Leche Flan

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Estimated cooking time: 1 hour

Leche Flan Ingredients:

1 can (390g) evaporated milk

1 can (390g) condensed milk

10 egg yolks

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract or lemon essence

For the caramel:

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

Leche Flan Cooking Instructions:

In a saucepan, mix the sugar & water. Bring to a boil for a few minutes until the sugar caramelize.

Pour the caramelized sugar into aluminum moulds – you can use any shape: oval, round or square. Spread the caramel on the bottom of the moulds.

Mix well the evaporated milk, condensed milk, egg yolks and vanilla by hand or blender.

Gently pour the mixture on top of the caramel on the aluminum moulds. Fill the moulds to about 1 to 1 1/4 inch thick.

Cover moulds individually with aluminum foil.

Steam for about 20 minutes OR

Bake for about 45 minutes. Before baking the Leche Flan, place the moulds on a larger baking pan half filled with very hot water. Pre-heat oven to about 370 degrees before baking.

Let cool then refrigerate.

To serve: run a thin knife around the edges of the mould to loosen the Leche Flan. Place a platter on top of the mould and quickly turn upside down to position the golden brown caramel on top.

Cooking Tips:

You can tell when the Leche Flan is cooked by inserting a knife -if it comes out clean, it is cooked.

Pakbet or Pinakbet Recipe

Estimated cooking time: 35 minutes

Pakbet Ingredients:

1/4 kilo pork with fat, cut into small pieces

2 Amapalya (bitter melons) sliced to bite size pieces

2 eggplants, sliced to bite size pieces

5 pieces of okra, cut in two

1 head garlic, minced

2 onions, diced

5 tomatoes, sliced

1 tablespoon of ginger, crushed and sliced

4 tablespoons bagoong isda or bagoong alamang

3 tablespoons of oil

1 1/2 cup water

Salt and pepper to taste

Pakbet Cooking Instructions:

In a cooking pan, heat oil and fry the pork until brown, remove the pork from the pan and set aside.

On the same pan, saute garlic, onion, ginger and tomatoes.

In a casserole, boil water and add bagoong.

Add the pork in the casserole and mix in the sautéed garlic, onion, ginger and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add in all the vegetables and cook until the vegetables are done, careful not to overcook.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot with plain rice.

Tinolang Manok (Chicken Ginger Stew) Recipe

Estimated cooking time: 45 minutes

Tinola Manok Ingredients:

1 kilo whole chicken, cut into pieces.

1 small young papaya or sayote, cut into small pieces.

2 tablespoons ginger, crushed and slliced into strips

1/2 cup dahon ng sili (chili leaves) or mallunggay leaves

1 liter of water

5 garlic cloves, minced

1 red onion, diced

4 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons patis (fish sauce) Tinolang Manok Cooking Instructions:

In a stock pot, heat oil and sauté garlic, onion and ginger.

Add water and the chicken.

Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes or until chicken is almost done.

Season with patis

Add papaya and continue to simmer for an additional 5 minutes or until papaya softens but not overcooked.

Add sili leaves then turn off the heat.

Serve steaming hot on a bowl with plain rice on the side.

Pork Barbeque Recipe

Estimated preparation: 20 minutes

Marinating: 30 minutes to 3 hours

Barbecue: 10 to 15 minutes each

Pork Barbeque Ingredients:

1 kg. pork

20 bamboo skewers

1 cup soy sauce

1 head garlic, minced

1 onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup of calamansi juice or lemon juice

1/2 cup of 7up, sprite or beer (optional)

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 tablespoons of brown or white sugar

1/2 cup of banana or tomato catsup

Barbeque Cooking Instructions:

Cut pork meat into thin and long slices – 1/4 inches thick and less than 2 inches wide.

In a mixing bowl, marinate the cut pork with the soy sauce, minced garlic, chopped onions, calamansi juice, ground pepper, sugar, banana catsup and the soda or beer (this tenderizes and adds flavour to the pork barbeque)

Mix well and keep in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes (turning occasionally).

Prepare the bamboo skewers by removing splinters and soaking in water to reduce burning during barbeque.

String the pork on the skewers.

Over live charcoals, barbeque the pork on skewers until each barbeque is cooked – turning every few minutes on each side and basting the leftover marinate on the barbeque.

Pansit Canton Recipe

Estimated cooking & preparation time: 1 hour

Pansit Canton Ingredients:

12 ounces pansit canton noodles

1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded

4 cups chicken broth (from boiled breast)

1/2 pound pork, sliced in small pieces

1/2 pound shrimps, shelled and deveined

4 tablespoons cooking oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons garlic, minced

1/2 cup Chinese sausages, sliced

cauliflower, cut to bit size

2 cups snow peas (sitsaro)

2 cups cabbage, sliced into strips

1 cup celery, sliced

1 carrot, diced

1/4 cup scallions, diced

4 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Pansit Canton Cooking Instructions:

In a big pan or wok, sauté in oil the garlic and onions. Then add sliced pork until cooked.

Add 2 cups of chicken broth and add the shredded chicken, sliced Chinese sausages, shrimps, snow peas, cabbage, celery and diced carrot. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until cooked.

Add the remaining 2 cups of chicken broth and the pansit canton noodles. Let simmer until noodles are soft.

Add the scallions, sesame oil then salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot

Ginataang Kalabasa Recipe (Squash Cooked in Coconut Milk)

Estimated cooking & preparation time: 1 hour

Ginataang Kalabasa Ingredients:

1 kilo squash, cut into cubes (1″x1″)

1/4 kilo shrimp, shelled and deveined

3 pieces tomatoes, diced

2 onions, chopped

1 head garlic, minced

2 tablespoons of ginger root, crushed and minced

4 tablespoons of cooking or olive oil

2 pieces long chilli peppers

2 tablespoons of shrimp paste (bagoong)

2 cups coconut milk

1 cups coconut cream (katang gata)

2 cups chicken stock

2 tablespoons of fish sauce (patis)

Ginataang Kalabasa Cooking Instructions:

On a big pan, heal oil. Sauté garlic, onions until light brown then add ginger, cook until onions become translucent.

Add the tomatoes, squash, chicken stock, shrimp paste and the coconut milk. Let boil then simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until the liquid has reduced and the squash becomes tender.

Add the coconut cream, long chilli peppers and the shrimps. Bring again to a boil and simmer for a few more minutes.

Serve hot with plain rice.Ginataang Kalabasa Cooking Tip:

This ginataan recipe can be used on any vegetable, combination of vegetables, fish or meat.

CHICKEN MACARONI SALAD

Estimated preparation and cooking time: 1 hour

Chicken Macaroni Salad Ingredients:

1/5 kilo macaroni noodles

2 to 3 pieces, medium sized carrots

1 big chicken breast

500 ml of mayonnaise

1 can (836 g) pineapple chunks or tidbits

1 big white onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup sweet pickle relish

3 hardboiled eggs, diced

1 cup diced cheddar cheese

1/2 cup raisins

salt and pepper to taste

Macaroni Salad Cooking Instructions:

Cook macaroni noodles according to package cooking instructions.

In a pot, boil carrots in water for 15 to 20 minutes or until cooked.

Drain carrots and let cool. Peal skin then dice.

Boil chicken breast in water with salt. Drain chicken breast, then shred in 1 inch lengths

Drain pineapple chunks or tidbits.

Combine all ingredients while adding salt and pepper, to taste.

Refrigerate, then serve.

PORK/CHICKEN ADOBO

Estimated cooking time: 50 minutes

Adobo Ingredients:

1/2 kilo pork cut in cubes + 1/2 kilo chicken, cut into pieces or

choice of either 1 kilo of pork or 1 kilo of chicken

1 head garlic, minced

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1/2 cup soy sauce

1 cup vinegar

2 cups of water

1 teaspoon paprika

5 laurel leaves (bay leaves)

4 tablespoons of cooking oil or olive oil

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons water

Adobo Cooking Instructions:

In a big sauce pan or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of oil then sauté the minced garlic and onions.

Add the pork and chicken to the pan. Add 2 cups of water, 1/4 cup of soy sauce, vinegar, paprika and the bay leaves. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or when meat is tender.

Remove the pork and chicken from the sauce pan and on another pan, heat cooking oil and brown the pork and chicken for a few minutes.

Mix the browned pork and chicken back to the sauce and add cornstarch dissolved in water to thicken.

Add salt and/or pepper if desired

Bring to a boil then simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

Serve hot with the adobo gravy and plain rice.Adobo Cooking Tips:

You have the option to add crushed ginger to the onions and garlic when sautéing. Ginger adds a unique flavor to your pork/chicken adobo.

PORK KILAWIN RECIPE

Estimated cooking time:

Pork Kilawin Ingredients:

1 kilo pork

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup Vinegar

2 medium onions, chopped

4 cups of water

1 teaspoon salt

Pork Kilawin Cooking Instructions:

In a casserole, put pork in water and some salt.

Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes or until the pork is tender and the skin is soft.

Remove pork from water.

Slice the pork into bite sized pieces while still hot.

Place in a bowl and add vinegar, soy sauce and chopped, uncooked onions.

Serve immediately!

PORK SINIGANG

Estimated cooking and preparation time: 1 hour

Pork Sinigang Ingredients:

3/4 kilo Pork, cut into chunks

3 tomatoes, sliced

2 onions, diced

5 cloves of garlic, minced

100 grams Kangkong (river spinach)

100 grams String beans

2 pieces horse radishes, sliced

3 pieces gabi (taro), pealed

2 pieces sili pag sigang (green finger pepper)

200 grams sampalok (tamarind)

3 tablespoons of patis (fish sauce)

1 liter of rice wash or waterSinigang

Cooking Instructions:

Boil sampalok in water until the shell shows cracks. Let cool then peal off the shells and with a strainer, pour samplalok (including water) into a bowl. Gently massage the sampalok meat off the seeds, strain again.
In a pot, sauté garlic and onion then add the tomatoes. Let simmer for 5 minutes.
Add pork and fish sauce then add the rice wash. Bring to a boil then simmer for 15 minutes then add the gabi. Continue to simmer for another 15 minutes or until the pork is tender.
Add the horse radish and simmer for 10 minutes then add the string beans, kangkong and sili (for spice-optional). Let boil for 2 minutes.
Serve piping hot.

Sinigang Cooking Tip:

Instead of sampalok fruit (tamarind), you can substitute it with any commercial souring seasoning like Knorr sampalok seasoning or tamarind bouillon cubes for this pork sinigang recipe.