A Perfect Sunday Lunch

I enjoy food, there's no doubt about that! I am also quick to compliment anybody,  relative or friend, who can cook and whip up an excellent, mean dish. I don't claim to be a good cook myself and even admit that I am only a mediocre cook, but an expert "eater."

I, however, come from a family who are experts at cooking. My family loves Caldereta. It is a dish that has been adapted from the Spanish during their Philippine occupancy from 1521 to 1898 and us Filipino’s did not waste any of our time making our own version. Caldereta is goat meat stewed with vegetables that may include tomatoes, potatoes, olives, bell peppers and hot peppers. As special at it may seem, preparing something like this takes some time, for the meat to tenderize, and patience. But it is all worth the wait.

Preparing this Filipino goat meat stew does not need to be so complicated. Before you know it, this will be your favorite dish to prepare.

You will need:

2 tbsps  Cooking Oil (for sauteing)
2 tbsps  Garlic (crushed)
1/4 cup  Onion (sliced)
500 grams Goat Meat (preferably short ribs, cut up)
2 cups Water   
3/4 cup  Potato (cut into chunks)
3/4 cup Carrots (cut into chunks)
3/4 cup Saba (cut into chunks)
1 pc Laurel leaf
1/2 tsps Salt   
1/4 tsp Black Pepper   
1 pc Siling Labuyo (sliced, optional)
1/2 cup Green Peas (cooked or frozen)
1/4 cup Red Bell Pepper    (cut into strips)
1/4 cup Green Bell Pepper (cut into strips)
1 pouch (200 grams) Tomato Sauce

The secret in preparing a good Caldereta is all in the meat. Using high quality meat can make or break the outcome of your dish. Since goat meat is not readily available in the market, beef can be used as an alternative and you can make "Bakareta" instead.

The trick in cooking Caldereta is browning the meat and making use of the part that caramelizes at the bottom of the pot to enhance the flavor of the broth. This will leave you with a broth that's richly flavored, providing a great taste to your Caldereta. Immediately add cooking oil after the meat is removed. Saute garlic and onions. Add water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 2-3 hours or until meat is tender.

Add Tomato Sauce, potato, carrots, laurel leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and turn down heat to simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Add green peas, saba and bell peppers. Bring to a boil then simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Serve hot over a HUGE bed of rice. The fact that Caldereta tastes way better when reheated the next day, makes it a great and time saving party alternative.

I would love to put more words for this dish but Caldereta is now being served at the dining table. The tantalizing aroma is calling out to me “come and indulge!” What the heck! It is the weekend, after all!

Right, off I go now... but before that let me remind you to put some extra cups of rice in the rice cooker. Happy eating!

Getting the Japanese Vibe with Summer Kimonos

I love kimonos, no, I’m pretty crazy about kimonos! They're so relaxed but still dressed up and you can pretty much wear them year round... from my part of the world though, I can! Although I cannot shake the urge to compare it with a cape and the superpowers a Kimono might hold.

Just think about it! What if you'd turn into a superhero when wearing one. A superhero in a Kimono who can wear pink hair in 20-inch stilettos, ride motorcycles through the desert without an inch of hair getting out of place, sing better than Beyonce. Not such a bad idea, isn't it? All these may be too stretched from reality, but hey, give the Kimono a try. It is after all pretty versatile and fabulous, a hidden superpower may not be such a far cry from the truth.

The kimono is an iconic Japanese garment that was worn for thousands of years. It literally means a thing to wear (ki- “wear” and -mono “thing”). But recently, Kimonos have become everyone's favorite current "trend." I use that term lightly because kimonos are a timeless and classic summer staple. Summer kimonos come in a million different styles: long, short, midi, with prints, with fringes, silky, oversized. Kimonos are an excellent way to brighten up any outfit. It’s incredibly feminine, very sexy, it’s boho chic, it’s Alexa Chung meets Vanessa Hudgens cool and it always adds just the right amount of oomph to any look. One can wear this over anything, even over a posh skirt or jeans. They do look most fabulous over a pair of shorts, mini skirts or short dresses, tank tops, bustier tops, over swimsuits, and just about over anything you’d actually wear on a hot summer day or night. Wear it as a silky jacket or as a sexy, sophisticated cover up. Or wear it at home over your grungiest pair of shorts or PJs, and you’ll still end up looking fab while having coffee. Wear it for the jazz of it, not because you’re cold or you’d look better in it, but because it adds a bit of color and sophistication to an otherwise boring outfit. If you chuck something big and gaudy over the top, it tricks people into believing you’ve made an effort.

How to wear a summer kimono? Just throw one on. It can be bohemian, gypsy knock out beauty, western cool, effortless sexy housewife , feminine, grungy, posh boho – incredibly trendy! Whichever way you choose to wear it there is no denying the kimono is the perfectly practical and endlessly versatile summer staple.

What do you think? Oh and did I tell you I get my kimonos from GAMÂ Handcrafts, an arts & crafts store in Cebu City, Philippines.

Breakfast Heaven: Chewy, Crispy, Gooey, Reddish, Sticky Mess!

I was craving for big, fat, stubby chorizo last week --- another one on my food memories, one that's sure to last me a lifetime (what is it with food that brings back so many good memories of childhood?). My Mama Lily used to make the best chorizos, I kid you not! I haven’t tasted any other chorizo in the world close to the ones she used to make.

Her chorizo are stubby links of sausages that's sweet and has just a wee bit of spice into it. She used lots of garlic and paprika giving it a bit of the spicy kick.

Basic chorizo recipe (although this does not give justice to the kind Mama Lily made):

You will need:

    1 kg ground pork
    1 1/2 tsp iodized salt
    1 1/2 tsp vinegar
    2 tsp bread crumbs
    1 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
    2 tsp all purpose seasoning (eg Knorr Aromat)
    2 tsp paprika
    3 tsp garlic, minced
    250 g (0.55 lb) brown sugar
    sausage wrapper (optional)

    Prepare the sausage wrapper. If you’re going to use sausage casing, prepare it by soaking it in cold water for about 30 minutes for it to soften. After which, you have to run water through it to remove excess salt. Don’t forget to check for leaks. On the other hand, if you don’t want to use a sausage wrapper, you can also roll the chorizo into balls.
   
    Season ground meat with salt, pepper, all-purpose seasoning,paprika and brown sugar. Add minced garlic and vinegar. Mix well.

    Stuff your casing or wrapper with your meat mixture. Form links as desired.
  

These "native" chorizos have a different way of cooking and eating. Place the chubby, stubby links in a pan and pour enough water to come about halfway up the sides of the links.  Simmer over medium-to-high heat, turning the sausages until all the water evaporates, about 5 to 10 minutes, and keep an eye on “air pockets”, which you will need to prick with a toothpick to release the air. Beware of the fat that shoots out of those pockets, though.

Add oil and fry until golden brown. Serve the chorizo over steaming hot rice and toss it around to allow the caramelized-casing-goodness of the chorizo marry with the rice.

So, after days of searching for the perfect "native" chorizo, I finally found the kind I was craving for (similar, but not quite like Mama Lily's, but close enough) at the local grocery. It was breakfast for dinner once again! Steaming hot rice, eggs sunny-side-up. Chubby, stubby sausages charred to a crisp.



 
The result? Chewy, crispy, gooey, reddish, sticky mess! Yum! Dinner was what I called a chorizo style breakfast heaven!