Peanut Sauce? Oh Kare Kare!

This is a traditional Filipino dish served on special occasions as well as family dinners, again it has variants but everything revolves around the combination of the rich, thick flavored peanut sauce combined with the delectable salty taste of a shrimp paste (alamang). One of my college kumare asked for a Kare Kare recipe. So here it goes, enjoy!


Toi's Kare Kare

• 1/4 cup peanut oil
• 2-3 pounds oxtails
• 1-2 pounds beef tripe
• 1 large onion, peeled and sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 1 and 1/2 cups beef stock homemade or use canned
• 1 and 1/2 cups water
• Salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons annatto oil
• 3 tablespoons peanut butter mixed with 1/2 cup hot tap water
• Several shots of Tabasco, or more to taste

Toi's Alamang

• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 1 small tomato, sliced
• 4 tablespoons alamang

Cooking Directions

Kare Kare
1. Heat a large frying pan and add 3 tablespoons of the peanut oil. Fry the the oxtails until brown. Make sure that both sides are well. Place it in a pot
2. Boil the Ox Tripes for a few minutes, drain, and cool. Cut the tripe into strips 1/2 inch wide and 3 inches long. Add these to the oxtail pot.
3. Add peanut oil to the frying pan and saute the onion and garlic. Add to the oxtail pot along with the tomato, beef stock, water, salt, and annatto oil. Cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours. Simmer partially covered for another 1-1/2 hours, stirring now and then.
4. At the beginning of the last hour of cooking, add the peanut butter mixture and the Tabasco. Taste and add more Tabasco and salt if needed. If all is not very tender, continue to cook a bit longer.

Shrimp Paste
1. Saute garlic, onions and tomato in a little oil. Add alamang. Saute for another minute.
2. Serve alongside the Kare Kare.

Pork ala Papa Sprite

Yes! Believe it or not, thats what I call this recipe. I really dont know the original name for this. I got this smoking Filipino recipe from my Granny. Years ago, when I was a kid, I always wondered on what my grandmother is doing with the Sprite.

Since we all know that its a softdrink. I never knew that I can be used for cooking. This Filipino pork recipe is a mix blend of sweet with a bit of a sour taste. Try this at your own risk! hahaha.


Toi's Pork ala Papa Sprite

• Kilo Pork Liempo, cut into serving size
• 2 Bottles of Sprite (12 oz)
• Pimientos
• Salt
• Banana Ketchup (Preferably, Papa Banana Ketchup)

Cooking Directions

1. Combine the pork and pimientos inside a big pot and pour in the Sprite.
2. Bring in to boil until the pork is tender.
3. Wait till the pork completely absorbs all the Sprite
4. Let the pork simmer a bit until the grease comes out.
5. Transfer to a frying pan and fry the pork until its brown.
6. Add in a few pinch of salt to taste.
7. Pour in the banana ketchup and let it simmer till the all the pork is covered in ketchup.
8. Let the ketchup sink in to the pork.

Serve in hot!!

Pork Nilaga dito! Pork Nilaga doon!

I usually cook during my weekend off days. While my wife, being in a call center, has an erratic off schedule. We know that busy people dont have much time to cook food so they resort to fast ones such as Hotdogs, Sunny Side Up Eggs, Bacon and any other Cold Cuts. Since its my rest day, I decided to cook a nice healthy early breakfast (2am) for my wife.

Pork Nilaga is one of the easiest Filipino recipes to learn. Nilaga in English is defined as boiled. Like other Filipino Recipes, the nilaga has different variations. You can either use pork or beef. The broth will be much tastier if you use Buto-Buto (Spareribs or Leg part, with the bone marrow). The vegetables that are used in the recipe also varies. The only limit is your creativity. My version of Pork nilaga is for those that have busy schedule and are always on the go since the preparation and cooking time is very minimal. Try it for yourselves.

Toi's Nilagang Buto Buto

• Kilo Pork , Ribs or Pata (Cut into 1 inch slices)
  
• 1 Large Potato, cut into serving portions
  
• Onion (quartered)
• 2 pcs. (corn cut into small serving portions) (Optional)
  
• 1 bundle Baguio Beans
  
• Half Cabbage or 1 bundle of Pechay
  
• Salt and Patis(Fish Sauce) to taste
• 1 clove ginger, mashed, peel of the skin.
  
• Water
• 1 teaspoon salt
  

Cooking Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients into the pot except the cabbage, baguio beans, fish sauce.
2. Boil them in high temp. Make sure that the pork, potato and corn are cooked well and tender.
3. Lower the temperature and throw in the cabbage and baguio beans.
4. Make sure that the green veggies are not overcooked.
5. Season with Patis(Fish Sauce) to taste.
6. Remove from heat and serve hot.
7. Enjoy!

Ang Asim ng Pork Sinigang!

One of the best native recipe of Filipinos is Sinigang. Just like the Adobo, sinigang has lots of variations. You can either choose pork, fish, beef and even chicken. Though I have never tried chicken, they all share the same sour soup taste. I even saw the famous mountaineer, "Romy Garduce" using corned beef as a substitute. Kindly check out my own version of Pork Sinigang. Truly a delicate Filipino Recipe.


Toi's Pork Sinigang

• Kilo Pork or Ribs (Cut into 1 inch slices)
  
• 10-15 pcs Tamarind (Sampaloc) (or one packet of any commercial sinigang mix)
• Onion (diced)
• 5 big tomatoes (quartered)
• 1 piece Radish (sliced)
• 1 bundle Sitaw Stringbeans
  
• 1 bundle Kangkong (river spinach
  
• Salt and Patis(Fish Sauce) to taste
• 3 pcs. Gabi (Taro)
  
• cups water

Cooking Directions

1. Boil Tamarind to soften. Pound, remove seed, keep the meaty part and strain all juices and set aside.
2. In a casserole, bring pork to a boil, drop in the taro, lower fire and simmer until pork is tender.
3. Bring in the onions, tomatoes and Tamarind juice (OR sinigang mix).
4. Add in all the vegetables .
5. Season with salt and Patis to taste.
6. Best Served hot under cold weather. Yum! Yum!

Anong Ulam? Adobo?

"Honey, whats for dinner? Guess what my wife prepared for tonight? The old fashioned, home cooked adobo. "

This is one Filipino dish that has lived up to its name. This Filipino recipe is considered to be the number one choice for all Filipinos. Life will never be complete without this masterpiece. I will never forget the salty, sour taste of pork and chicken mixed with pepper coupled with hot rice. Which made me think, who made the very first adobo recipe?

There are gazillion adobo and chicken adobo recipe. Every Filipino family have their own recipe and every region has his own variant. You just have to see what fits your taste. This is my very own recipe version of adobo. I hope you'll like it.

Toi's Adobo

• 1 kg pork lomo (this is a rounded shaped, fatless), cut into desired portions
• 3 cloves garlie - crushed
• 1/2 - 2/3 cup vinegar
• 1 pinch peppercorns - crushed
• 1 bay leaf, optional
• 1-2 tablespoon water
• 1 tsp rock salt
• 1 tablespoon of patis (fish sauce)
• additional water
  

Cooking Directions

1. Saute the garlic till its brown.
2. Add the pork with 1-2 tablespoons of water.
3. Let the meat simmer.
4. Fry the pork under its own fat.
5. Toss in the peppercorns, and bay leaf.
6. Pour in the vinegar.
7. Add a little water and let it boil in low heat until the pork is soft and tender.
(dont let the water dry
8. Pour in the patis or soy sauce, depending on your preference.
9. Serve on top of rice, ENJOY!