The Philippine Island - Philippine Geography and Facts : Philippine Travel Guide : Tradition and Culture » cuisine

Filipino Crispy Pata Recipe

admin — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:14:48 +0000

Crispy Pata is a special dish to every Filipinos because of its crispiness and very delicious taste. But before I give you the procedure on how to make a good crispy pata, let us try to know first the meaning of the word “crispy pata” and its origin. Crispy pata means deep fried pata with a crunchy rind and soft and moist meat inside. Pata is the front or hind leg of the pig. In the Philippines, that means the leg and the trotters (knuckles).

Always remember to have a best pata, we must be very selective when buying pig’s hind leg. It is very important to choose a young pig rather than the old one because the more mature the pig, the thicker and tougher the rind. Frying alone is not the only step in cooking this dish; the pata has to be boiled to tenderness prior to deep-frying.

According to the oldies, one has to drip-dry the pata after boiling and then allow it to air-dry for a day prior to deep-frying. It is definitely not true. For as long as you drain, cool and, preferably, chill the boiled pata, there’s no reason why you can’t boil and fry it on the same day.

Procedures:

At first, you should boil the pork hocks or the knuckles with enough water and spiced with garlic, peppercorns, salt, bay leaf, and soy sauce. Some recipe also indicates the inclusion of 7-up or Sprite in the boil. So it’s your preference, it really doesn’t matter at all. Boil until it become tender for not less than 2 hours. It only takes less time if you have a pressure cooker.

Once the pata is tender, you need to drain it well. Please make sure it becomes dry to obtain crispiness. Probably hang it so it can drip or at least, blot with paper towel.

You need to deep-fry the dried pata and make sure that you have enough oil to cover the pata by doing this in a large kawale (or pan). You start at high heat, then medium heat, then low heat when the skin starts to become golden brown in color. When blisters start to appear, the pata is probably cooked at crispy. Then, your pata is ready to serve for dinner.

Filipino Bicol Express Recipe

admin — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 17:24:35 +0000

Bicol Express or also known as Sinilihan is a famous dish which originated in the Bicol Region of the Philippines. It is pork strips and siling haba (finger chilies) cooked in coconut milk. Bicol Express is very rich and very spicy. Some versions include ginger, some include dilaw (turmeric), some include bagoong or shrimp paste. The dish is said to have evolved from gulay na may lada, another Bicolano dish which is nowadays also presented as one of the many variants of Bicol Express.

Basically the original Bicol Express is a lot different from what is being introduced here in Manila and some other places. According to some Bicolanos the original Bicol Express has less or no coconut milk at all. It’s less saucy and much drier and has more “siling labuyo”(hot chili).

Ingredients:

• 1/4 kilo pork, thinly sliced
• 1 cup Baguio beans
• 3 cups long chili or jalapeno peppers
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 head of garlic, minced
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 cup coconut cream
• 2 tablespoons of cooking oil
• Salt to taste

Directions:

• In a bowl of water with salt, soak chili peppers for 30 minutes then rinse and strain.
• In a cooking pan, heat cooking oil and brown sliced pork for a few minutes.
• In another pan, sauté minced garlic and onion.
• Add to the sauté the browned pork.
• Then add the coconut milk, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the chili peppers, Baguio beans and cook until dish gets a little dry.
• Add the coconut cream and simmer until the sauce thickens.
• Salt to taste.

Indeed, there’s a lot of version on how to cook Bicol Express and it depends on the taste of the person cooking the dish. There are two options and that is to stick to the old version of cooking or enhance it according to your style and taste.

Filipino Chop Suey Recipe

admin — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 11:48:28 +0000

Chop Suey is originally an American-Chinese dish which consists of meats (often chicken, beef, shrimp or pork), cooked quickly with vegetables such as bean sprouts, cabbage, and celery and bound in a starch-thickened sauce but Filipinos also have their own version of this dish. It is typically served with rice but can become the Chinese-American form of chow mein with the addition of deep-fried noodles.

Its origins are as mysterious as a dish itself is guileless. According to a favored bit of lore, chop suey is mispronounce of “chopped sewage”, an angered Chinese cook having mixed together the day’s garbage in a bit of broth and presented it to San Francisco restaurant patrons who’d earned his ire. Not knowing any better, those being insulted loved the dish, and much to the amused bewilderment of their tormentors, returned time and again to order it.

Ingredients:

•    1/4 kilo pork, sliced into small pieces
•    1/4 kilo shrimps, shelled, deveined and halved
•    1/4 kilo chicken liver and gizzard, sliced to small pieces
•    1/4 kilo cauliflower, broken to bite size
•    1/4 kilo string beans
•    1/4 kilo snow peas (sitsaro)
•    1/4 kilo cabbage, cut into squares
•    2 stalks of leeks, cut into 2″ long pieces
•    3 stalks celery, cut into 2″ long pieces
•    5 cloves garlic, diced
•    2 onions, diced
•    1 carrot, sliced thinly
•    1 piece red bell pepper, cut in strips
•    1 piece green bell pepper. cut in strips
•    2 tablespoons of cornstarch, dissolved in 1/4 cup of water
•    2 cups chicken stock (broth)
•    3 tablespoons of sesame oil
•    3 tablespoons of patis (fish sauce)
•    4 tablespoons of corn oil or vegetable oil
•    Salt to taste

Procedures:

•    In a big pan or wok, sauté garlic, onions then add in the pork. chicken liver and gizzard. Add 1 cup of stock, pinch of salt and simmer for 15 minutes or until pork and chicken giblets are cooked.
•    Mix in the shrimp then all the vegetables. Add the remaining 1 cup of stock, patis and the dissolved cornstarch. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables are done. Add the sesame oil.
•    Salt and pepper to taste.
•    Serve hot with rice.