filipino dish

Here is my menu for today –

Pinakbet or Pakbet is one Filipino recipe that is much enjoyed by people who are into vegetables. This famous local dish is one of the nutritious because of the variety vegetable ingredients such as bitter melon, eggplant, squash or pumpkin, okra, string beans and I would say one my favorite ingredients - tomatoes. These vegetables are great sources of vitamin A and C.

Better try this recipe, if you have Filipino blood – you’ll sure love this one

Here is the complete list of what you’ll need:
· 1/4 kilo pork with fat, cut into small pieces
· 2 bitter melons sliced to bite size pieces
· 2 eggplants, sliced to bite size pieces
· 5 pieces of okra, cut in two
· 1 head garlic, minced
· 2 onions, diced
· 5 tomatoes, sliced
· 1 tablespoon of ginger, crushed and sliced
· 4 tablespoons bagoong isda or bagoong alamang
· 3 tablespoons of oil
· 1 1/2 cup water
· Salt and pepper to taste

Here is how to prepare
· In a cooking pan, heat oil and fry the pork until brown, remove the pork from the pan and set aside.
· On the same pan, sauté garlic, onion, ginger and tomatoes.
· In a casserole, boil water and add bagoong.
· Add the pork in the casserole and mix in the sautéed garlic, onion, ginger and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
· Add in all the vegetables and cook until the vegetables are done, careful not to overcook.
· Salt and pepper to taste.
· Serve hot with plain rice.

Happy cooking =)

why eat some Green leafy vegetables?

We are always reminded and advised by our parents to eat green leafy vegetables. I remember my mothers – who often prepare meals with leafy green vegetables; and she was strict, when she notice our plates without this green leafy thing, she will scold us (verbally of course) and will then lecture us the benefits we will get if we eat these vegetables. I can’t vividly recall the exact statement but I can remember the gist, these vegetables are full of vitamins, help us to grow faster and help us to have a healthier body. Imagine eating dark green leafy vegetables almost everyday!... I didn’t really grow :) as what my mother told me, yet there are health benefits in taking green leafy vegetables.

Green leafy vegetables according to my research are great sources of minerals and vitamins (my mom was right). Green leafy vegetables are also great source of fiber. Leafy green vegetables are used best for salad, stir-fry, and steam and best for our soups too.

I see to it that I take green leafy vegetables in my meal, though not often as my mother used to. Many thanks to our mother who taught us the importance of eating green leafy vegetables, who is still reminding us to eat nutritious green vegetables and every time we are home still serving us nutritious green leafy vegetables.

All about Onions and Garlic

Onions and garlic are used for culinary purposes. Here’s how to choose fresh garlic and onions

Garlic
Fresh garlic is available all year round. Choose a garlic that is plump, big and firm bulbs and with intact white covering. Avoid buying soft, with green sprouts and spongy. A single bulb of garlic is made up of many individual cloves that are consumable for 5 to 10 days. Fresh and undamaged garlic could stay long for between 3 to 4 months.

In our menu, avoid overcooking garlic for it will result to bitterness. This is mostly happening when our oil is too hot. Garlic is mostly use in sautéing, we can use oil or butter in this process. Either way, will give us savory flavored garlic.

Here is how to sauté garlic

Heat the oil/butter and then add our garlic (remember that butter heats faster than the oil).
To prevent from burning, constantly stir the garlic.

Onions

Look for firm, dry with no green sprouts or any spotting. Avoid buying onions with smell, because the inner part could be spoiled.

Here is how to properly cut Onions

Choose big onions for easier cutting, and use sharp knife. If only a small potion of union is needed, just peel the portion that is enough for your usage. Pack in zip lock the rest and refrigerate. Storing in an open plastic could make the rest of the food in the refrigerator taste like onion.

Most of the time in sautéing, onions are added first followed by garlic.

Tips on how to choose and proper storage of Fresh Carrots

When I see carrots, the first thing I remember is bugs bunny :) … well actually carrots are very healthy, the orange bright colors shows that they are the richest source of beta-carotene. I can still recall how our mother used her force for us to eat carrots, mother loves eating fresh carrots – (anyway we later learned to eat carrots – I am now carrot cake fan!) Study shows that carrots actually reduce the risk of cancer aside from the fact that it is vital for us to have clear and bright eyes. Cooked and raw carrots are good source of vitamin A and potassium.

Choose fresh Carrots
There are things to consider in choosing fresh carrots. Choose carrots with smooth and firm skins and round shapes. Choose carrots with bright orange colors and green tops attached because they are the most fresh. It is best to buy medium sized carrots and avoid buying carrots with withered ends.

Storing Carrots
Remove the green tops before storing the carrots. Wash carrots before storing, put the carrots inside the vegetable container and put inside the refrigerator. Avoid putting carrots inside the plastic bog because they will sweat and easily be rotten. Stored carrots are consumable in one to two weeks time.

There we go… let us enjoy eating cooked or uncooked carrots!!!

Tips on how to choose Fresh Potatoes

Fresh Potatoes

Potatoes! Easy to prepare and so nutritious! Potatoes are high in potassium, good source of fiber and vitamin C. below are tips in buying, storing and preparing potatoes.

Buying - When buying potatoes, choose those that are free from cracks and bruises. Avoid buying wrinkled, wilted skin, those with spots and green in appearance. Choose solid, well shaped, smooth and those with same sizes especially if needed for our recipe.

Storing - Potatoes are to keep in cool places and dark with good ventilation, consumable in few days. It is not recommended to refrigerate uncooked potatoes.

Preparing – there are various ways to prepare potatoes. Mashed potatoes - peel and cut potatoes equally. Bring to boil until tender, add warm milk and butter for a fluffier mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes using potatoes masher.

Another way of preparing is through Baking (my favorite). Here’s how: scrub rubs the potatoes with fork or we can use knife. Rub potatoes with olive oil and salt. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown. Slice the potatoes and pat with butter or margarine, we can sprinkle some cheese if preferred.

Fried potatoes – French fries! Cut potatoes in strip. Soak for maximum of 30 minutes in cold water. Thoroughly dry them before deep frying. Drain, keep aside. Add salt then toss. Serve with hot chili sauce. Note: if we want crispier fries, we need to fry them twice. Fry for the second time, before serving.

Preparing potatoes is not that hard especially if to be dined with our family… remember to prepare with smile!!

Tips in Buying Fresh Spinach

Fresh Spinach

In buying vegetables, we don’t just buy because of the price or discounts groceries are offering, the first thing we consider is the freshness. The looks of vegetables are important, that we go for bright colors and not withered. We can often buy fresh vegetables in good quality during their seasons. Yet there are vegetables available all year round such as Spinach. Spinach is full of vitamins that we mostly used it for salads and sandwiches. Below are some tips in choosing fresh spinach, the best way to clean and store them.

When buying spinach, we choose leaves that are dark green, slightly crispy and short stems. Avoid buying yellowish leaves, mottled and damaged.

Spinach is often sandy or muddy so washing it several times is a must, and should be done right after buying it. To clean the spinach, pinch the leaves, put in a bowl full of water and change the water until clear from sand or mud. We can also clean them in running water. To dry the leaves pat with paper towel, then it is ready to use. If we wish to store them, put in a sealed plastic bag and store in the refrigerator. Spinach is consumable within 2 to 4 days.

Choosing fresh spinach is not that hard, we truly love this nutritious leaves in our salad and sandwiches!