Adobo and the China Food Scare

I wanted to cook Marketman's Adobo, Gata at Sili for dinner tonight but I was worried about the canned coconut milk in our pantry. I remember the can having some Chinese writing so, to be safe, I decided to cook something else.

I won't be eating adobo tonight, but all is not lost. After learning that Marketman used coconut milk from Thailand, I immediately checked our pantry. Luckily, our coconut milk is also made in Thailand and not China as I first thought. Whew! It's going to be adobo for lunch tomorrow.

Ate S on the China Food Scare

The China food scare is making even Ate S nervous. When I handed her the coconut milk, she kept on asking if I was sure it was not made in China. I had to explain to her that the writings in the can are Thai and not Chinese. I also pointed to her the words "PRODUCT OF THAILAND".

I am trying to access the BFAD site for the partial list of products pulled out from the groceries but the site is down. In the meantime, Ate S is removing the China-made products in our pantry.

UPDATE: I got the partial list from ABS-CBN News. Get it here.

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Sexification and Beautification: Soup Diet

Last night, Ate S and I made a big batch of Toni's fat-burning soup. (Check out the complete recipe and step-by-step pictures in http://wifelysteps.com.)

To be honest, the diced green vegetables with the tomato juice did not look appetizing at first. What was I thinking? I already spent P300 for the ingredients and I there I was having second thoughts about the the whole soup diet thing.

I watched Extreme Makeover Home Edition while Ate S took over the cooking. After the show, still teary eyed (I always cry after watching that show), I went to the kitchen to check up on the soup.

Ate S and M were grinning. They were so sure that I will not eat the vegetable soup. I was nervous. I asked them if they wanted to eat soup with me but they shook their heads. Bah! They'll see. O ye, of little faith!

Well, I showed them. I ended up eating 3 BOWLS of soup that night. It was really good, something I'll eat even if I'm not on a diet.

My diet officially starts today and will end Wednesday next week. Wish me luck!

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Recipe: Orange Iced Tea

What you need:

Powdered Iced Tea (My husband doesn't like Nestea, and Lipton is expensive, so I now use Earth and Sky. Use whatever brand you want.)

Sunquick Orange (It must be Sunquick. This is the secret ingredient.)

Water and Ice

Plastic Shaker (I got mine free. I bought Nestea just to get the free shaker. My friend got hers from Tang just recently.)

Just mix everything together. Add more or less to taste. The Sunquick will do wonders to your iced tea. I promise!

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Recipe: Rib Eye Steak

You don't win friends with salad.
- Homer Simpson
















My husband is not a fan of vegetables. He believes that our evolution from apes to intelligent human beings was largely due to the fact that we eat meat. How can you argue with that?

Good thing steaks are so easy to cook. If you're in a hurry, you can cook them straight from the freezer (according to Mrs. P).


How To Make Rib Eye Steak

Ate S and M watch VideoJug instructionals with me.

Note: I cooked steak for lunch yesterday. I got it right on my first try. Hooray!

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A Tip from May Poppins

Photo courtesy of Freewebs (Disney Classics)

“In every job that must be done,
there is an element of fun.
You find the fun and ‘snap’,
the job’s a game.”

I watched Mary Poppins on the Disney Channel last week. She's right. Find the fun and turn the job into a game.

Here is an example of how one mom turned the job of preparing packed lunches into a game/hobby.
















Check out Kitchen Cow! She makes the cutest Bento Boxes. See how she turns regular pinoy food (ex. tapa and adobo) into a work of art. I'm going to try her Tonkatsu recipe this week.

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Recipe: Corned Beef Sinigang

Photo from Singapore Air

Do you love Sentro 1771's Corned Beef Sinigang?

The secret is in the meat.

Please don't use canned corned beef!

You can actually buy corned beef slabs in the supermarket (Tenderbites, Unimart/Cash and Carry). Ask them to cut the slab into cubes.

Cook it the way you cook your sinigang.

Voila! Sinigang ala Sentro 1771.

Tried it? How was it?

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Recipe: Carbonara

When I was in college, my friend "JJ" explained to me how chickens lay their eggs. I was bowled over by his revelation. The eggs we eat are actually unfertilized chicken eggs! I always thought hens needed roosters for that.

My level of amazement the first time I cooked Carbonara (last Friday, 25 July) was close to that of my "chicken-egg" experience.

Here is the recipe:

1/2 cup bacon bits
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
pepper
450 g spaghetti

1. Cook the spaghetti. Follow the instructions in the package. Add a bit of salt to the boiling water.
2. Fry the bacon bits. (I used Purefoods bacon bits. Less than P200/kilo) Set aside. You can place it on a paper towel to remove the excess oil.
3. Mix the whole egg, egg yolk, parmesan cheese and pepper in a big bowl. Continue stirring until you achieve a creamy consistency.
4. Once the spaghetti is cooked, drain it. Don't rinse! You want the pasta hot enough to "cook" the egg. You don't want to suffer from salmonella poisoning.
5. Add the spaghetti to the egg mixture. Don't add all the spaghetti at once. Keep on adding and mixing until you get the spaghetti to sauce ratio you want. I ended up using only 2/3 of the spaghetti I cooked.
6. Mix in the cooked bacon bits.

It's so easy! I never knew it was so simple. I wanted to cry.

How was my Carbonara?
"C", my official taster (you can never trust your husband to give you an honest opinion about things like cooking and sexiness), gave me the thumbs up while she was finishing my Carbonara. I guess that means it's good.

History and Origin of my Beloved Pasta Dish (from Wikipedia)

The dish was obscure before the Second World War, and it is not present in Ada Boni's classic book La Cucina Romana, which was published in 1927. It is thought to have originated in the hills outside Rome, not in the city itself. Its popularity began after the Second World War, when many Italians were eating eggs and bacon supplied by troops from the United States. It also became popular among American troops stationed in Italy; upon their return home, they popularized spaghetti alla carbonara in North America.

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Faking It: Bake Butter Cake

My friend "J" inspired me to bake so I decided to make my very own homemade butter cake. The only problem is... Actually, there are two problems. First, I don't have a real oven. Second, I don't know how to cook or bake. But no worries! Undeterred by these minor issues, I went to the grocery (Unimart) to buy my ingredients.

I first looked for a baking pan. I was planning to use our toaster oven so I had to get a very small loaf pan. While browsing through the stacks of pans, I also chanced upon a small muffin pan. Perfect! I decided to make muffins too. With my loaf and muffin pans, I proceeded to the baking section.

Thank you Lord for ready cake-mixes! I decided to get the Maya Oven Toaster Butter Cake Mix and the Betty Crocker Corn Bread and Muffin Mix because they required the least number of ingredients.

How was the Butter Cake?

According to my friend "C", who was here to appreciate my creation, it was good. I can't exactly remember if she said good or okay but she ate two slices so I guess she liked it.

It was so easy to bake. It's impossible to mess it up. I realized 5 minutes after putting it in the oven that I chose the wrong oven toaster setting. I changed it and reset the clock. 5 minutes later, I changed it to another setting and reset the clock again. By this time, I was so sure that the cake will be a failure. After checking it with my barbecue stick (toothpicks are to short) a dozen of times, it finally came out of the oven perfectly baked. Surprise! Surprise!

I'm going to try the corn muffin in a few days. Wish me luck.

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Laundry: Starch Wars -- Niagara vs. Liwayway

Me: "Your barong is wrinkled. Change it!"
Husband: "It's okay. Nobody will notice."
Me: "Everybody will notice! I will be judged by how well your barong is starched and ironed. Baka sabihin nila I'm a bad housewife."













(WARNING: Be sure to also read Starch Wars Part II)

Korean Wife is to Kimchi as Mrs. G is to Starched Barong

The excited new homemaker in me made me buy cans and cans of Niagara Spray Starch for my husband's barongs. It used to be at the top of my grocery list even though I was scandalized by its price. I don't know how many cans of Niagara I used before our maid suggested that we try the good ol' trusty almirol.

I bought Liwayway Gawgaw and let the maid experiment with the barongs. Lo' and behold! She was able to achieve starch perfection.

Advantages of Almirol:

1. Cheaper. Gawgaw is only P42.25 and it will take months before you use up 1 kilo. Niagara Spray Starch (Original) is P 92.50 (Rustan's Supermarket). You're lucky if a can lasts you one week.
2. Clothes are Easier to Iron. Our maid finds it easier to iron the barongs when we use almirol.
   
3. Eco-friendly. Remember, those cans will end up in landfills. What a waste.
   
4. Cheaper. Oh! I already mentioned that.

Our Maid's Special Almirol Recipe

1. Mix gawgaw and coldwater in a basin. The amount of gawgaw will depend on how many clothes you need to starch. Add just enough cold water to liquefy the gawgaw.
2. Stir the mixture until the lumps disappear.
3. Slowly add boiling water to the mixture. Continue stirring to prevent lumping.
   
4. Add more water (regular tap water temperature) to cool and dilute the mixture.
5. Add the barongs and soak them for around 15 minutes. Consider this as your last rinse.
6. Wring the barong then shake off excess starchy mixture.
7. Line-dry.
8. Iron the barong before it’s completely dry. If you got it bone dry from the clothesline, spray it with some water. The barong must be damp before it is ironed.

Disclaimer: I have no personal knowledge as to how almirol is made/done. I'm not even sure if it's a noun or a verb. I just translated and transcribed the instructions given to me by our maid. According to her, she never measures the amount of gawgaw or water she adds. She just estimates. Good luck.

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Recipe: Cheesy Chicken Fingers

Ingredients:

• Skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• Flour
• Salt
• Black Pepper
• Eggs
• Grated Parmesan Cheese
• Unsalted Butter
• Olive Oil
• Japanese Bread Crumbs

Instructions:

• Cut chicken breasts into strips.
  
• Prepare 3 plates.
• Plate 1: Mix flour, salt and pepper.
• Plate 2: Beat eggs with a little bit of water (1 tsp for every egg).
• Plate 3: Mix bread crumbs with Parmesan cheese.
• Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour --> dip into the egg mixture --> roll into the breadcrumbs mix.
• Heat butter and olive oil in a pan.
• Cook the chicken strips on medium-low heat until cooked (3 mins. on each side).

It's very hard to mess up this recipe. Enjoy!

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