Tilapia with Star Fruit & Tamarind Broth (Sinigang na Tilapia)

Mymy Suajico – Santiago 蔡马安

Sinigang is a sour broth native to the Philippines. Its every ingredient is contemplated to complement the flavor of the core component which may be beef, poultry, seafood. Tamarind is the key component in preparing Sinigang. It’s natural sour taste gives the broth a unique essence that is “umami.”

Tilapia is the fifth most important fish in fish farming due to rapid growth & palatability. It is also affordable and available for all seasons almost worldwide now. Mundane as it may seem, this is to substantiate that there is no such thing as a dull fish, just dull seasonings.

Ingredients:

3 cups            water

3 cups            shrimp stock

1 pc              Green Star Fruit (sliced to stars)

1 pc              Jalapeno Pepper (whole) 

- or any pepper of your choice, I love mine extra hot & biting back

1pc               large tomato sliced

1pc               thumb size ginger sliced thinly

½ cup            sliced white onions

2 stalks           lemon grass (gashed, for essence to properly expel)

2 lbs.             Tilapia (cleaned, gutted & sectioned)

2 tbsp.            lemon pepper spice

½ cup            tamarind paste or 1 pack tamarind powder

2 tbsp.            cilantro roughly chopped (garnish)

To taste           Salt

Preparation:

In a Stock pot put all first 8 ingredients and heat to simmer.

Add in slices of Tilapia and continue to simmer until fish is cooked (all of which will take less than 10 minutes)

Skim the fine bubbles

Stir in Tamarind Paste and add lemon pepper spice

Salt to taste, Serve garnished with cilantro

Serve very hot with rice...a la Filipino Style

Basa Ceviche with Flying Fish Roe

Mymy Suajico – Santiago 蔡马安

Ceviche is a raw seafood salad marinated in citrus. Ceviche is most popular in Coastal Americas & the Philippines. Originating from Peru, food historians believe that it was the Spanish conquistadors who introduced this dish to other regions under Spanish colony which clearly explains why the Marianas & the Philippines are the only islands in Asia making ceviche. “Kelaguen” to the indigenous people of Mariana Islands, ceviche reflects the Micronesian archipelago's Hispanic-Asian-influenced native culture. “Kilawin” to the Filipinos, the fixings may have been reinterpreted to what is native in the region but intrinsically, it rings its roots to the Peruvian Ceviche.

Ceviche is all about celebrating the taste of every ingredient in its raw form; so for this salad, only freshest will do. Consumption of raw food is a vector to potential health risks but then, if you haven’t had Ceviche you miss a big part of your gastronomic life.

This is my interpretation of Ceviche. It is partly Asian & Spanish..but so am I.

Ingredients  :

1 lb.    Basa Fillet, chopped into medium chunks (you    may use any fish you prefer, the firm ones which don’t easily flake are most ideal)

½ cup    Calamondin (or any citrus :lemon, lime)

1 tbsp.   Calamondin

1/4        white onions, paper thin slices

½ tbsp.  ginger root, chopped paper thin slices

1 tbsp.   cilantro (optional)

1 pc       salted egg (optional)

To taste  Salt

Garnish   Flying Fish Roe (for touch of sweetness)

Put chopped Basa in a Bowl. Pour in 1/2 cup of Citrus & chill to marinate in refrigerator for 3 hours. Remove excess fluid. Add onions, ginger, salted egg, cilantro and salt to taste. Drizzle with 1 tbsp. of Calamondin and garnish with Flying Fish roe. Serve chilled.

Best paired with umbrella drinks

Duck Meat & Chicken Liver Rillettes

By           :              Mymy Suajico-Santiago蔡马安

Rillettes are commonly prepared with Pork, where the meat is shredded, cooked in fat, salted & seasoned to form a paste. Often used in bread as spread and served in room temperature.

Making Rillettes have been known to be the most popular methods of meat preservation back in the fifteenth century in France. Nowadays, it remains to be one of the most practical recipe applications for excess meat in your coolers.

This is my version of Rillettes using the Roast duck leftover and Chicken liver for added essence and texture. Chicken liver compared to duck liver is sharper in flavor, plus it’s cheap and very much available for all seasons.

 

Ingredients:

3/4 lb.           roasted duck meat (grounded or flaked)- Any type of cooked duck will do

1/4 lb.           Chicken Liver

3 pcs.            Bay Leaf

4 pcs.            Shitake Mushrooms

1/2 pc.           White onions

1 tbsp.           garlic

1/2 tbsp.         light brown sugar

                  Oil for sautéing

1 shot            scotch/brandy/cognac (whichever is available)

1 tbsp            favorite herbs or Mrs. Dash salt free original blend (For convenience I used Mrs. Dash as it has all the blend of spices I want) 

                  http://www.mrsdash.com/products/All-Purpose-Original-Blend/1

Options for fat: (choose 1, I used drippings on mine)

¼ lb. non-fat butter

¼ cup EVOO

¼ cup Duck Drippings

To taste          red pepper flakes, salt & pepper

How to cook the Chicken Liver:

Simmer Chicken Liver, shitake in water with Bay Leaves until cooked & tender. Remove from heat, take out the bay leaves & fluid, set aside.

Caramelize onions & garlic in a pan. Add light brown sugar, continue to sauté until melted and remove from heat.

In a food processor add all the ingredients including the caramelized onions, grind & you’re done...how easy was that?

Great as pate, sandwich spread or dip

Pancit Molo 云吞面莫洛 (Molo Wonton Noodles)

by    : Mymy Suajico 蔡马安

Pancit Molo is the comfort food of the Philippines. More than just food, it holds the history of Molo in a bowl. Before the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, Iloilo was already having a flourishing trade with the Chinese through one of its districts which was Molo. Some of the Chinese traders eventually decided to settle down in the place and took local women as their wives. It was the early Chinese settlers who introduced wonton to the natives. In time, the recipe was handed down from generations to ge nerations. Reinterpreted by native Filipinos & strongly inspired by Spanish who ruled the Philippines for almost 400 years.  云吞面 “Huntun” (wonton) which was Chinese in origin eventually was Hispanicized as “Pancit Molo,” Spain being the strongest culinary influence of the Philippines. Pancit Molo therefore, strictly speaking is a fusion cuisine.

Presence of my family’s own Chinese heritage (Chua-Cua Association)

in Iloilo City,Philippines

In this photo is my late 'Ang Kong' (Grandfather): "Chua Kim Puat" (Vicente Suajico) , this is the wall in the Che Yong Cua Chua Bacolod Office honoring the past Presidents of the Clan Association

This is my own interpretation of Pancit Molo. I have added shrimp to oomph! the Asian flavor stronger. A home recipe passed down from my Filipino-Spanish maternal side (Britanico) & influenced by my paternal Chinese side (Suajico 蔡) – both incidentally, have direct roots in Iloilo, Philippines.

Pancit Molo Ingredients:

Wonton & Filling:
1 pack                    wonton wrappers
1 cup                     lean ground pork
1 cup                     roughly chopped shrimp
1/4 cup                   white onions (chopped)
1                          egg
¼ cup                     chopped jicama (optional)
Freshly ground             black pepper
To taste                   iodized salt

In a mixing bowl, combine all filling ingredients.
Fill in the wonton wrappers and chill for 3 minutes to set.

link provided for wrapping fillings into wonton:
http://justonecookbook.com/blog/how-to/how-to-wrap-a-wonton/ 

Stock:
1 lb.                      Chicken breast
2 cups                    shrimp broth*
6 cups                    chicken broth
To taste                   fish sauce
To taste                   black pepper (freshly ground)
*Shrimp broth extracted from shrimp heads using mortar & pestle and water
3 cloves                   garlic, minced
To sauté                  Canola oil
1  pc.                       small onion, chopped
Garnish:
1 tbsp                     spring onions chopped

In a pot, combine shrimp & chicken broth. Upon easy boil, add in chicken breast until cooked. Remove chicken, flake and put back into the stock. Upon boil, add in wantons and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Use fish sauce to salt (this gives your stock the “umami” taste.

In a separate pan, Sautee garlic & onions, brown & caramelized. Pour this all in the pot. Top with spring onions, add in pepper…serve.

Fettuccine Gamberi

Pasta is one of the easiest foods to prepare; it is available the whole year round. Conveniently, its dried commercial variety (pasta secca) boasts a long shelf life. The neutral taste of the durum semolina in which it’s made of could easily blend with any sauce as accompaniment. It is but practical to always have a box or two in your pantry.

This recipe is ideal for seafood lovers, best for wanting to feel full sans the guilt of gorging on meatballs…times when you have shrimp left in the fridge which is inadequate for a Shrimp Scampi but a wee bit more than enough for a vegetable stir-fry.
Shrimp Pasta may be prepared in variety of ways to your quirk, though ideally best to match it with the consistency and ease of eating. In Northern Italy, it is popularly prepared with béchamel (white sauce). However, the neutral flavor of the shrimp could easily be overpowered by the richness of a white sauce.

This recipe, influenced by Southern Italy, consists of tomato, capers and seafood. If you don’t care much for red sauce, you may omit the tomato; this will give you a much lighter white wine sauce.

Pasta:
1 box              fettuccine Pasta or Linguine
2 tbsp.            Salt
1/8 cup          oil (Canola or Olive Oil)

In a pot, heat water until rolling boil, add salt & oil. Drop the noodles in and stir to totally immerse, do not cover – cook for approximately 7 to 8 minutes (before al dente). Pour the pot in a colander and drizzle olive oil to keep the noodles from sticking. Allow to sit, prepare the sauce.

Gamberi Sauce:
1 cup              shelled shrimp
4 tbsp.            garlic (chopped thinly)
1/2 bulb         white onions (sliced thinly)
1 tbsp.            Capers or green olives
4 pcs.              Peeled & chopped tomatoes
1 can              tomato paste
½ cup             Riesling (best white cooking wine for seafood)
Dash               red pepper flakes (as spicy as you want)
Lots of            Extra Virgin Olive Oil (you can never have enough)
2 cups             Shrimp Stock*
* using Mortar & Pestle pound the shrimp heads & shells add two cups of water & salt pepper to taste
* if you don’t mind dealing with sodium glutamate, buying shrimp bouillon is the easiest way to get a stock.
 http://www.thelatinproducts.com/knorr-shrimp-bouillon-cubes-8-count-3-1-ounce/

In a pan, pour in EVOO close to ¼ cup until hot. Set the heat low then sauté onions - add in garlic and caramelized. Drop the Capers and stir fry for a minute.

Put in tomatoes & tomato paste, fry for another minute. Adjust to medium high heat & add in white wine to deglaze. Add dried pepper flakes & pour in shrimp stock, cook until sauce is reduced. Add in fettuccine pasta and simmer in sauce until al dente. Drop the shrimp last. (Shrimp cooks fast and you don’t want it to end up too firm and dry.) Mix the shrimp with pasta & sauce until the shrimp cooks to a light tangerine shade. Salt & Pepper - serve.

As for pairings, Chardonnay they say…I do however, eat everything with red- and pls. make it a magnum!

http://www.livestrong.com/article/262296-what-is-the-nutritional-value-of-shrimp/

Japchae with Duck Meat & Shrimp

This recipe is consist of Dangmyeon noodles, a nutritious Korean cellophane noodles made from sweet potato starch. Not to be confused with vermicelli noodles which is made from rice, Dangmyeon noodles are usually thicker, translucent and firm in texture when cooked.

Japchae is a Korean recipe using this noodle together with vegetables and meat of choice; flavored with sesame oil, soy sauce & sugar. Japchae to Koreans is almost like what Pasta alla Puttanesca is to the Italians. That is, a meal put together to repurpose whatever is left on the pantry & cooler.

Japchae is simple & fast to prepare. What kills prep time is all on top of the cutting board. For this one, I used the leftover roasted duck to give my noodles an exotic fatty flavor. As for the mushrooms, you may add in any type – I had some baby bella left in the fridge which I love for their almost meaty texture & earthiness.

Haricots verts, for their sweetness – spinach & bok choy are the usual Korean choices for greens.

As for the stock, you may use beef if you want. For this one, I opted to repurpose the shrimp heads which stock works best to counter the gamey flavor of the duck.

Ingredients :
3 bundles    Dangmyeon noodles
4 cloves     garlic (thinly chopped)
½ small      white onions (thinly sliced)
6 pcs.        Baby Bella mushrooms (thinly sliced)
¼ head      Cauliflower (detached to florets) or broccoli
1 cup        haricots verts (chopped) or any greens of preference
1 cup        left over roasted duck (chopped) or any poultry
1 cup        shelled shrimp
6 pcs        shitake mushrooms
¼ cup       canola oil
¼ cup       Oyster Sauce
2 cups       Shrimp Stock (Boil shrimp heads and mash to extract essence in stock)
4 tbsp       Dark sesame oil
½ bundle    parsley (chopped roughly)
2 eggs      whipped, fried & sliced
To taste     salt & pepper

Dangmyeon (Korean Sweet Potato Cellophane Noodles) Preparation:
Heat water in a pot until rolling boil. Remove pot from heat and fully immerse the Dangmyeon noodles for 3 min. Drain noodles on a colander over the sink and run in cold water to stop cooking process. Loosen the noodles with canola oil and allow to sit until needed.

In a wok, sautee onions & garlic in canola oil until caramelized.

Add Duck meat and baby bella mushrooms, stir fry for 2 minutes.

Add cauliflower florets & chopped haricots verts, stir fry for until vegetables sweat, add shitake mushrooms and gradually pour shrimp stock. Add in Dangmyeon noodles and mix in the vegetables and remaining shrimp stock. Simmer in broth for 3minutes & add in shrimp while constantly mixing the noodles. Fuse in the oyster sauce and sesame oil. Cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from the heat & dropped in the eggs and chopped parsley for garnish.. salt & pepper to taste.

Serve with ginger root tea – hot or iced. Serves 8. To store in the fridge, cover with cling wrap to prevent noodles from drying.

“Mashikeh-Mogoseyo!” (Enjoy your meal!)

Honey glazed Whole Roasted Duck with Anise & Ginger

Ducks have a unique taste. Thru the years, duck has been craved for its gamey flavor and nutritional qualities.  Continuously gaining popularity on our plates when food is plentiful as well as when it’s short in supply.

For some reason, the idea of cooking chicken seems to be more openly accepted than cooking duck. Misconceptions on the complexity of its preparation have intimidated our kitchens.
There is however just 3 important elements that have to be considered when preparing this waterfowl.

1^st: Flavor

The objective is to enhance the natural distinctive essence of the duck & not to disguise it (otherwise, you should have gone for chicken instead). Duck goes well with anything fruity & spice. The ‘wild’ character in the zest of its meat is usually tempered best with alcohol, wine, rum, scotch or beer. Strong aromatic spices like ginger, coriander, cinnamon, and lemongrass are compatible seasonings as they are easily counterbalanced by the waterfowl’s gaminess. 


2^nd: Texture
Duck meat is normally tougher than that of the chicken. It is just important to ensure that it is cooked tender enough to the bite

3^rd: The Crunch
High fat meats like duck generally should be cooked at a higher temperature and for a longer time than low-fat meats. The Cliché “Crisp on the outside, soft on the inside.” still very much applies to ideal duck preparation.
Roasting duck is not that hard. Mainly its mixing & playing the waiting game..
Sit your duck in a colander in the sink and pour boiling water, leave to dry for 15 min.. Combine your marinade in a deep pot, stir to mix & bring to boil. Turn the heat down to low simmer and immerse the whole fowl making sure the liquid is almost covering the duck. Cover with the lid and braise for 1 hr. Turn the bird over and continue braising for 30 min.

Remove the duck from the pot to the rack and allow to dry for 2 hrs. or overnight. 

Once set, poke holes on the duck's skin & brush with glaze mixture then stuff with lemongrass and roast in a 300 degree Celsius oven for 30 min or until its golden brown and crisp. 

Mix the gravy and heat on low until thick , salt & pepper to taste.

Serve Duck whole with gravy on the side…rice, corn, potatoes for accompaniment your stomach desires.

Best wine pairing? Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir or Pommard...any rich fruity & spicy red...what else?

Marinade:
1 whole                      onion roughly chopped
3 cups                         chicken stock
3 tbsp.                         Miso paste
400 ml.                        Chinese rice wine or Red wine
6 tbsp.                         Honey
3 tbsp.                         Star Anise
1/4 cup                        citrus juice ( lime/lemon/calamansi)
3 tbsp.                         5 spice
3 tbsp.                         garlic crushed
3 tbsp.                         ginger crushed
1 tbsp.                         red pepper flakes
8 pcs.                          Huang Gua Shu or Cucumber tree / kamias
½ cup                          Soy Sauce
to taste                        Molasses (optional for sweetness)

Glaze:
¼ cup                         Honey
¼ cup                         Canola Oil

Gravy:
1 part                          roast drippings
1 part                          marinade
1 tbsp.                         Corn starch (thickener)
3 pcs.                          Ground saltines

Stuffing:

1 bunch                      lemongrass or herb of choice