Napakadaling Iluto ng Monggo!

PHILIPPINE VACATION ‘22 ANG NAPAKASARAP NA BIKO NI JANNA!

HOW EASY! HOMEMADE FRUIT SALAD WITH GULAMAN!

MAKING PANDAN GULAMAN FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME!

DELICIOUS BUT SO EASY, MY DUTCH CHICKEN WINGS ADOBO

HOME COOKING MY VERSION DIFFERENT KIND PORK SINIGANG

The Monster Fruit Jackfruit

The photo I am showing is a jackfruit tree with its fruit, the jackfruit. It is also called nangka, in the Philippines, it is langka. If you are living in a western country, this tree and its fruit might be unfamiliar to you. Or perhaps you just see it on the tv or on the internet. But in my country, the Philippines, jackfruit are well-known. It is a part of some authentic Filipino dishes as well as desserts. From what I have read in Wikipedia, jackfruit's scientific name is Artocarpus heterophyllus, a species of tree in the fig, mulberry, and breadfruit family. The jackfruit weights as much as 35 kilos, yes that heavy. From the outside, it looks like a monster fruit but, in the inside, for the Filipinos, it is a heavenly fruit! When it is raw, my mother cooks jackfruit with coconut milk and fish on it and spices. The ripe jackfruit is an excellent dessert too. It is perfect with the halo-halo, ginataang mais, mais con yelo, or in toron, all of which are Filipino sweets and desserts.
A single jackfruit can yield hundreds of the small fruit lobes, looks like a bulb. Each of which carry a highly nutritious seed. The fruit itself is a good source of Vitamin C, while the seeds are rich in protein, potassium, calcium, and iron. So the next time you will see jackfruit, you might have a second thought to think monsters about this fruit. Jackfruit is versatile, delicious, and when it is ripe, it smells so good! By the way, jackfruit is the National fruit in Bangladesh.

Philippine Holiday 2017: At Citystate Tower Hotel

When we are in Manila, we have two staying options, depends on room availability. Our first option is in Lotus Garden Hotel, the second is the City State Tower. Both are located in Mabini, places knows as the tourist belt in Manila. On our recent holiday, we stayed at City State Tower. We stayed there for a total of seven days. The hotel is good. The mini bar in the room is off, empty. They have nice rooms, but their towels, bed sheets, and linens are already very old. So far, I still enjoyed our stay there. The management, staff, and crew are friendly, polite, and accommodating. I as well enjoy their free buffet breakfast for all registered guests, an eat all you can buffet breakfast. Every morning, I am always looking forward their Filipino breakfast. On the ground floor, there is a bar-restaurant owned by a very famous Filipino folk singer, Freddie Aguilar. There are performers every night. I brought home some photos to share with my blog readers. 

our room key card

free buffet breakfast 

the grand stair at the lobby

grand ceiling

our favorite on their menu: mango smoothie

a common Filipino breakfast: pandesal

the jam rack with a heart :)

                                           

my empty plate, that fish is called "tinapa"

this is free for all registered guests

                                     

time to go home again.

                                             

My Food Trip At Bacolod Chicken Inasal

a big serving that I consumed all. Kadyos, baboy, langka.

me :)

my plate

KBL

kadyos

buko pandan

The chain was established in 1993 by the Tanalgo siblings; Rose, Bing and JM. It began as a small take-out stall in Mandaluyong where customers purchased their food then ate them at their convenience. A year later, a full-fledged store was built to allow patrons to sit and dine. Soon, their specialties gained attention among the denizens of Metro Manila and, five years after it was founded, a second outlet was built in Makati. -Wikipedia

Every time we are in the Philippines, I took time to dine at Bacolod Chicken Inasal. I love their menu, all Filipino dishes, snacks and desserts. On the last Sunday of our stay in the Philippines, I eat my lunch at Bacolod Chicken Inasal. My husband who has an upset stomach, stayed in the hotel with our sleeping son. I know that I will order again their delicious best seller buko pandan. As I scan their menu, I feel like I like to taste all! Hahaha! They have La Paz Batchoy, pinangat, and also pancit Molo. On the menu it says, best seller too: KBL or kadyos, baboy, langka. And I ordered it and I finished my lunch with satisfaction. Kadyos is peas, baboy is pork, and langka is unripe jackfruit.

KBL is a delicious sour dish in a steaming broth. They served it to me with steam rice. The plate has banana leaf serves like a linen. Believe me, their dishes are all good because I was in the fifth among the waiting list! If you ever come to the Philippines, you can see Bacolod Chicken Inasal in many places especially in big malls. I am sure you will also love the foods that originates from the City Of Smile, Bacolod.

Philippine Holiday 2017: Grilled Squid Concluded My Puerto Galera Days

Grilled pusit, my choice for our last dinner in Puerto Galera.

Where we stayed.

How time flies, it is only four days left and we are flying back home, back to my Dutch home. Today is our last day in Puerto Galera. Tomorrow morning, we will travel back in Manila and we will wait the day of our flight there.
I enjoyed so much the last day of our stay in White Beach. I have some fond memories and special things that I love to keep or to add in my jar of happy memories. The resort where we are staying is highly recommended, I will write a special blog in behalf of them once we are back home. Also here in White Beach, I have tasted the most delicious pancakes in my life! I will also write a blog about this pancake, with a mouth-watering photos. I spent my morning in the beach with my son. My husband just enjoying his coffee while he was watching us. In the afternoon, we enjoyed swimming at the pool just in our doorstep. I love the sunburn at my back, I am proud of the mark. To conclude our stay in White Beach, I have grilled pusit (squid) for my dinner. We have a nice dinner at the beach with a family, our family friend that also came from the Netherlands.
I have some photos today that I love to share again. Before I end up this blog, I want to share an important family tip. In family life, a holiday or a vacation is I have learned is also an important factor to strengthen the family bond. It does not matter whether it is a grand vacation or a budget vacation. What is important is that you, as a family spend a time to be with each other. 

Ribs Adobo, A Famous Filipino Dish

There was a survey years ago, I think it was in a magazine or on the internet. Vote for Philippine's National Dish. There are three options: adobo, sinigang, or kare-kare. I am not sure if I cast my vote, because believe me, these three Filipino dishes are all delicious.
I always love adobo. Since the ingredients are available in the supermarket here in our place, I cook adobo here in the Netherlands. This recipe is also good whether you like to try it with a chicken or lean pork meat.

Ingredients:
400 grams ribs
10 tbsp soy sauce
12 tbsp vinegar
3 laurel leaves
1 medium size onion
4 garlic cloves, crushed (I love many garlic in my cooking)
1 tsp sugar (optional)
1 tbsp oil
Ground pepper

Procedure:
Put all the ingredients in a pot except the oil.
Stir, cover and let it boil. Once it's boiling, stir again, and adjust the stove to low heat, and let it simmer, turning one side to another side occasionally to make sure that both sides are well cooked, about 45 minutes. You will know that the ribs are already done when the meat is already peeling off from the bones.
Then add the oil, stir again and let it cook for another 3 minutes.
I love adobo with steamed rice, fresh salad, and a cup of coffee. Enjoy!

Cooking Pork Binagoongan (Shrimp Paste); Filipinos' Favorite

My very own pork binagoongan

A month ago, I wrote a blog about cooking canned sardines with snow peas or chicharo. Being half of the world away from my country Philippines, eating some home-grown favorite foods or dishes is really a delight for me. I was laughing when my friend in Kuwait commented: "Maggy, if you are a Filipino live or working overseas, that is delicious and a real treat. But if you are in the Philippines, you are poor if you are eating canned sardines." Hahaha! Slightly true. Whatever, I love sardines.

garlic, onion, and tomato

an already cooked bagoong, I bought at the Filipino store.

boiling the pork with vinegar and dry bay leaves

my imported vinegar from the Philippines, and the Indonesian sambal oelek, my alternative for chili.

This time, I love to share again one of my Filipino cooking. The pork binagoongan or pork with shrimp paste. I do not know if there is a Filipino who does not like bagoong. I think all Filipinos love bagoong. Some may refrain to eat bagoong or to use it in cooking for some health issues, like food allergy. This is a very simple recipe and easy to cook too.

What you need:
1/2 kilo pork (lean, but I like pork belly)
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1 pc chili (instead of chili, I use an Indonesian spices called sambal for a spicy taste of my dish)
1/2 shrimp paste
3 pcs dried bay leaves (laurel)
Ground pepper
cooking or wok oil
Water

Procedure
In a pot, pour in the water and bring to boil.
Once the water is boiling, put in the pork, vinegar, and the dry bay leaves, simmer until the meat is tender. It takes about 30 minutes.
In a separate pan, sauté the garlic, onion, and tomatoes.
Add the shrimp paste and simmer for about minutes. You need more time in cooking the shrimp paste if it is a raw shrimp paste.
Add the pork in and cook for another 7 minute. Mix well. Add the chili and the pepper. No need to add salt because the shrimp paste is salty.
Serve hot with steamed rice and a fresh vegetable salad.

Until here and until my next blog! 

Champorado: A Chocolatey Pinoy Breakfast

my all-time favorite

It is a lazy morning for me today. My husband is still in Poland and will be back home tomorrow. I am still in bed when my Whatsup rings, my husband is awake already and greeting me good morning. He is having breakfast, I told him that our son is still in his room sleeping. We bid goodbye, I tucked warm myself in bed. It is 8 o o'clock when my son went to me in our bed. He is up and about. I get up, we went to the living room. So, my day starts. The first thing is to make a breakfast.

Western people eat bread for breakfast, and also for lunch. In The Philippines, we eat rice, even for breakfast. Pandesal or champorado are also a common Filipino breakfast. Pandesal is good with a cup of coffee, champorado is good with dried fish especially during wet season.

Today, I cooked champorado for me and for my son's breakfast. I am glad that my son loves both, Dutch and Filipino cooking. The first time that I eat champorado here in Holland is the ready champorado mix in the box. Sad to say, it was not good that I just throw it in the garbage. I bought that ready to cook champorado at the Filipino Store in Rotterdam.

Until one Filipina here in Holland told me that I can cook my own champorado. At first, I was not familiar of the things and places here in our city. I am almost four years now in the Netherlands and the learning and discovering new things continue. I know now where to buy malagkit (sticky rice) and the cacao powder, the basic ingredients for champorado.

There are Filipinos living abroad for good or to work who are reading my blog. I want to share my champorado with all of you.

sitcky rice and cocoa powder.

condensed milk

What you need:
1/2 cup malagkit (sticky rice)
500 ml water
2 tbs cacao powder (dissolved in the water)
condensed milk

How to cook: 
Put in the pot the sticky rice together and the 500 ml water. Cover and let it boil. Once boiling, add the cocoa powder, adjust the heat of the stove to medium heat and mix occasionally. You can add the condensed milk while cooking the champorado or when it is done as a sweetener. Serve hot.

for me and for my son :)

In the Philippines, there  are food stalls that sell champorado every morning. They use sugar as a sweetener. The milk they put is the evaporated milk. Sometimes, it does not taste good, sometimes tasteless. Champorado was a part of my growing up years. It feels really good that I can still have the Filipino champorado here in my Dutch household and my son loves it! Now, I am ready to face again the day! 

Cooking Canned Sardines With Chicharo Or Snow Peas

As we are enjoying the last month of the Dutch summer, I have a great time at home with my son. I washed our laundry and hang them in the garden. The day is warm and beautiful, a good day to cook something for my lunch. Do you eat canned food? Do you eat sardines? Back home in the Philippines, sardines is our family's all time favorite, also a comfort food. We cook it, sometimes as omelette, sometimes sauteed with a green leafy vegetable like "talbos ng kamote." Sometimes, my father just squeezes a lemon on it and sprinkled salt, and it is already a delicious match to steamed rice.

I am glad there is a Filipino store located at the city next to us, where I can buy some Filipino groceries. When me and my husband bought our new coffee maker in Rotterdam, we also went in Schiedam to buy some Pinoy groceries, especially sardines. I bought sardines, fish sauce, vinegar, bagoong, Mama Sita's cooking mix, Maggie Magic Sarap, and my husband have Nagaraya. Today, I cooked sardines. A really simple cooking. After I hang our laundry on the clothesline, I pick up some tomatoes in the garden. I have a left over chicharo when I cooked pancit last Sunday, and tried if chicharo is a good combination with sardines. Well, yes it is. Chicharo is snow peas in English.

Heat frying pan with a little oil or butter. Fry the garlic, then the onion, and the tomatoes. Add the sardines, mix, then cover, turn the stove in a medium heat. After five minutes, add the winter chicharo, I add Maggie Magic Sarap to add taste, just sprinkle it like when you sprinkle salt in your cooking. Mix and cover again. Cook until the chicaro is cooked but not overcooked. Since we don't have talbos ng kamote here in The Netherlands, I combine sardines with other vegetables. Sometimes with spinach, other times, with eggplant, today, I tried chicharo. And it is also good.

Chicharo or snow peas are extremely healthy to munch on due to the potent healthy nutrients in them that are nourishing to our bodies and protective of our health. The nutrients in snow peas are fiber, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, healthy fats, iron, potassium, magnesium, folic acid and antioxidants. These nutrients have the ability to relieve and prevent inflammation, cancers, eye diseases, scurvies and digestive issues naturally. Yes, I love sardines but I see to it that it is also a healthy diet. And good food always comes from home. Happy eating!

Dining At Barrio Pilipinas, The Hague

Happiness is eating your favorite foods in a foreign country.

Have you ever heard these dishes? Kare-Kare, caldereta, sisig, and pakbet? They are Filipino dishes. I think the famous Filipino dish is adobo. There was even a movie with the title American Adobo.
Food and dining are part of Filipino life. Even our foods are not as famous as of  the neighboring countries like Thai and Vietnamese foods, we also have something to offer when it comes to a great cuisine.

Treat for ourselves even it's not a day off :) 

the jeepney inside the restaurant is an attraction.

I am smiling because of this buko-pandan.

One of my great experiences living here in the Netherlands is dining out at the one and only Filipino restaurant in The Netherlands, the Barrio Pilipinas at Den Haag or The Hague. I saw their advertisement on Facebook and I went to dine there with my Filipina friend Arlene.

Aside from family and friends that most of the Filipino living abroad miss, also the foods. That is why, when me and my family are in the Philippines for a holiday, I prefer to eat home cook Filipino foods. I even buy cooked food sold in a carinderia.

A sign: Philippine flag in front of the restaurant.

my friend and her son.

crowding with many tourists.

The Filipino restaurant in The Hague has a variety of menus. Aside from the regular menus, they also have special menus, the salo-salo fiesta sa bilao, and the boddle fight. When I first went there, me and my friend just have the regular menus. We have pancit, kare-kare, and chopsuey. For my dessert, I have buko pandan. I always love buko pandan.

A cold rainy day going to The Hague (the return)

with my friend's baby, I miss my son. Not used of going out alone.

I miss jeepney ride!

The foods are great, the location is accessible to those who are coming even from far cities of the Netherlands, but the only thing that I can comment is, I did not like it when I need to change the diaper of my son, the staff told me to just go at the back of their kitchen to do it. They don't have a changing table for their customers who have a baby. When I cannot do it there, because the floor is slippery, the chairs stack there. I cannot change diaper in a chair. When I told them about it, they replied that I just change diaper in my stroller. I just hope they improved this part.

The salo-salo fiesta sa bilao. 

I got back there to eat again with my friend. My husband took charge to take care of our son so I can meet my friend who that time was in grief because of the death of her father in the Philippines. I can see some improvements. They take orders fast, they served fast, and we ordered the salo-salo fiesta sa bilao that we enjoyed so much. The salo salo fiesta sa bilao is worth 45 euro. At the menu card says it is good for two person. Since me and my friend are not glutton hahahaha, I would say that it is good for four persons.

At The Hague before going back home.

Den Hague or The Hague is like the big cities of Amsterdam and Rotterdam, home of diverse nationalities and cultures. You can find in these cities many restaurants. I am glad there is one Filipino Restaurant where I can go whenever I want to eat with full of Filipino enjoyment, like eating, using hands. This morning, me and my friend were talking again and planning to get back here. When Inday Maggy has the day off again, she loves to meet her friend Inday Arlene at their meeting place, to eat, to talk, and to laugh. Only at Barrio Pilipinas in Den Haag.

My Top Five Filipino Foods (I Miss Them In Hollandia)

Filipinos love to eat and the Philippine archipelago is considered a melting pot of South East Asia. -Driftwood Journey

After a number of travel blog, I want to write again something about foods. Food and eating. On this blog, I will tell you my top five among Filipino foods. Foods that I wish I have it too here in the Netherlands for a day to day basis.

Siomai. Siomai also called pork dumplings. But a beef version of it in Chowking is I prefer more than pork. Siomai is traditionally cooked through steaming. But now, siomai are being served fried complimented with calamansi/lemon and soy sauce. I love siomai in a dim sum or in noodles. I never have siomai here in The Netherlands and I do not know if there is some Asian restaurants here that served siomai.

Siomai

Taho. Taho is a Filipino snack food, but for me, it served as my very light breakfast during those times that I was an office girl. In the morning, there is a "manong magtataho" in front of our office building and I have a cup of taho entering the office. When I visited my father in The Philippines last year and stayed with him in the hospital for about two weeks, I brought back my old habit: a cup of taho in the morning. Taho is made of fresh, soft, silken tofu with sweetener and flavoring. Taho vendor usually adds sago pearl (similar to tapioca pearl) but I prefer my taho just plain. The usual cup is worth 5 pesos. For satisfaction, I have worth 10 pesos.

The ordinary taho that I love.

Taho at Soya Box

Polboron or polvoron. Polvoron is a deliciously sweet short bread. I have read that polvoron or polvorones are popular holiday delicacies in Spain and Spain is its place of origin. In The Philippines, we enjoyed it the whole year round. The main ingredients of polboron are flour, sugar, milk, and nuts. There are two big bake shops in The Philippines where we can buy special polboron. The last time, I brought back in The Netherlands a box of polboron from our holiday in The Philippines. Next time, I will take home three boxes to sustain me long. If you are a coffee lover like me, try polboron, it is also a perfect match for your coffee.

wrapping polboron (photo credit: instructables.com)

next time I will make it three boxes :)

Laing. Laing or ginataang natong in Bicol dialect, is a spicy coconut based dish. This dish is budget friendly, but I can bargain a steak for laing. My mother is well known among our circle of friends because she cooks a very delicious laing. My mother's ingredients for laing are coconut milk, natong (dried taro leaves), grilled or fried fish, sili or chili. I remember one time, I bought Laing in the can at the Pinoy store in Rotterdam, to try if it can satisfy my craving. But sad, it tastes nothing. It is like they just boiled the taro leaves and then they put it in a can.

I'm telling you, I can bargain steak for laing :)

Bangus. Actually, bangus is milkfish in English and it is the national fish in the Philippines. But bangus is a versatile fish. You can feed me the entire weeks with only bangus and rice and I will surely enjoy it. Hahaha! To name bangus dishes, I can say I love fried bangus, daing na bangus (marinated), paksiw na bangus (cooked in vinegar), sinigang na bangus (cooked with many vegetables and tamarind or guava for sour taste), or just plain grilled bangus. Someone told me that I can buy bangus in a market in Rotterdam for the price that I do not know. And there is someone who told me that I can buy a daing na bangus to any Filipino store here in The Netherlands in 8-10 euro per piece. I have not tried that yet. It is a bit expensive for me.

sinigang na bangus

inihaw na bangus

my Dutch family experienced the Filipino way of eating

at Gerry's Grill with my family

You might be a Filipino reading this blog and knows well the taste, the smell of these foods that I love. Or you might be someone who has been in the Philippines or planning to visit the Philippines, you have an idea now of some of our foods. Don't be surprised to see that we, Filipinos eat three meals a day, that food is the basis of our social life. If in the western countries, it is a common thing to ask you, what do you like for a drink?, in the Philippines, because of the hospitality, we often ask our visitor or even a stranger who passed by while we are eating to come and eat with us. Many people don't understand about this in our culture, but for us it is like a simplest way of sharing our life's blessing.