the bottom of the pan. I used a pressure cooker to cook the beans for half an hour. When the beans are soft, add the sugar, butter and vanilla and keep stirring on medium heat until the mixture is very thick. This will take about 20 minutes. Cool the mixture, then refrigerate.


Mix all the ingredients for the pastry and knead until smooth. Divide into 24 equal portions. Flatten one portion gently between your two palms, then coax with your thumb to form a flat rectangle (or circle if you want to make a round mochi). Dip your fingers in water, then seal the edges. Dip in the sesame seeds, then fry until golden. This doesn't take long. When the mochi is golden in colour and starts to puff up, it is cooked. Do not cook further or the pastry will burst and the filling will start to ooze out. Drain on kitchen paper. It is then ready to serve.

All rights reserved ©Adora's Box Copyright 2011 

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STEAMED PRAWNS ON EGG FRIED RICE

The beginning of the Chinese new year falls on the 3rd of February this year. It is the year of the metal rabbit in the Chinese zodiac and is, as usual, welcomed with festive decorations, gift giving, firecrackers, family reunions and, of course, the all important food fest. It is believed that food has symbolism and eating them on events such as this will bring whatever good tidings they represent.