Bistek

Ingredients:

1 lb pound beef (cut thinly)
4-5 calamansi
2 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp ground pepper
2 big onions (cut in rings)
3 tbs cooking oil

Place meat in a marinade pan. Add calamansi, soy sauce, and ground black pepper. Marinade for about 2 hours. In a frying pan, heat oil and cook beef for about 5 minutes. Add marinade and cover until meat is tender. Add onion rings and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

Variations: Some people add garlic.

Pancit Bihon

Ingredients

1 pck rice noodles (bihon)
1/2 lb chicken (cut in sm pieces)
4 cloves of garlic (crushed)
1 head of green onion (chopped)
2-3 eggs (boiled and cut in wedges)
2 sm carrots (julliened)
1/2 head of cabbage (shredded coarsely)
1 sm onion (sliced thinly)
3 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs cooking oil
2 cups of water
1/2 c achuete water
salt and pepper to taste
4-5 calamansi (halved)
1/2 c cilantro (chopped)

Noodle Preparation: Boil water in a sauce pan. Place noodles in a large bowl and pour hot water in it. Let sit until noodle is soft. Drain water out and set aside.

Chicken Preparation: Put chicken pieces in a pot and cover with water. Let boil and simmer until chicken is tender. Take chicken and debone. Set chicken strips and broth aside.

In a large pan, heat cooking oil and saute garlic and onion until onion is translucent. Add chicken, carrots and soy sauce and saute for about 2 minutes. Add broth, achuete water and salt and pepper. Let cook for about a minute or so and add the cabbage and noodles. Stir occassionally to prevent noodles from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook until the cabbage is cooked. Add chopped cilantro and stir one more time. Serve topped with egg wedges, green onion and calamansi.

Note: Your pancit should be yellowish and the vegetables shouldn't be overcooked. You may also add sesame oil.

Batchoy

Ingredients:

1 c pork (diced)
1/2 c pork/beef liver (diced)
1/4 c pork/beef kidney (diced)
4-5 c broth (or water)
1 medium onion (thinly sliced)
1/2 inch ginger root (thinly sliced)
1 tbs patis (fish sauce)
black pepper to taste
1 c pepper leaves or 2 green onion (chopped)
1 tbs cooking oil

In a sauce pan, heat oil and saute ginger and onion until onion is translucent. Add meat, liver, kidney, and patis. Stir for 3 minutes. Add broth or water and let it boil. After boiling, simmer until the meat is done. Add ground black pepper and green onions. Serve with steamed rice and bagoong.

Variations: You can add misua. The recipe also calls for garlic, but I like mine with lots of ginger instead.

Tinolang Manuk

Ingredients:

1 lb whole chicken (cut in small pieces)
2 tbs cooking oil
1 sm piece of ginger (thinly sliced)
1 sm onion (thinly sliced)
1 medium sized green papaya (peeled, seeded, cut into cubes)
3 tbs patis (fish sauce)
4-5 c rice water/plain water
1 c mallunggay leaves

In a pot, heat cooking oil. Saute ginger and onion until onion is translucent. Add patis and chicken. Saute and simmer for about 3-5 minutes. Pour in rice water (or plain water) and bring to a boil. Simmer and cook for about 30 minutes. Add papaya and continue cooking until the papaya is tender. Add the mallunggay leaves and cook for another 3 minutes. Serve hot with steamed rice and bagoong.

Variations: You can use chayote if green papaya is not available. You can also replaced mallungay with dahon ng sili or onion leaves.

Lelut Manuk (Porridge)

Ingredients:

1 lb chicken (bite size)
1 cup rice (unwashed)
1/4 c malagkit (optional)
2 tbs patis (fish sauce)
6-8 cloves of garlic (crushed)
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 sq inch ginger (sliced thinly)
6 c water
2 tbs cooking oil
2 stalks of green onion (chopped)
1 tsp kasubha (or saffron) for color

In a pan, saute garlic in oil until brown. Remove from oil and set aside. In a medium pot, saute onion, ginger for about 3-4 minutes or until onion is translucent. Add chicken pieces. Stir for about 3 minutes. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add rice and malagkit, stir for about 3 minutes. Add water. Let boil and simmer for about 30 minutes or until chicken and rice is done. Stir occassionally to prevent rice from sticking. Add kasubha and let cook for another 2 minutes. Serve with chopped onion, garlic, calamansi, and patis.

Variations: Chicken can be replaced with chicken innards and stomach (tripe). For some, meat is excluded completely.

Papaya Ukoy

Ingredients:

2 c all purpose-flour
salt & pepper to taste
3/4 c water
2 c green papaya (grated)
1 sm onion (chopped)
200 g small fresh shrimps, (cleaned and drained)
1 c oil

Mix flour, salt, pepper and water together to make a smooth batter. Add grated papaya and onion. Place 2-3 tbs of mixture in a saucer to form patties and press 2-3 shrimps on top. In a large skillet, heat cooking oil. Fry the patties until golden brown and crispy. Serve with vinegar and garlic sauce.

Kilain

Ingredients

1 k pork belly (diced)
1/4 k. pork liver (diced)
1/2 c vinegar
1 whole garlic (crushed)
sal and pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
1 sm onion (finely chopped)
1/2 c water (optional)

Mix together the raw pork belly, liver, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper. Marinate for about 30 minutes or more.

In a pan, saute garlic and the onion and then add the marinated mixture. Let boil for about 10 minutes until fat comes out from the pork. Add 1/2 c water (if necessary). Simmer until pork is tender.

Lumpiang Shanghai

Ingredients

3 c round ground pork
1 1/4 carrots (finely chopped)
1 med onion (finely chopped)
2 tbs spring onions (finely chopped)
1 egg (beaten)
50 Lumpia wrapper
1 pc egg white, beaten
1/2 c flour
1 c cooking oil
salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, combine ground pork, carrots, onions, spring onions, beaten egg and salt and pepper to taste. Scoop 1 tbs of the mixture onto a wrapper and roll tightly. Seal the edges with water and egg whites. Cut in half and dip both ends in some flour. Fry until golden brown.