How to cook Chicken in Tamarind Soup (Sinampalukang Manok)

This week I prepared regular food (read: non-vegetarian) for my family. I cooked two dishes and this is the first one.

Chicken in Tamarind Soup (Sinampalukang Manok)

Chicken in Tamarind Soup (Sinampalukang Manok)

  

Ingredients:

1 kilo chicken, cut into medium-size pieces

2 pcs medium-size eggplant (talong), sliced crosswise

1 pc medium-size radish (labanos), peeled and sliced crosswise

1 bundle river spinach (kangkong)

2 pcs tomato (kamatis), sliced

2 pcs green chili (siling mahaba)

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and grated

Sinigang sa Sampalok mix (Tamarind soup base)

12 cups water

cooking oil

salt (asin) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

fish sauce (patis), optional

Instructions: 

Heat oil in a pan then sauté garlic, onion, ginger, tomatoes and chicken. Simmer for 10 minutes over medium heat. Add water and Sinigang sa Sampalok mix. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes over low heat. Mix all the other vegetables except river spinach. Add salt, black pepper and fish sauce to taste. Remove from heat then add river spinach.

That's it! Enjoy!

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to cook Sweet & Sour Tofu

My sister Melissa decided to cook a vegetarian dish earlier today. She used tofu this time. So here’s her version of Sweet and Sour Tofu.

Sweet & Sour Tofu

Ingredients:

water

cooking oil

tofu (tokwa), cut into squares

green beans (Baguio beans), sliced crosswise

1 pc medium-size carrot (karot), peeled and sliced

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

1 small can pineapple juice

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

4 tablespoons cornstarch

3 tablespoons ketchup

salt (asin) to taste

sugar (asukal) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

soy sauce (toyo) to taste

2 pcs chili pepper (siling labuyo), optional

sweet soy sauce (kecap manis) to taste, optional

Instructions:

Mix 2 tablespoons cornstarch and soy sauce then coat tofu with cornstarch mixture. Fry tofu in cooking oil until golden brown. Set aside. Dissolve the remaining 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in ½ cup of water. Set aside. Sauté garlic in a saucepan until golden brown then add onion. Add fried tofu, vegetables, pineapple juice, dissolved cornstarch, and other seasonings. Stir carefully until sauce thickens. Remove from heat then serve.

Enjoy!

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to cook Sauteed Mung Beans (Ginisang Munggo)

Yesterday I finally ended the week-long streak of cooking tofu dishes. I decided to use an ingredient my brother Mervin, who’s vegetarian, has introduced to me a long time ago. I’m referring to textured vegetable protein or TVP. I call TVP vegetarian meat as it’s usually used as a substitute for meat. TVP is made from defatted soy flour. It has high protein content and contains no fat.

Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)

This is my first time to use TVP. Here’s my vegetarian version of Sauteed Mung Beans using TVP.

Sauteed Mung Beans (Ginisang Munggo)

Sauteed Mung Beans (Ginisang Munggo)

Ingredients:

water

cooking oil

TVP

6 cups mung beans (munggo)

bitter gourd tendrils (talbos ng ampalaya)

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

4 pcs medium-size tomato (kamatis), sliced

salt (asin) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

soy sauce (toyo) to taste

2 pcs chili pepper (siling labuyo), optional

fish sauce (patis), optional

Instructions:

Soak mung beans in water for several hours (preferably overnight). Boil mung beans in water until soft. Once done, set aside. Punch a small hole in very piece of TVP then soak in water until tender. Once tender, slice into bite-size pieces then add salt and soy sauce. Set aside. Fry garlic in a saucepan until golden brown then add onion and tomatoes. Add seasoned TVP then stir. Add boiled mung beans and chili pepper. Add water then stir. Add salt, ground black pepper, soy sauce and fish sauce (optional) to taste. Finally, add bitter gourd tendrils. Remove from heat then serve.

There you have it! Another vegetarian recipe, this time using TVP.

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to cook Stir-Fried Chayote & Tofu (Ginisang Sayote at Tokwa)

Hello again! Tofu overload this week as I bring you yet another vegetarian recipe featuring, you guessed it right, tofu. This is what I had for lunch earlier today. Here it is.

Stir-Fried Chayote & Tofu (Ginisang Sayote at Tokwa)

Stir-Fried Chayote & Tofu (Ginisang Sayote at Tokwa)

Ingredients:

1 cup water

cooking oil

tofu (tokwa), mashed

3 pcs medium-size chayote (sayote), sliced

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

4 pcs medium-size tomato (kamatis), sliced

salt (asin) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

soy sauce (toyo) to taste

2 pcs chili pepper (siling labuyo), optional

sweet soy sauce (kecap manis) to taste, optional

Instructions:

Fry garlic in a saucepan until golden brown then add onion and tomatoes. Add mashed tofu then stir. Add chayote and chili pepper. Add water then stir. Add salt, ground black pepper, soy sauce and sweet soy sauce to taste. Remove from heat then serve.

I only spent PHP 70 to buy the ingredients needed to make this dish. Serves eight persons.

For those who are wondering where to get sweet soy sauce (kecap manis), you can go to Matahari Indonesian Deli. They have branches in TriNoma, SM Megamall, SM Mall of Asia, Robinsons Place Manila & V-Mall.

That’s all for now. Till next time!

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to cook Stir-Fried Green Beans & Tofu (Ginisang Baguio Beans at Tokwa)

Hello, everyone! Here’s what I prepared for lunch earlier today. Actually it’s my sister Melissa’s recipe but I took over, reducing her cooking duty to frying tofu which we served as a side dish. Here it is.

Stir-Fried Green Beans & Tofu (Ginisang Baguio Beans at Tokwa)

Stir-Fried Green Beans & Tofu (Ginisang Baguio Beans at Tokwa)

Ingredients:

1 cup water

cooking oil

tofu (tokwa), mashed

green beans (Baguio beans), sliced crosswise

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

2 pcs medium-size tomato (kamatis), sliced

salt (asin) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

soy sauce (toyo) to taste

2 pcs chili pepper (siling labuyo), optional

sweet soy sauce (kecap manis) to taste, optional

Instructions:

Fry garlic in a saucepan until golden brown then add onion and tomatoes. Add mashed tofu then stir. Add green beans and chili pepper. Add water then stir. Add salt, ground black pepper, soy sauce and sweet soy sauce to taste. Remove from heat then serve.

I only spent PHP 80 to buy the ingredients needed to make this dish. Serves five persons. Enjoy!

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to cook Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage & Tofu (Ginisang Pechay at Tokwa)

Hello, everyone! I’d like to share another tofu recipe which I prepared for lunch yesterday.

Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage & Tofu (Ginisang Pechay at Tokwa)

Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage & Tofu (Ginisang Pechay at Tokwa)

Ingredients:

1 cup water

cooking oil

tofu (tokwa), cut into rectangular shapes

2 bundles Chinese cabbage (pechay), sliced

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

salt (asin) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

soy sauce (toyo) to taste

2 pcs chili pepper (siling labuyo), optional

sweet soy sauce (kecap manis) to taste, optional

Instructions:

Fry tofu in cooking oil until golden brown. Set aside. Fry garlic in a saucepan until golden brown then add onion. Add fried tofu, Chinese cabbage and chili pepper. Add water then stir. Add salt, ground black pepper, soy sauce and sweet soy sauce to taste. Remove from heat then serve.

I only spent PHP 80 for this dish so it’s perfect for those who wish eat healthy while keeping it cheap. Serves four persons. Enjoy!

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to cook Tofu in Sour Oriental Soup (Sinigang na Tokwa)

Today is day three of living my supposed new healthy lifestyle. It’s also the third consecutive day of my so-called seasonal vegetarianism.

For lunch I prepared another tofu or tokwa dish. Eating tofu can be delicious and fun. Here’s my recipe for today.

Tofu in Sour Oriental Soup (Sinigang na Tokwa)

Tofu in Sour Oriental Soup (Sinigang na Tokwa)

Ingredients:

tofu (tokwa), cut into rectangular shapes

2 pcs medium-size eggplant (talong), sliced crosswise

1 pc medium-size radish (labanos), peeled and sliced crosswise

1 bundle river spinach (kangkong)

2 pcs tomato (kamatis), sliced

2 pcs green chili (siling mahaba)

1 pc medium-size onion (sibuyas), peeled and minced

6 cloves of garlic (bawang), crushed and minced

sinigang mix

12 cups water

cooking oil

salt (asin) to taste

ground black pepper (paminta) to taste

fish sauce (patis), optional

Instructions:

Fry tofu in cooking oil until golden brown. Set aside. Boil water in a casserole. Add onion, garlic, tomatoes and sinigang mix. Once tomatoes are tender, add eggplant, radish and fried tofu. Boil for three minutes then add river spinach and green chilli. Add salt, black pepper and fish sauce to taste. Remove from heat then serve.

That’s it. Pretty easy, right? Aside from being nutritious, this dish is also very cheap. I spent only around PHP 130 and it serves five persons. I hope you try this recipe.

Ok, that’s all for now. I’ll do cardio workout and weight training this afternoon. Jaiyo!

- Kwento ni Remus Mark

How to make Fried Bread Rolls with Strawberry Jam & Chocolate Syrup

Hey guys! J This afternoon I was craving for something sweet. So me and my brother’s girlfriend, Mhegs, decided to try making a dessert which we've never done before. We went to the nearest grocery store to buy the ingredients we  needed. J

Ingredients:

all purpose flour 450g

evaporated milk 370ml

4 eggs

1/4 bar margarine

1/4 kilo brown sugar

cooking oil

chocolate syrup

strawberry jam

Preparation:

Heat margarine in a saucepan and wait until it melts. Set aside to cool. Beat the eggs in a large bowl then add sugar, all purpose flour, evaporated milk and melted margarine. Mix until texture is even and thickens. 

Heat cooking oil in a frying pan. Get half-a-cup of the dough mixture and deep fry till golden. After frying add chocolate syrup or strawberry jam on top.

Mixture of all the ingredients for the dough

First batch of rolls with chocolate syrup

Second batch of rolls with strawberry jam

By the way we only spent PHP 100 for this yummy treat! :)

- Kwento ni Mersi Marrakesh

How to cook Veggie Meatballs with Gravy

Today I prepared a dish and I call it Veggie Meatballs with Gravy.  This is my first time to cook this dish and I got the idea from my vegetarian friend Glenn and brother Mervin. (Thanks to you guys!)  I just added a little twist for the benefit of those who eat meat. 

Veggie Meatballs

If you are on a tight budget this dish is perfect for you and your family. Aside from being affordable it is very healthy. Kangkong is rich in Vitamin C which is good for the skin.

Ingredients:

 ½ kilo ground pork, 01 taling kangkong, 1/2 clove ng bawang, 01 sibuyas, 02 itlog, flour, salt, pepper & gravy mix

Preparation:

Make sure you wash your pork and kangkong first. Mince the kangkong, bawang and sibuyas and add ground pork in a bowl. Add itlog (beaten first), flour, salt and pepper. It’s up to you how salty or spicy you want it. Once you combine all the ingredients you will see a texture of a regular burger patty. Just shape it into balls and fry it in a pan. Better if you use butter to fry it. Gravy mix is very easy to make most of the time. All you have to do is just add hot water but what I did was I cooked it in a sauce pan and I added a few pieces of boiled shrimp (cut to small pieces).

For PHP 150 this is the end product.

There you have it. My own version of Veggie Meatballs with Gravy. Happy cooking!

- Kwento ni Melissa