A scientist in the kitchen

Ampalaya or bitter melon or bitter gourd is one of the vegetables you can find in the market all year round in the Philippines. It is probably the most hated of vegetables by kids as it really is bitter. I didn’t learn to eat ampalaya dish till I was in my 20s, and when I did, I found that the bitter taste kinda grows on you. Now I can eat ampalaya anytime, anyway is it cooked. How did I learn how to eat it? I cooked and ate ampalaya for almost a week and had it for breakfast, lunch and dinner till finally my taste buds came to appreciate it. I had it stirfried with eggs, or with beef strips marinated in calamansi, or with black beans. I also like it cooked with coconut milk.

Ampalaya is also a medicinal plant, with the belief that it can lower blood sugar levels. The leaves are boiled and the decoction is cooled down. My dad, who is a diabetic, drinks a glass of this decoction once a day. It is bitter though so it takes some to appreaciate the juice. In Chinatown, you can buy dried ampalaya slices which can also be used to make teas.

My dad does not like the ampalaya juice but he does like sautéed ampalaya. So I’m sharing his recipe for Weekend Herb Blogging this week, hosted by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook. Oh, and by the way, I get the chance to host this lovely event in May!

Ampalaya with beef and black beans

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, choppped
100 grams beef strips, thinly sliced
2-3 tbsp salted black beans
1 piece ampalaya, sliced thinly
soy sauce
pepper to taste

Cut ampalaya lengthwise. Remove seeds and pulp then slice thinly crosswise. Saute garlic and onions in 1-2 tbsp oil. Add the 1 tbsp soy sauce then the beef strips, stirring until they are no longer pink. Add the ampalaya, then stir to mix all ingredients evenly. Add 1/4 cup of water and let it boil till almost reduced. Add black beans, a tbsp at a time and check for saltiness. Mix well. Add pepper to taste.

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To market, to market is a blogging event I am hosting to celebrate farmers’ markets everywhere. Hope to see you there, too. - Gay

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I’m currently checking out vacation deals these days, it’s still our summer vacation. Time to head out to the beach!

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Now, this title is quite a mouthful of Filipino words! This is simply spring rolls made from banana heart or bud or blossom. Puso (heart) ng (of) saging (banana) lumpia. The outer red coverings are called bracts and a banana heart consists of several layers of bracts and flowers. In Tagalog cooking, we usually cook this with coconut milk or sautéed with vegetables and vermicelli for a delicious laksa.

I spent the Holy Week at home, catching up on sleep and checking out leaking bathroom faucets. We had this delicious lumpia for Good Friday lunch paired with fried whole tilapia. The day before, we harvested some bananas from the garden. There were three puso ng saging but I only used one, while the two we gave to our neighbor.

I wanted to make it with coconut milk, but we were not able to buy grated coconuts to extract the milk. We did have some coconuts but I have to grate them myself, a task I don’t enjoy. So instead of making lumpia and one with coconut milk, I decided to make two versions lumpia. The first version, I sautéed with annatto/atchuete oil and fresh garlic was added in the end while the second one, fresh Thai basil were added.

Lumpiang Puso ng Saging with achuete

1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp annatto seeds
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 puso ng saging
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp chopped roasted peanuts
Lumpia wrappers

1. Heat oil in a pan then add the annatto seeds. The oil with turn bright yellow. This should take around a minute. Remove pan from fire and discard seeds. You will use this pan for sauteeing the rest of the ingredients.

2. Clean puso ng saging by removing the layers of red bracts flowers until you come into a pale yellow bract. Chop into quarters and sliced thinly. Place immediately in water to prevent discoloration.

3. Saute half of garlic and all of the onion. Add half of the puso ng saging and mix well. Make sure that everything is coated with the oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. And the peanuts and mix thoroughly.

4. Remove pan from fire and let the mixture cool. Add the rest of the fresh garlic.

5. Place one lumpia wrapper in a plate. Add 1 tbsp of the mixture in one end. Moisten the sides of the lumpia wrapper with water. Fold the sides towards the filling then roll the wrapper. Fry till golden brown.

For the second version, saute the puso ng saging in garlic and onion. Season with salt and pepper and when cooked, add 3-5 pieces of chopped Thai basil leaves. Cool down then wrap in lumpia wrapper. Deep fry. I used the same pan so the dish was a bit yellowish.

Cucumber-Peanut dipping sauce for lumpia

1/4 cup vinegar
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp chopped cucumber, unpeeled
1 tbsp chopped roasted peanuts
chilis, according to taste

Mix the first three ingredients. Taste for balance of sourness, saltiness and sweetness (according to your taste). Add the chopped cucumber and peanuts. Add chili flakes or fresh chilis.

Note: The dipping sauce I got the idea from my favorite Thai resto in Los Banos. Hers is still better, though, but I’m getting there.

This Weekend Herb Blogging is hosted by Ramona of The Houndstooth Gourmet. Check out her round-up next Monday.

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Crispy pata or deep-fried pork legs is one special dish that is served during fiestas and special occasions. Pork legs and boiled till tender then deep fried. I haven’t cooked it yet, though whenever I crave for one, a Filipino restaurant nearby satisfies my cravings. To accompany the crispy pata is a dipping sauce made of soy sauce, kalamansi and fresh chilis. Others prefer sweet-and-spicy gravy or simply atsara.

The dish is so rich and oily, you wouldn’t want to make a habit of eating it regularly. Otherwise, you need those life insurance quotes quick!

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Tinola is a dish seasoned with ginger and fish sauce. The most common type of tinola is tinolang manok or chicken tinola. Chicken is sauted with ginger and fish sauce, water is added to make the broth. Sliced green papayas and siling labuyo (bird’s eye chili) leaves make up the rest of the ingredients. There are other modifications of course. In the South, instead of ginger, people use lemongrass. Green papayas are replaced with sayote/chayote while malunggay (Moringa) leaves are used instead of siling labuyo leaves.

You don’t need to add meat, though. Sometimes, I make vegetable tinola. The fish sauce is a must though, as the combination of ginger and fish sauce brings out a flavorful dish. Vegetable tinola can be any combination of vegetables and for this recipe I used upo (white pumpkin), sigarilyas (winged bean) malunggay leaves and siling labuyo leaves.

Vegetable tinola

100 grams upo
2 pcs winged bean
½ cup malunggay leaves
½ cup siling labuyo leaves
2-inch ginger
1 pcs small onion
Fish sauce to taste
Black pepper to taste

Slice ginger thinly. Chop onion crosswise. Peel upo and slice into 2-inch pieces. Remove core. Cut winged beans to 2-inch pieces and snap in the center. Saute ginger in 1 tsbp oil then add fish paste (1-2 tsp). Saute for a few seconds then add the onion. Saute some more till onion is limp. Add the upo, mix until half done. Add the winged bean, sauté for a minute then add half a cup of water. Bring to a boil. Adjust taste for saltiness by adding fish sauce. Add freshly crushed black pepper. When boiling, add the malunggay leaves and siling labuyo leaves. Let it simmer for a few minutes. Do not mix as this will make the broth bitter (it has been observed that when malunggay is mixed, the broth becomes bitter). Just press the leaves to wet with the broth. When the leaves are cooked, remove from fire and serve. This goes well with fried or grilled fish. I paired this dish with grilled milkfish.

Katie of Thyme for Cooking is hosting this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging. Watch out for her Easter round-up next week.

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Summer months coming up here! Beaches and more beaches… I’m heading off to the beach, watching waves go by with my vintage sunglasses.

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