Im trying to limit our intake of pork to once a week (or twice) – usually when Edil is here. The kids don’t like pork too much and well, it would not do me any good if I *ate* pork. So I bought around 3kilos of chicken last Saturday to be made into different meals to last us the whole week.

The question is: What to do with the chicken?

So far here is my list: Afritada (Martha really really loves this, can eat it everyday), Chicken with Pineapple, Quail Eggs and Milk (What’s this name?), and ____________.

I dont want another tinola, nilaga in the week so I was looking for chicken recipes at Glo’s EZRecipe site. I am very curious about the Green Thai Coconut Curry Chicken Wraps but Im sure my kids wont eat those.

So besides fried chicken and soup (prikaknorr!), what would be the best option for kid-friendly CHICKEN meals?

I’ve boasted about cooking a few a days ago and have just about now gone about into posting it
This is based on my all-time favorite food - my Mom’s version of spaghetti. She has always cooked it this way until a few months ago when she went with olives and capers (true Italian spaghetti) and well, I dont know what I like more

Ill stick with her old version because it is cheaper though (heehee).

Here it is:

1kg spaghetti
3/4 ground pork
1 can of mushrooms
1 pack all-purpose cream
1 large pack of tomato sauce - dont get the Filipino style or Italian style or whatever style there is out there, just get the tomato sauce (Original)
Worcheister Sauce for seasoning

And your usual onions, garlic and cheese.

Cook spaghetti the usual way (How’s that for instructions eh?! LOL) but add 3/4 of the cream and season with Worcheister sauce. It will give a creamier (hey, that’s why we added cream!) and tangier taste. We usually use Parmesan cheese (if we had it) but if we use cheese, we would use the brand Ques-o.

I can eat it all day. Even for two days.
And have it for merienda the whole week. The problem is, it is usually gone by the end of the day.
Like the day I cooked it.

For the record, my Mom cooked spaghetti with olives and capers last Saturday and I still have leftovers (for breakfast tomorrow).

Lakwatsera is a friend who is forever telling me to cook, Im swiping these off her blog.

PANCAKES RECIPE
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla (or more if you like alot of vanilla)
1 3/4 cups milk (more or less to make smooth consistency)
1/2 cup blueberries (blueberry pie filling with do the trick as well)

Mix all dry ingredients in a med. size bowl.
Then add enough milk and stir until smooth.
Add eggs. Add vanilla.
Stir again.
If needed, add more milk. The batter should be a bit on the thin consistency side.
Let these set for about 5 min, and they will thicken a little.
Combine berries or pie filling and lightly stir.
Drop batter on either a ungreased griddle, or a non stick fry pan on low-medium heat. The first pancake is always the test to see if your pan is on the right heat.

Serve with butter and your choice of syrup. I like mine with just butter.

STEAK WITH MUSHROOM SAUCE
TENDERLOIN
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Kosher salt, to taste
1 tenderloin of beef (3 pounds), sliced to 3/4-1 inch thickness across the grain
1 tablespoon flour
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons oil
1 stick of butter

1. In a small bowl, mix together the flour, mustard, garlic, salt, and plenty of pepper. Stir in the oil. Rub the mixture all over the beef. Set aside in the refrigerator for 1/2 hour.
2. In a pan heat butter and cook steaks 3-4 minutes on each side (for medium) or longer if preferred. Keep warm in a very low oven or a plate over boiling water.

SAUCE
1/2 pound crimini or baby bella mushrooms
1/2 pound oyster mushrooms
1/2 pound white mushrooms
1/4 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems removed
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups port
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup dry red wine
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

1. Wipe the mushrooms with paper towels. Chop them coarsely.
2. In a heavy-based skillet, melt the butter. When it is foaming, add the mushrooms, salt, and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until the mushrooms release their liquid. Turn up the heat and continue cooking for 5 minutes more. Remove the mushrooms from the pan.
3. Add the port and bring to a boil. Let the mixture bubble steadily until it reduces to 1 cup. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Let the mixture bubble steadily until it reduces to 1 1/2 cups.
4. Return the mushrooms and any juices to the pan. Warm them in the sauce. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if you like.
5. When the meat is cooked, transfer it to a cutting board and set it in a warm place for 10 minutes.
6. Add the wine to the roasting pan and set it over a burner. Bring to a boil, stirring to release any sediment in the pan. Let the mixture bubble steadily until it reduces to 1/2 cup.
7. Tip the red wine mixture into the mushroom sauce and reheat slowly. Add the butter and stir over low heat until the butter melts. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if you like. Serve over steak.

GUINATAANG MAIS (Rice Porridge with Corn)
Ingredients
1 can cream of sweet corn
1 can whole kernel sweet corn
1/2 cup sticky rice
2 cans light coconut milk
1 1/2 can water (used the coconut milk can to measure)
1/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt

1/2 can coconut cream (optional)

1. In a pot, bring to boil the coconut milk, liquid from the whole kernel corn, sugar and salt. Taste the soup to see if it is sweet enough for you. If not, add more sugar.
2. Add the glutinous rice, bring back to boil then lower down the heat and simmer until the rice is almost cooked.
3. Stir in the corn and simmer again until rice is cooked.
4. Serve hot or cold with some coconut cream on top.

Edil’s favorite - my mother-in-law’s famous dish as well. My MIL cooks this using tomato sauce and pineapples though.

Ingredients:
1½ kilo pork leg (chopped)
1 head of garlic (minced)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine
1 tablespoons patis (fish sauce)
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 cup pork or beef stock
2 tablespoons cornstarch in 4 tablespoons water
4 lettuce leaves (sliced)

Instructions:
1) In a pot, boil pork leg until tender and keep stock.

2) Baste pork leg with soy sauce and brown in oil.

3) In another casserole, boil water and put in pork legs to take out oil.

4) Take out pork legs and discard water, take bones out and discard.

5) In a baking dish, arrange pork.

6) Saute garlic, dried squid, and arrange on top of pork leg.

7) In a bowl, mix oyster sauce, rice wine, fish sauce, cornstarch diluted in water, and sesame oil and
soy sauce.

Pour in mixture to pork leg

9) Steam pork leg for an hour or until cooked.

10) Saute lettuce and make a bed for the Pata Tim.

Mom’s favorite!

Ingredients:

½ kilo chicken (cut into parts)

½ kilo pork (cut into cubes)

½ kilo beef (for stewing, cut into chunk cubes)

4 pieces chorizo bilbao

8 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

1 bundle onion leeks

6 cloves garlic (minced)

2 tablespoons oil

5 pieces Saba banana

5 pieces boiled potatoes (quartered)

5 pieces boiled sweet potatoes (quartered)

1 cup chickpeas

1 bundle cabbage (sliced)

1 Pinch salt & pepper
ingredients

Boil pork, chicken, beef, chorizo in salted water withonion leeks. Lower fire and let simmer until all meat is tender. Take out all the meat, set aside, keep stock. In a casserole, saute garlic, onion, then pour in the stock. Bring to a boil, add all meat, banana, potatoes, sweet potatoes and chickpeas. Season with salt and patis. Add in the cabbage. Serve hot.

My Dad’s super duper favorite!

OX tripe usually requires long, slow cooking, and that is the secret of extremely tasty, thick, and tender callos.

This quintessential Spanish dish uses a combination of ox tripe and ox feet, boiled together in water for two hours or more to ensure a delicate, easily chewed meat.

The gentle cooking also makes for a thick, sticky broth, which actually keeps very well for days in the refrigerator.

It is important to rinse the tripe well. Place in a rather large kettle and add cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, then drain immediately. Cut the tripe into pieces and return to the empty kettle.

1 medium-sized ox pata (about 1 ? kilos)
1 kilo tripe (packaged: cleaned and precooked)
? cup ham
2 chorizo de Bilbao
? cup olive oil
1 medium-sized onion,chopped
? cup tomato sauce
1 cup garbanzos
2 cups broth
3 tablespoons sherry
? bay leaf
salt
1 teaspoon crushed peppercorns
1 teaspoon vet-sin (monosodium glutamate)
1 cup pimento
1 cup green olives
2 tablespoons flour
? cup water

1. Boil the ox pata and discard water. Boil again together with tripe until tender. Save broth.

2. Cut pata, tripe, ham and chorizo into 1 inch pieces. Set aside.

3. Heat olive oil in a pan. Add onion and cook until soft, then add tomato sauce and bring to a boil.

4. Add the ham, tripe, ox pata, chorizo and garbanzos.

5. When boiling, add the broth, sherry, and bay leaf.

6. Season with salt, peppercorns and vet-sin.

7. Add the pimento and the olives.

8. Thicken sauce with a little flour dissolved in small amount of water.

Adobo is such a staple food in the Pinoy household. It is easy to cook, cheap, and doesnt really spoil easily. If you go to the house, you’d be guaranteed a version of Adobo cooking every week.

We have different favorites: I personaly like Adobo with grated liver, Edil loves Adobo floating in oil and cooked in vinegar, and the kids like it with potatoes and boiled eggs. I also love how my Mom cooks Adobo Chicken with much vinegar and there are adobo flakes as well.

From Lakwatera’s blog:

Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 mins - 1 hour
Serves: 8-10 people

2 lbs pork belly, sliced 2 inch cubes
1 lb chicken, cut into small pieces
1 cup white vinegar
2 cups water
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons peeled and crushed garlic
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon black peppercorn
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of brown sugar (adjust according to taste)

4-6 large eggs, hard boiled and halved
2 large potatoes, quartered, rinsed, and submerged in water
1/2 cup peanut oil for frying

Procedure:
Combine all the first group of ingredients (except chicken) bring to a rapid boil then simmer for 20 minutes or until meat is cooked halfway. Add chicken, remove bay leaf and continue simmering for another 25-30 minutes, until chicken is cooked all the way through and pork is tender. Add water as needed. Adjust seasoning with salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

Fry potatoes in hot oil until the outside is crisp. Add boiled eggs just before turning the heat off. Transfer to a serving platter and top with fried potatoes. Do not let the potatoes touch the sauce to prevent it from getting soggy.

Serve hot over steam rice.

Pointers:
Heat affects the flavor of pepper. Cracked black pepper looses its flavor as you cook it, so whenever you use it, try to season twice, once before or during cooking and again adjust seasoning before finishing the dish.

Starchy crops tends to darken when exposed to oxygen. To prevent this, rinse well under tap water and submerge in water until ready to cook.

Adding potatoes and eggs to this dish actually extends it, giving you more serving.

I love love love buko pandan, my mother-in-law makes this at every party and it’s so delicious!

From Glo’s blog:

Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 3 hrs
Yields: 15-20 people

Ingredients:
2 package unflavored gelatin
3 cups water
1 tbsp. pandan essence
5 drops green food color
1/2 cup sugar

1 bottle of palm seed (kaong)
1 bottle of cooked sago (tapioca pearls)
2 package frozen buko meat (roughly 4 cups)
1/2 tsp. pandan essence
2 small cans Nestle all purpose cream
1 cup half and half or whole milk is fine as well
1 can condensed milk

Procedure:
Defrost buko packages inside your refrigerator.

Dissolve gelatin and sugar in 2 cups water and bring to boil, add remaining 1 cup water. Turn of heat, stir in 1 tbsp of pandan essence and green food. Transfer to a flat container, preferrably a shallow baking sheet to allow quick setting. Make sure your pan is filled only up to around 1? deep. Refrigerate and allow to set for 2 hours. When set, run a small knife along the formed gelatin horizontally and vertically creating 1? dices.

In a large bowl, take cream, milk and condensed milk and 1/2 tsp of pandan essence and whisk all together. Drain liquid and syrup from buko strings, kaong and sago then toss all ingredients.

Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

COOKING TERMS AND METHODS:
Buko - the flesh of your coconut.
Kaong - or Palm Seeds, are seeds of the Nipah palm (Nypa fruticans). Nipah palms (or atap) are abundant along coastal shores and near rivers and swamps. The seeds or fruits of palms are boiled down in sugar syrup to make it sweet and soft. This is primarily used in desserts and sweet drinks and is enjoyed throughout Southeast Asia, Malaysia, India and the Philippines.
Sago - Tapioca Pearls is an essentially flavourless starchy ingredient, or fecula, produced from treated and dried cassava (manioc) root and used in cooking. It is similar to sago and is commonly used to make a milky pudding similar to rice pudding. Purchased tapioca comprises many small white spheres each about 2 mm in diameter. These are not seeds, but rather reconstituted processed root. The processing concept is akin to the way that wheat is turned into pasta.
Pandan - comes from Screwpine tree. The tree grows to be twenty-six feet high. The leaves are used there like we use vanilla flavoring. This leaf also has medicinal properties. In ancient times, the leaves were used for making house thatching and women’s grass skirts. The fruit heads are approximately eight inches in diameter and looks like a green pineapple.