A Scientist in the Kitchen

I didn’t realize that Pasta Puttanesca is quite simple to make until I read about Abby’s recipe (of Eat the right stuff), my partner for this month’s Taste and Create challenge. This event is hosted by Nicole of For the love of food where participants get a partner and cook each other’s dish. What makes this event really special is that my partners have been from half way around the world. Last December, I was drooling over Val’s potato dishes. Now, it’s pasta time!

I simply love pasta. The use of anchovies, however, is not common in Philippine cooking. We do have anchovies, but it is usually salted and dried, then fried and pair with rice for breakfast. But anchovies in olive oil? Hhmm…

I followed Abby’s recipe for Pasta Puttanesca, except for the fresh chilis. Instead, I used chili flakes. Towards the end of cooking, I add a dollop of tomato paste to round off the color and texture. My mom was curious about this dish, too. Usually, when we have pasta, it usually involves the whole nine yards - meat, tomatoes, cheeses, etc… When she saw me just preparing olives, capers, fresh tomatoes and anchovies, she asked “That’s all?”. We both loved this dish and plan to make it again soon.

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As I’ve mentioned before, I only know MEME as searching for protein motifs in my genes. Now I know, it is a way of meeting friends and getting to know each other over the web.  Kittie of  Kittens in the Kitchen (Now, this seems a familiar sight in my kitchen) tagged me, and here’s something about me and food…

Seven facts about me and food

1. I don’t like raisins and I really get annoyed if a pastry or dish is full of whole raisins. I only tolerate it in our embotido dish (a Filipino meatloaf) as long as it is chopped.  I don’t like biting into raisins, so please no raisins.

2. I like nuts but not in ice cream.

3. I forced myself to eat and appreciate fermented food products. Since my training is microbiology, I told myseld that I should learn to appreciate food products produced by microorganisms. I love them now.

4. I have this habit of looking at food servers in the cafeteria, their actions and how these might affect the microbial population in food.

5. I would like to have a restaurant someday, and perhaps name it the Science Cafe. It would be an earthbag type of building, solar-powered, energy and water-efficient, homegrown vegetables…

6. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day.

7. Not many friends know that I blog. I will just surprise them soon!

 Now, it’s my turn to send this meme to four other kitchens in the world. For this I would like to share with you my favorite blogs in my Google Reader: Deborah of Taste and Tell; ostwestwind of Küchenlatein; Grace of A Kitchen Journal; and Katie of Thyme for Cooking.

This was my mom’s recipe for my dad’s birthday celebration last Sunday. Two colorful varieties of sweet potato sweetened with a salty twist.

The dish is simple to make. Peel sweet potatoes and cut into cubes. Put in a pan, add water to cover the potato, 1/2 cup to 1 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup of butter. Bring everything to a boil and simmer till the sweet potatoes are cooked. Remove the sweet potatoes from the pan and continue to boil the syrup till it is thick. Mix the syrup and sweet potatoes before serving. This is best served warm. The blend of colors really looked lovely, I wish I’d taken a really great picture so I could have a ordered a custom picture framing for it and hang it on the kitchen.

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Ever wondered how a market looks like in other parts of the world? Check out “To market, to market”. Or you can share yours, too.

I had my first taste of bulgogi a few months back. The dish originally called for beef but back then, I used chicken. This time I used pork strips. My mom found this recipe in a Nestle newsletter. This dish we served during my dad’s birthday celebration so the quantity is a lot. Bulgogi is a Korean dish consisting of marinated beef slices on a bed of sprouts.

Korean Bulgogi

1kg pork strips
1/2 cup rice wine
1/2 cup Maggi Savor seasoning
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame oil
2 tbsp white sesame seeds

Mix everything together and marinate for at least an hour. Stir-fry the meat by batches until browned.

To prepare the bed of sprouts, bring water to a boil. Add 1 Maggi beef bouillon cube. When boiling add about 2 cups of mungbean sprouts. Boil for two minutes then drain. When drained, mix the sprouts, 2 tbsp sesame oil, chopped scallions and 2 tbsp black sesame seeds. Place the sprouts in a round serving plate, make sure to cover all of the plate. Place stir fried meat (one to one-and-a-half cup, depending on how meaty you want it to be) on top of the sprouts. Top the center of the meat with more white sesame seeds.

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Ever wondered how a market looks like in other parts of the world? Check out “To market, to market”. Or you can share yours, too.