pork with potato and carrot in spaghetti sauce

Menudo or not or something like that... Hehehe... Whatever. Just couldn't think of anyhting to prepare that time. We were still arranging and getting sttled at the new house... and no internet. I was lazy I didn't like to cook... really... too lazy all I want to do is sleep because I was tired arranging the house (boxes and platics of things were piled after each other). But somehow I was able to prepare our lunch and dinner... same dish since Kim and I are not eating dinner (die-eat... hahaha).

With some pork belly slices, a potato and a carrot, and some spaghetti sauce at hand, lunch and dinner were solved. I placed the pork belly slices with a lot of fat in a wok with a little water and seasoned with salt. I let it simmer and when the liquid has evaporated it released it's own oil and I let it cooked in it until the pork belly slices are brown and crisp. I took it from the wok and set aside. Then I sauteed minced garlic, sliced onion and jullienned ginger (in the same wok with the oil from the pork belly) until aromatic. Added the remaining pork belly slices (the ones with less or no fat) and sauteed until brown. Then added the carrot and potato (cubed) and sauteed again for a few minutes. Then added about a cup of the spaghetti sauce. Seasoned with salt and pepper and even a little bit of brown sugar (so that the sauce would not be too sour or just to make it a little bitty sweet). That's basically it. I just placed it in a bowl and sprinkled some pring onion leaves on top and the pork belly that I browned and reserved earlier.

potato and pork with black beans

I know I promised to post a recipe yesterday but obviously I didn't... I got caught up with the scrapbooking kit I have in mind. Hehehe... But here I am, I'll try to post all the dishes I was able to prepare within the last month.

I prepared this one when Kim decided not to go home for lunch since school has not yet started and I assured him that it's okay, I can take care of Kuya and the baby. This was just a quick dish. I ran out of oyster sauce that's why I used black beans instead.

I didn't measure the ingredients here but everything will be upon your preference anyway. The pork part that I used was with no fat and I believed this would be much tastier if using pork belly or even pork pata as long as there's fat. Hehehe...

First, I cut the pork and potato into chunks, minced a few cloves of garlic, a little onion and ginger and mushed some black beans. In a wok, I placed the pork and potato chunks and add a little water (not too little that it would evaporated quickly; just a little water to simmer the pork and the potato). When the water have evaporated, take out the potato chunks and set aside. Put a little olive oil in the same wok and fry the simmered pork chunks just until it started to get browned. Then add the garlic, ginger and onion. Saute with the pork until aromatic and the garlic well browned. Then add the black beans and season with pepper (you can season with salt if your black beans are not pre-salted). Then add the potato chunks and continue mixing just until everything is well blended.

spare ribs with salted black beans

k was not able to go to the grocery last night after his work, he had an overtime. fortunately, we still have a few spare ribs slices in the freezer. that will do for k's lunch at work and for me and m at home. i just planned to prepare spare ribs with oyster sauce, so last night i had the pork ribs boiling already until tender (just to avoid the hassle of waking really early to prepare this). then when i was about to prepare the marinade... toinks... there was no more oyster sauce... yaiks!!! what to do?! hehehe... well, anyways, i continued boiling the pork ribs until tender then i'll decide tomorrow when i wake up what to do.

and so the morning came, i went to the kitchen and looked around. i couldn't just deep-fry the pork ribs, k's not really a fan of just frying and couldn't turn it into soup since we don't have vegetables anymore. i saw this can of black beans, why not. so, i prepared this pork ribs with black beans and i asked kim to taste it and if it's okay for him... he approved it and said just like the ones he tasted during fiestas. hehehe...

ingredients:
7 slices pork spare ribs
1 small onion, quatered
1 pork cube
salt and pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, sliced
1 thumbsized ginger, minced
3 tbsp. black beans, drained, washed and mashed

procedure:
in a small casserole, place the first 4 ingredients. pour enough water just to cover the pork ribs. boil and then simmer for 1-1/2 hours or until the pork ribs are tender. you may keep on adding water along the way.

when the pork ribs are tender, drain and reserve 1/4 cup of the broth. set aside.

in a wok, heat the olive oil. saute the ginger and garlic until aromatic and a little browned. add the pork ribs and the reserved broth. continue mixing over high heat until the broth has evaporated.

then lower the heat and continue frying the pork ribs until light brown. then add the mashed black beans and sliced onions. continue mixing until cooked and so as to avoid burning the pork ribs and the black beans.

• • • • • • •

no need to add salt and pepper since the black beans are salted already.

pork empanada

at last, i was able to cook empanada. i've been wanting to cook empanada for quite some time now, i just didn't have the guts. i was afraid of failing or it might not taste well or it might not turn out right or just spoil everything. but i found this empanada recipe in a multiply site, measuring life with love. i used her pastry dough recipe while i made my own filling.

last month i went to daiso and i saw this dumpling maker and pizza cutter. i bought it right away thinking that it would be useful for me. i thought of trying it in making empanada. my empanada turned out to be a smaller version, a dumpling size version. k can eat it at one time or as for me, i had it at 2 bites. hehehe...

ingredients:
for the pastry:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup refined sugar
1/4 cup water
2 eggs

for the filling:
2/3 cup ground pork, seasoned with salt and pepper
2/3 cup frozen shrimp, thawed and minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, minced
1 carrot, diced
4 pcs. prune, diced¹
1 cup green peas
3 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 egg, hardboiled and sliced
cheese, sliced into strips

procedure:
for the pastry:
mix all ingredients together (using your hand, mixer, food processor or fork) and knead until smooth to touch and gathers together into a ball. wrap in cling plastic wrap. let rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

for the filling:
in a wok heat oil, cook the shrimp for 2 minutes, drain and set aside.

using the same wok cook the ground pork until brown. add the onion and garlic and continue cooking until aromatic.

add the carrot, prune and green peas. mix well.

add the soysauce and season with salt and pepper according to your taste.

put back the cooked shrimp and mix until well combined. cool down before using for the filling.

to assemble:
divide the pastry dough using a knife into 36 pcs. (24 if you intend to make 4" diameter empanada, mine depended on the size of my dumpling maker).

roll each piece 1/8" thick on a floured board. then put over the dumpling maker. make sure that the pastry dough is slightly larger than the dumpling maker.

put a teaspoonful of filling on the center. arranged an egg slice and cheese on top. slowly fold the dumpling maker and then press a bit firmly to seal the edges. open carefully halfway and take out your empanada. repeat until you finished all.

deep fry in a hot oil for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes or just until golden brown in color (i set a timer as i deep fried my empanada and it turned out to be just between 1-1/2 to minutes).

• • • • • • •

¹ i used prunes since i didn't have raisins.

spare ribs sinigang

sinigang is another dish and its characteristic flavor comes from tamarind which gives it a sour taste and overwhelms the taste of its meat. another variety is prepared with guava and is less sour than those with tamarind. raw mango, calamansi and bilimbi can also be utilized. however, i chose to use powdered soup base or bouillon cubes for sinigang in place of natural fruits since it is available in my kitchen. however, i'd like to try using the sampalok fruit the next time.

ingredients:
7 slices pork spare ribs
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, sliced
1 thumb-sized ginger, sliced
1 small tomato, sliced
1 medium bisol, sliced into chunks
1 handful string beans, sliced into 2" long
1 bunch pechay, separate white part from green part
1 tbsp. sinigang mix¹
salt and pepper
2 tbsp. cooking oil

procedure:
in a sauce bowl, heat oil and saute onion, garli and ginger until aromatuc.

add pork spare ribs and cook until brown (pour excess oil if necessary). pour enough water until meat are covered. boil and simmer over low heat until meat is tender. you may need to add more water along the way.

when meat is tender, add the bisol and cook for another 5 minutes.

add the sinigang mix. season with salt and pepper. adjust according to your taste.

add the string beans and the white part of the pechay and simmer for 1 minute.

turn off the heat and add the pechay leaves. cover for 1 more minute. serve hot.

• • • • • • •

¹ you can add more if you like it more sour.

pork afritada

it has been a while since i was able to cook a tomato based stew. afritada was a dish introduced to us by the spaniards. just like the menudo, caldereta, callos and pochero. this is easy to prepare and nutritious as well. i cooked this last night for our dinner.

i based my afritada miss connie's recipe here. i just changed some of the ingredients based on what's available at my kitchen and just for the 3 of us.

ingredients:
3 slices pork liempo
1 potatoes
1 carrots
1 red or green bell peppers
1 tomatoes
1/2 cup frozen sweet peas, thawed
1/2 cup spaghetti sauce¹
1 cup water
3 cloves garlic
1 small onions
1 bay leaves
salt and pepper
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
3 tbsp. olive oil

procedure:
cut the pork into 2 x 2 inch cubes.

peel and finely mince the garlic. coarsely chop the tomatoes.

heat the olive oil in a thick-bottomed casserole. when hot, add the pork cubes and cook over high heat until the edges start to brown. the pork will initially expel water. just keep the heat up until the mixture dries up and the pork starts to render fat. then cook the pork in the mixture of fat and oil until the edges start to brown. at this point, you can pour off the fat.

add the garlic, tomatoes, bay leaves and spaghetti sauce to the pork and stir well. Season with salt and pepper. pour in the water, stir, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes.

meanwhile, prepare the rest of the vegetables. peel the carrot and cut into half-rings, and peel the potato and cut into cubes. peel the onions and chop. core and seed the bell pepper and cut chop.

add the vegetables to the stew. stir well. add the oregano. cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the meat and vegetables are done. add more water if necessary. add only about half a cup each time to avoid thinning the sauce. adjust the seasonings. finally, add the sweet peas and simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes.

let stand for 10 minutes to infuse the flavors.

serve hot.

• • • • • • •

¹ i used spaghetti sauce since i ran out of tomato sauce or tomato paste.

squash - beans with tausi

another way to prepare squash and beans tandem. still quick and easy for the hot weather here in uae.

ingredients:
1 slice pork belly, cut into thin slices
3 cups squash, cut into cubes
2 cups kentucky beans, sliced in to 2" long
2 tbsp. tausi
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small onion, sliced
1/2 thumb-sized ginger, sliced
1 tbsp. oyster sauce
1/2 cup water
freshly ground pepper

procedure:
wash tausi in water, drain and mash with the back of the fork. set aside.

place the pork belly slices on a wok with little water and salt. let boil until water evaporated and pork renders its own oil. cook until golden brown.

take away the cooked pork slices and drain on paper towel. set aside.

in the same wok saute onion, garlic and ginger until fragrant. add the tausi and oyster sauce. continue mixing for 1 minute.

add water and squash. mix and let squash cook covered for about 3-5 minutes.

add the kentucky beans and mix. season with pepper and taste according to your preference. cook for another 1-2 minutes.

pork giniling

i seldom cook this here in uae since i consume the entire ground pork in making lumpia, bola-bola, and longganisa for our breakfast and for those lazy times. hehehe… but since i ran out of dishes to prepare for k & m, and our refrigerator’s almost empty, i just decided to make giniling. i just needed a carrot, a potato, a little portion of bell pepper, some green peas and added tomato sauce for more flavor; then i was able to fix our lunch. hehehe…

ingredients:
2 cups ground pork, seasoned with salt and pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, sliced
1 small bell pepper, chopped into small pieces
1 small carrots, peeled and chopped into small pieces
1 small potato, peeled and chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup green peas
1/4 cup tomato sauce
salt and pepper
cooking oil

procedure:
in a work, heat oil and brown the ground pork.

when the ground pork is done, pushed it on the side of the wok and saute onion and garlic until fragrant. mix together with the pork.

add the bell pepper, carrot, potato and green peas. mix. cook for 3-5 minutes.

add the tomato sauce and season with salt and pepper.mix well and cook for another 2 minutes.

serve warm.

fried rice with pork spare ribs adobo

last week i prepared this pork belly adobo with a twist, i added pineapple chunks and syrup. it was tasty and a different way to prepare adobo. i was not able to take photo of it since k & m arrived early for lunch and i just finished cooking. hehehe…

this time, i wanted to try it with the pork spare ribs i had left in the freezer. the ribs k bought have plenty of meat and fewer bones and easily become tender. the outcome was still as good as the pork belly.

i also prepared fried rice with shrimp, carrots and green peas. still delicious and the typical rice becomes more flavorful because of the shrimp.

ingredients:
7 slices pork spare ribs
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, chopped
1 spring onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tsp peppercorns
1 cup pineaple syrup
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soysauce
1 cup pineaple chunks
salt and pepper

procedure:
in a casserole, put together the first 9 ingredients and pour enough water to cover the meat. bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer until pork are tender. you may need to add water so as not to dry the sauce.

when the meat are tender and the sauce are almost dry but not dry (there should be a little sauce left). season with salt and pepper if necessary. add the pineapple chunks and mix.

serve with the steamed rice or as for me, i served it with fried rice.

for the fried rice:
in a wok, heat 2 tbsp. cooking oil. season the shrimp and fry. add the onion and garlic and saute until fragrant. add 1 beaten egg and continue mixing until egg is torn into pieces. add 3-4 cups rice and continue mixing until combined. add 1 small peeled and diced carrots and a handful of green peas. season with salt and pepper. continue mixing until fully combined and everything are well distributed. turn off the heat and add chopped spring onion. toss for the last time. serve.

battered pork spare ribs with baked potato wedges

this time, k bought pork spare ribs that's full of meat and less bones unlike the previous spare ribs he bought. i was getting lazy today and i didn't have enought time to boil the spare ribs till tender. so i just decided to put batter and deep-fried the spare ribs.

k liked it but he preferred that i should have just made it into nilaga. well, there's still half of it remaining in the freezer... i'll prepare nilaga agin next time. hehehe...

ingredients:
7 slices pork spare ribs
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 egg, beaten
corn starch
salt and pepper
cooking oil for deep frying

procedure:
boil the pork spare ribs with garlic, salt and pepper until tender. drain and let dry at room temperature. set aside.

in a bowl, place the beaten egg and then another bowl next to it place the cornstarch and season with salt and pepper.

heat cooking oil in a sauce pan.

dredge each slices of pork spare ribs in beaten egg then in cornstarch. deep fry until golden brown. make sure that the oil is very hot since the meat is already cooked, we just wanted to sear the outside. and if the oil is not hot enough, the meat will absorb too much the oil.

drain excess oil on paper towels.

for the baked potato wedges:
peel and slice in wedges a potato. place in a bowl and season with salt, a little pepper and a little oil. arrange in a greased baking sheet. bake dor 15-20 minutes or until brown on the edges.

serve together with the battered pork spare ribs.

pork ribs nilaga

k bought pork spare ribs from the grocery as well as bisol (gabi?), pechay and string beans. therefore i conclude, i had to prepare nilaga.

mmmm... i liked the bisol and the soup was just oh so good.

ingredients:
7 slices pork spare ribs
1 onion, quarted
1 thumb-sized ginger, sliced
1 tomato, chopped
1 spring onion, separate white part from green part, chopped
3 gabi, peeled and cut into serving portions
1 bunch pechay, separate the white part from the green part
1 handful string beans, sliced into 2" long
salt and pepper
water

procedure:
in a casserole, place the pork spare ribs, onion, white part of onion and ginger. pour enough water. boil over high heat and then lower the heat and simmer until very tender, about 1-2 hours. you may need to add more water.

when tender, add the gabi, tomato and season with salt and pepper. continue simmering until gabi are tender.

taste according to your preference. add the white part of pechay and the string beans and simmer for another minute. turn off the heat and then place the green part of pechay on top. cover.

serve real hot.

pork in oyster sauce with potato and beans

don't know what to prepare today. i thought of preparing adobo since i still have a few slices of pork belly left in the freezer but i wanted to have vegetables since i still have potato and string beans left.

i cooked the belly adobo style and added oyster sauce to add more flavor and omitted the bay leaf and lemon juice... just a little bit of soysauce and vinegar. then cooked until the pork are very tender and the water have reduced. i then added the potato. then once potato was tender i added the string beans. season to taste... done.

it looks good... and it tastes good, too.


ingredients:
350 gm. pork belly, cut into serving portions
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small onion, sliced
1 medium potato, peeled and cut into serving portions
1 cup string beans, sliced into 2" long
3 tbsp. oyster sauce
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. vinegar
water
salt and pepper
cooking oil

procedure:
heat oil in a wok, saute onion and garlic until fragrant. add the pork belly and brown a bit.

pour enough water just to cover the meat. add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, salt and pepper. bring to boil then lower fire to simmer until meat are tender. you might need to add water just as to not dry the sauce. this dish should have a little sauce.

when the meat is almost tender and the sauce is reduced to more than half, add the potato, mix and continue cooking until potatoes are just cooked.

add the string beans, mix and cook for another minute. adjust taste if needed.

roast pork belly

this recipe have been in-stock on my to-be-cooked-recipe folder waiting for the right time to be cooked.

and since i have a half of a belly slab remaining in the freezer, i decided to try this out.

i should have marinated the meat for more than six hours or even overnight instead of just 5 hours. however, it still came out good, the meat was tender. and since the meat was cooked in the oven, it was cooked using it's own oil. it's like lechon kawali baked in an oven minus the crispiness of the skin.

the dish is very simple, less cooking time, and flavorful.

i got the recipe here but i'm posting it here as well to make it readily accessible the next time i want to prepare this dish. the recipe is intended for a slab of boneless pork belly good for 4-6 persons. i just had half of the slab, just enough for the 3 of us.

ingredients:
a slab of boneless pork belly, about 1-1/2 kilos
salt
black pepper

procedure:
lay the pork belly flat on a chopping board, skin side down. cut square patterns on the meat, almost through the skin. it is important to cut deep into the so that the seasonings would penetrate all the way through.

next, get the salt and rub it into the pork, including where you have cut through. then, the pepper. crush the black peppercorns with a mortar and pestle or use the coarsest setting of your pepper mill. rub the black pepper all over the meat including those crevices between the squares. allow to marinate for several hours. you can either leave the pork outdoors, covered; or in the fridge, covered, for about 6 hours.

preheat the oven to 325°F.

place the pork, skin side down, on a roasting rack and cook in the oven for an hour to an hour and a half.

unlike lechon kawali, the pork rind (skin) won’t puff up and turn crisp. you might think you can achieve that by roasting the pork skin side up instead of down but remember that this is not parboiled pork and the meat has been cut almost through the skin. if you cook the pork skin side up, all the meat juices will drip into the pan along with the melted fat. and you really don’t want that. you want the pork to cook in its own juices so consider this dish as something not unlike lechon kawali but without the cracklings.

k, m and i liked the outcome of the roast pork. although the skin was not totally crispy, still some part of the skin was crispy a bit. and as usual, i served it with green salad on the side.

pork barbeque

this time, i'm craving for barbeque... pork barbeque. i even asked kim one night to go out and buy me pork barbeque... hahaha... (jokes :O) but he knew i was joking since you won't find any restaurant with barbequed pork here in uae.

the next day, we went to the meat shop and i bought pork belly and asked them to bacon-sliced it for me and they did. as always, i prepare salad on the side (pine-orange-lettuce salad) to compliment the meat.

i'm satisfied... it was a nice saturday lunch for me... for us...


i don't have exact measurements for this. i just put the ingredients for the marinade and tasted it. just try adjusting the marinade to your taste.

ingredients:
1/4 kl. pork belly, bacon-sliced
bamboo skewers, dipped in water

for the marinade:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup vinegar¹
1 lemon juice
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp. olive oil (optional)²
salt and pepper

procedure:
combine all ingredients for the marinade. taste and adjust according to your preference.

pour over the bacon-cut pork belly and marinate for at least 2 hours but preferably overnight (the longer you marinate the meat, the more it absorbs the sauce and it becomes tastier).

prepare your grill.

put one marinated bacon-cut pork belly into the skewer and stretch to its length. repeat until all the meat are on the skewers. line the skewered meat place in a large shallow plate or container and pour over the marinade.

grill the meat over low fire, preventing the meat from burning. it will cook fast since the meat is bacon-cut and marinated overnight. (we don't want charred barbeque since it is carcinogenic). so, therefore, keep your watch on the grill. if you have grill pans, you can always grill the barbeque over the stove. you can also use the marinade in brushing the meat once in a while to prevent it from drying.

serve with your favorite sauce, steam rice and some veggie salad on the side.

for the veggie salad:
ingredients:
5 lettuce leaves, chopped
2 slices pineapple, chopped
2 orange, peeled and chopped
1 tomato, seeded and chopped
1/2 small onion, diced
1/2 thumb-size ginger, diced
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. vinegar¹
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. sugar
salt and pepper

procedure:
in a small tumbler or container combine ginger, lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil and sugar. season with salt and pepper. shake well until fully incorporated. taste and adjust according to preference.

in a bowl, toss together lettuce, pineapple, orange, tomato and onion. pour the liquid ingredients over the tossed veggie and fruits. mix well.

serve with the barbeque or chill before serving.

• • • • • • •

¹ i used apple cider vinegar. for me the taste is milder and a bit sweeter.

² this is optional. i just added oil to make the cooked barbeque will not be too dry. you can use any other cooking oil for this.

pork pata paksiw

with the remaining few slices of pata in the freezer and a lazy me, i decided to prepare this sinful dish. i just dumped all the ingredients in a large sauce pan and slow-cooked to perfection for 2 hours. i had the timer ready so that i would know if the 2 hours was finished already. then after, checked for the taste if needed to be adjusted. everything, just in time for father-and-son to arive for lunch.

according to ms. connie, paksiw is a method of cooking which means cooking with a sour base which is usually vinegar or kamias. "when cooking meat, paksiw means braising the meat in a mixture of soy sauce, sugar and vinegar". since i only have vinegar, that's what i used. in cebu, we see to it that we always used tuba vinegar. it is much better that the white vinegar but the white vinegar is still okay.


some added banana blossom (bulaklak ng saging or dried lily buds). but since i don't have that, i opted to add spring onions instead. some added fried banana but it is better without it already. this is very similar to humba. humba just have tausi (black beans sauce).

this recipe is good for 3 persons.

ingredients:
7 pcs. pork pata
1 thumb-sized ginger, sliced
1/2 cup tuba vinegar ¹
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar ²
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 medium onion, quartered
2 bay leaf
5-7 peppercorns
2 spring onions, halved

procedure:
place pork pata in a casserole. pour in just enough water to cover the meat. add the rest of the ingredients.

slow cook for 1 - 2 hours or until very tender. the meat should literally fall off from the bones. check the liquid once in a while and add water if the mixture gets too dry during cooking.

taste and season according to your preference.

• • • • • • •

¹ i just used white vinegar since they don't sell tuba vinegar here in uae

² i prefered to use muscovado sugar

pork pata nilaga

i've been craving for pork pata during this times. i even asked kim to buy pata because i wanted to try making pata tim but he said the pata available in the store was all skin and bones and less meat. so, we waited for a few weeks but i still crave for it. during this time, even with less meat, i bought pata. i decided not to do the pata tim though because there's less meat in the pata; instead i prepared pork pata stew or shall we call it nilagang pork pata. i asked kim to buy corn for a sweet and tastier soup.

i even put a lot of vegetables like potato, baguio beans and cabbage. you can even add gabi instead of the potato; string beans instead of baguio beans; and you can add siling haba for a kick. slow-cooked the pata for almost 2 hours... so it's falling from the bones and soft already with soup that's msg free and even tastier.

ingredients:
1/2 kl. pork pata
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 thumb-size ginger, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
1 tomato, seeded and sliced
water
2 sweet corn, cut in half
2 potato, peeled and divided into 4
1 cup baguio beans, sliced into 1" long
4 cabbage leaves, cut into 4
1 spring onion, separate white from green
salt
pepper
1 tbsp. cooking oil

procedure:
over high heat, put oil in a casserole and saute onion, white part of the spring onion, garlic and ginger until fragrant. add tomato and saute for another minute.

add the pork pata and saute/fry until it renders its own oil. then add water enough to cover the pork pata. cover, let boil and then lower heat and allow to simmer. slow-cook for 1-2 hours or until pork pata are cooked and very tender. check every now and then and you can add water if necessary.

when the pork pata are cooked and very tender, add the corn and potato and continue simmering until the corn and potato are cooked. season with salt and pepper.

when the corn and potato are cooked, add the baguio beans and simmer for another minute.

turn off the heat and add the cabbage and the green part of the spring onion. cover the casserole. this will make the cabbage still crispy to the bite.

serve hot.

pork pops

i was lazy today... very lazy... even to prepare lunch. i just sliced a pork belly in bite size pieces and dredge in flour seasoned with salt and pepper, dipped in beaten egg, dredge again in breadcrumbs, and then deep-fried. lunch is served. of course, we always have cucumber salad on the side everytime we have fried food. this seves 2-3 persons.

makuy enjoyed his every bite. it's like he's eating chicken pops from kfc. hehehe...

see... i'm even too lazy to post it here. :p

deep-fried pork spare ribs

category: main dish
serving: makes 2 servings

i was a bit busy baking cakes today for tomorrows affair and refrigerator's almost empty. i just decided to deep-fry the remaining pork spare ribs and chicken wings for lunch and prepare a simple salad to go along with it.

yes, this is really simple...
boil the pork spare ribs until tender with crushed garlic and salt.

drain and air-dry for a few minutes to avoid splattering of the oil when deep-frying.

in a ziplock bag, mix together cornstarch, ginisa flavor mix and pepper. you can also use flour instead of cornstarch but i prefer cornstarch since the batter is more thinner that of the flour.

heat cooking oil in a deep sauce pan until very hot.

put the boiled pork spare ribs inside the ziplock bag (in batches) with the cornstarch mixture and shake until all the pork spare ribs are well coated.

deep-fry pork spare ribs until golden brown. drain on paper towels.

serve with your favorite dipping sauce... we always have ours with hot sauce. :p

sweet & sour pork spare ribs

this can be a rice topping. pork spare ribs with sweet and sour sauce. this was the second pork spare ribs recipe i got in the net but instead of making it sweet and spicy, i made it sweet and sour since makuy's not fond of eating spicy dishes.

the original recipe is here still from pinoycook. as usual, i adjusted for the three of us. i also substituted the siling haba with bell pepper.

ingredients:
8 pcs. pork spare ribs
3/4 cup pineapple chunks drained
3/4 cup pineapple syrup
3+2 tsp. of tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, sliced
1 small carrot, sliced into thin rings
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
1 tsp. of sugar
3 tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. corn starch
3 tbsp. cooking oil
salt and pepper

procedure:
place the pork spare ribs in a bowl. season with salt and pepper. mix well with your hands.

heat oil in a wok until it starts to smoke. add the seasoned pork and fry over very high heat until the edges are golden brown. pour off the cooking oil until only about 2 teaspoon remains. return the skillet or wok to the heat. add a 3 tsp. of tomato sauce and continue cooking the pork over high heat. toss several times to coat each piece with tomato sauce. pour in the vinegar, pineapple syrup and about 1 cup of water. cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until the pork is tender.

mix together a cup of water with the sugar, the remaining tomato sauce and the corn starch.

by the time the pork is done, there should be very little liquid left in the skillet or wok. add the pineapple chunks, carrot slices, bell pepper, garlic and onion. cook, tossing, for about a minute.

pour in the starch solution and cook, stirring, until the sauce is thick and clear.

serve over hot steamed rice in individual bowls.

braised pork spare ribs

category: main dish
serving: makes 2-3 servings

kim bought i think more than a kilo of pork spare ribs. other than prepraing nilagang buto ng baboy, i tried to search different recipe for pork spare ribs... i found 3. i wanted to try pinoycook's braised pork spare ribs first. but instead of light soy sauce, i used the regular soy sauce we have at home. i also included chopped potatoes just to add vegetable into it.

you can find the original recipe here. the recipe is good for 7-8 servings. i just adjusted the recipe for the three of us.

ingredients:
8 slices pork spare ribs
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 thumb-sized ginger, grated
1 small onion, minced
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. hot chili sauce
salt and pepper
2 tbsp. cooking oil
1 medium potato, chopped

procedure:
heat the cooking oil in a wok or frying pan. add the pork spare ribs and cook until lightly browned. add the rest of the ingredients and stir well to blend. pour in about 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour or until the pork is tender.

during the cooking time, as the liquid evaporates, you may need to add a little water occasionally to prevent scorching. half a cup or so each time should be enough. add the potatoes. by the time the pork is done, there should only be a little sauce. as the chopped onions become mushy, they will thicken the sauce so there really is no need to add flour or starch.