Browsing Category Recipes

Ahhh! I don’t know about you but to me, the best things in life are the simple things. I guess it depends on who you’re talking to. Some folks might have a different definition of the word simple. Someone might possess a Mercedes Benz, a Rolex watch, a 6,000 square foot house and to them, [...]

This last Sunday was kind of a slow day for me at least as far as work and business is concern. In a way, it’s a good thing because my son and I went to have lunch in a nearby hospital with a nurse who took care of me when I got sick last year. [...]

Macaroni salad brings back a lot of memories because it’s a dish that’s always present in almost every Filipino occasions like Christmas, New Years, and Birthdays. There are several variations or versions of Macaroni Salad.  I have seen other cooks adding shredded chicken, carrot strips,  diced celery,  beef tongue, and even sliced pickles  but my [...]

Ms. Lala of Kulinarya Club came up with a cooking challenge and it’s about decadent Filipino food. When I think about the word decadence, the first thing that comes to my mind is "neglect or decay" of something that was once great and prominent. I guess we can also apply the definition to food like [...]

Another no-meat Friday especially for a Catholic family like ours and this is going to go on until after the lent season which will be Easter Sunday. Well, this is what I cooked and served for my family last night and everyone enjoyed it, so I guess Mister Carnivore like me can’t complain huh!. I [...]

Growing up as a Filipino Catholic under a strict guidance of a Filipino Catholic parents especially my father was not a walk on a park. There’s a lot of rules in the house and one of the rules was the strict observance of the lent season; that means we always have No-Meat-Fridays during the season. [...]

I borrowed and adapted another delicious recipe from uncle Chef Martin Yan and this is from his book “Everybody’s Wokking.” According to him these wings are hot because of the peppery sauce. Well, I cooked it and to me it wasn’t that hot. Okay, okay a little caveat on that last statement. My taste buds [...]

Everytime I cook and serve Chicken Mami, it always reminds me of this restaurant in Manila; it’s in small but bustling town in Quezon City called Cubao and the restaurant’s name was Ma Mon Luk! My dad used to take us to this restaurant after countless movie nights along Aurora Boulevard. I remember we always [...]

This delicious treat was a delightful dish during my younger years (please don’t ask when it was) back in Manila. It’s usually sold in the carinderias inside the Market. Now, what are carinderias inside the market? These are group of small eateries congregated in one place inside a big market where customers sit on a [...]

Once in a while, I like taking a break from cooking Filipino foods to explore other Asian culinary adventures. Today we are going to be making Shrimp Pad Thai — one of my favorite in Thai’s delicious dishes. Did you know that Pad Thai is one of Thailand’s national dishes? So, going to a Thai [...]

I’ve got an interesting message in Facebook the other day that someone was looking for photos of balut. The message was from Romie – a high school buddy whom I kept in touch with. He is also a hobbyist photographer like me but he specializes in Fashion photography; in short, he takes pictures of gorgeous [...]

Pinangat na isda or stewed fish reminds me of sinigang and also Tom Yum – – their distant cousin in Southeast Asian Countries like Thailand. They all have this sourness in their flavors (minus the heat) that give us pleasure each time we take a sip of their soup. To me, this dish and its [...]

. Here is a good pancake recipe for you – – Ube Jam pancake. Okay, what is Ube Jam? Ube jam or most Filipinos call it “Ube Halaya” is made from purple yam, evaporated and condensed milk, and butter or margarine. I can still remember my grandma when she used to make this delicious dish. [...]

Kulinarya’s March theme is about Filipino vegetable dish and “Vegetable” playing the main role. There are a lot of savory Filipino vegetable dish like Pinakbet, Adobong Sitaw (String Beans Adobo), Ukoy (Shrimp Fritters), Rellenong Talong (Stuffed Eggplant), etc. I chose Tofu (in the the Philippines, we call it Tokwa), because of its versatility as far [...]

Chinese Style Pork Barbecue AKA “Char Siu” is one of my favorite Cantonese dish. It is succulent, tender, and savory. It can be found in many Chinese dishes like Fried Rice, Chow Mein, and Soups. We can also find this yummy gem on most of the popular Dim Sum joints and of course my favorite [...]

Are avocados fruit or vegetables? Botanically, avocados are considered fruit but in the kitchen (especially mine), it is considered both. I’ve used and I’ve seen avocados in different culinary applications like sandwiches, salads, dips, and shakes. Shakes? Yes mam and yes sir! Shakes as in sweet-cold drinks and shakes as in milkshakes. Avocado shake is [...]

I cooked this barbecue this morning for my wife who needs it for potluck at her work in the hospital. I actually cooked about 10 lbs of this spareribs, so there will be extra for me and my son to eat after we drop off the food. Make sure you have lots of paper towels [...]

Looking for easy fish recipe for lunch or dinner? Here it is – crispy fried Trout with Mango salsa to go with it. This is the type of dish we like making and eating on lazy-just kicking back kind of weekends. Something that we would feast on our backyard table with no utensils, just the [...]

This delicious dish – Beef with Asparagus Pancit is my post for the Kulinarya Club’s challenge for the month of February. One of the many wonderful folks in the group came up with a challenge, which is of course in time for the month where most of us celebrate Valentines. The rule is this, and [...]

If you like shrimp, Camaron Rebosado is a perfect dish that is very simple to prepare. Some people like using large shrimp and some prefer the medium size. My preference depends on what I am serving Camaron Rebosado for. If I am cooking it as a family meal, I would use the large-sized shrimp and [...]

  Kamote Cue is a typical Filipino Merienda or snacks that have been and still part of the street food culture, along with Banana Cue, Maruya, and Turon. It is simply Sweet Potatoes, deep fried with caramelized brown sugar then served on bamboo skewers. The reason for a Kamote Cue being on a skewer is [...]

I learned about this dish many years ago from a classic Chinese cookbook named “Classic Chinese Cookbook” LOL! Seriously, that is the title of the book and the author’s name is Yan-Kit. Well, of course I always, always try the recipe then disassemble and reassemble if needed, to create not necessarily a more superior dish, [...]

At first, I was kind of hesitant in posting this dish, why? C’mon, ninety nine point nine hundred ninety nine percent of people especially Filipinos know how to cook Adobo and that includes me adding my self in the nine thousandth place in the decimal. So, I beg your indulgence while I add my version [...]

Okay my Kulinarya friends, I chose Maruya because it’s one of my favorite street food when I was growing up in Quezon City. Of course back then, we didn’t have the luxury of eating this meryenda (snack) topped with jack fruit and ice cream on the side; that would have been too sosyal!! Now, when [...]

This recipe was inspired by the popular Vietnamese Food Truck – Nom Nom where ingredients are the fusion of Asian and South American origin. It’s a great backyard party kind of food especially with ice-cold lemonade (check out our recipe for Basil-Mint lemonade) or cold-foam-dripping beer. The only thing about this dish is you gotta [...]

Recipe of this delicious and almost exotic Lemonade came from my daughter – Kareena. I love having this drink especially with grilled dishes like Korean Grilled Beef, Barbecue on the Sticks, or even with Bahn Mi Taco. Next time you’re having a party, try this lemonade with a unique twist. INGREDIENTS: 1 ¾ – 2 [...]

I tried googling this dish but I couldn’t find anything that refers to it. Wait a minute. Googling? Sorry, up to now I still feel uncomfortable using that word as a verb but I guess I’ll get used to it. Anyway, I looked and used all the possible keywords but it turned out – NOTHING! [...]

I dug up this recipe from one of my collections of cookbooks and it’s from one of my favorite Chinese chefs – Martin Yan. He said “Braising is one of the most popular cooking techniques in many parts of China” and after cooking this dish, you’ll see that Mr. Yan is absolutely right. In my [...]

It’s always our family’s belief that if you start the first day of the year with abundance of good things, you will have abundance of good things throughout the year! So, every New Year’s day, we welcome the year with food – Lots of it. This year, we cooked different varieties of seafood like Fish, [...]

Tracing back its history, Champorado or Champpurado was introduced to Filipinos by Mexican traders during the Galleon Trade era. It was originally and still is a chocolate drink in Mexico but eventually, Filipinos found a way to turn this drink into a meal by adding rice and more specifically – sticky rice. I remember we [...]

||||||||||||||| Seafood is something our family love to feast on and can’t get enough of. Whether we are in Fisherman’s Wharf in Ventura here in California or just a simple-fun weekend get-together in our backyard; crab is always one of the favorites. In this recipe, we will use Blue Crabs which are medium size crabs. [...]

Whether it’s Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year, we will always have this main dish leftover that we don’t know what to do with. It can be Chicken, Turkey, or Ham. If you have this dilemma every year, why not make a Filipino style macaroni soup out of it. In this recipe we will use Ham [...]

Lo Mein is a noodle dish where ingredients come in different variations. Some are cooked with beef, chicken, pork, seafood or just vegetables. My favorite is the combination of chicken, seafood, and vegetables. I like cooking this dish using thick Chinese Noodles and of course you can always get it from your favorite Asian Supermarkets [...]

Maruya takes me back to one of my childhood favorite treats. I can still remember skipping lunch in order to save my school lunch money so I could buy Maruya on my way home from school. Maruya is often cooked and sold by street vendors in Manila along with Turon, and Banana Cues. It’s a [...]

Bulgogi is a dish that we always order every time we visit our favorite Korean restaurants. It is best eaten right after grilling while it is still sizzling hot and served with hot steamed rice and side dishes like Kim Chee or pickled veggies like carrots, and cucumbers. The main thing about this dish is [...]

This Fish Cake was cooked by my daughter Kareena, so I’m not going to take any credits for this dish. I was just an observer and taste tester. Okay, okay not just a taste tester; I actually gobbled a lot of them. Hey! It was good and you should try it. She used fresh salmon [...]

Yummy dish yet very simple to prepare and cook. The Marinating time on this dish takes a lot longer than the actual cooking time and preparation is just breeze. You can also buy these shrimp already peeled and deveined in most major supermarkets. All you have to do is marinate and grill and you are [...]

Whenever I get a chance to go to my favorite Asian Supermarkets like 99 Ranch Market or Seafood City, I usually pick up a pack of Steamed Chow Mein noodle. The one that I always use is the semi-dried ones with small strands. Most of the time half of the package is all I need [...]

Are you looking for a quick fish dish to cook tonight? Try this yummy recipe, it only took me 30 minutes to cook. You may add more pepper if you like or you may also completely eliminate them – it’s your choice. For me I like my food HOT, HOT, HOT! Serves 4 Preparation Time: [...]

I adapted this recipe (with some variation) from one of my favorite Chinese chef and uncle – Martin Yan. Okay he’s not my uncle; he’s actually my auntie hahaha! Just kidding. I just wish he is my uncle but I’m sure he doesn’t share the same wish. Hey wait a minute!!! Let’s just imagine if [...]

Escabeche is a Filipino dish that is easy to prepare and cook. You can use fillet of Rock Cod, fillet of Red Snapper or even fillet of Tilapia. You can also use whole fish if you’d like. My only fuzz about using whole fish is – if I am already cooking the dish, I don’t [...]

This dish is very easy to prepare and best eaten with a concoction of vinegar and garlic dipping sauce. Some folks like to eat this delicious barbecue with pickled shredded papaya (AKA achara) on the side. During my high school days in the Philippines, way back when (Ok it’s a statement and not a question, [...]

Popularly known in Spanish language as Albondigas, meaning “meatballs;” In the Philippines it is called Almondigas. My question is . . . where are the almonds? Okay just kidding. It also means meatballs or in Tagalog, it means bola bola. Almondigas is a soup dish that has meatballs and noodles. Some cooks use misua AKA [...]

Flavor of many Filipino dishes get better as they are kept in the fridge safely for few days and Paksiw na Pata is one of them. I remember my dad making this dish then stored it in the fridge for days before serving. I was just a little boy back then and I thought it [...]

Hmm, where is that package of Salmon my wife bought yesterday? I know it’s here in the freezer somewhere . . . yesss I found it! Wait, what’s that? I think the salmon just spoke to me and said something. Ah okay, Salmon says. . . Let’s grill. OMG, am I going to be grilling [...]

The other night, my cell phone rang and it was a friend telling me about ”White Rabbit Truck” being in our area here in Santa Clarita.  White Rabbit Truck is a Filipino catering truck that goes around different areas in Los Angeles vending Filipino food.  It is the Filipino version of the famous Kogi truck.  So [...]

Tess (my wife) and I were in an Asian Supermarket the other day buying our catering stuff and I came across a frozen package of shredded coconut in one of their freezer.  All of the sudden, I got this craving for Coconut juice drink. So, I picked up one package and also picked up two [...]

Beef Mami is a very popular dish served in most Chinese Restaurants in Manila along with Chicken Arroz Caldo, and Goto (Porridge with Beef Tripe).  First time I tasted this delicious noodle soup is when I was in high school when my dad took me to this hole-in-a-wall Chinese Restaurant called Cho-Nam. Here in Los [...]

I got introduced into eating tofu, especially Tokwa Baboy (Braised Tofu with Pork), during my teenage years when my parents used to take me to see movies in Manila.  I remember always having dinner in this hole-in-a-wall Chinese restaurant called Cho Nam near Quiapo Church. This dish is one of their specialties along with Pata [...]

Chicken Tinola is a chicken soup (some prefer to call it chicken stew) that every moms, grandmas, and aunts always made and prepared. Purest would insist on using green papaya, and chili pepper leaves as their veggies but of course you may always substitute papaya with chayote, and chili pepper leaves with spinach. Here in [...]