Tag Archives: filipino

Talde – Park Slope, Brooklyn

If you know me at all then you’d know that while I don’t watch TV or listen to the radio, I am wired enough to recall the names of random shows and celebrities. So I can tell you that the chef at Talde was in Top Chef, though I can’t tell you what Top Chef is exactly, other than it’s a popular contest show about cooking. Plus Dale Talde is Filipino, so that immediately put Talde on the map for me as a restaurant I needed to try. The Filipino presence in Brooklyn is extremely lacking, so any attempt is worth my attention. Talde called itself an Asian-American Restaurant & Bar, and I hoped it wouldn’t be fusion-y. I hate that! 🙂

Fortunately the chef (recently named by Food & Wine as New York’s Best New Chef) did his homework enough to maintain an authentic Asian feel to his dishes without transforming it into the fusion-like mess that I hate, when a dish that is commonly served family style in large undecorated quantities suddenly becomes miniscule, pretty, but lost. I like my Asian food Asian, not French. Continue reading →

Grilled Pork Belly (Inihaw na Liempo)

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It’s barbecue season again and it’s the time when we prepare our favorite barbecue recipes. Grilled pork belly (or inihaw na liempo) is a mainstay in our barbecues because of their ease in preparation and quick cooking on the grill. The only challenging part of cooking with pork belly is sourcing it. In order for us to get it sliced in a particular way, we get our meat from Hong Kong Supermarket and insist that they be cut lengthwise in 3/4 inch pieces. Sometimes they will object in true Chinatown fashion. Your job is to insist. 🙂

Crispy skin and perfectly browned.

Grilled pork belly is a popular dish served in parties, beachside barbecues, or with liquor in the Philippines. With very few ingredients it is easy to prepare in the US if you have access to pork belly and Filipino soy sauce.

Grilled pork belly, sliced.

Recipe below. Continue reading →

Easter Dinner – Vegetable Sinigang and Sesame Beef

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It was Easter and we wanted to feed our dear friends, so we brought over a pot of stew and some vegetables to prepare for dinner. We love feeding friends, especially those who love to eat what we serve, and are always open to some kind of adventure.

These friends once made us their twist on our own national dish, adobo with coconut milk! After much skepticism we were very much impressed and even entertained the possibility of including it in our arsenal of adobo variations.

Click on the captions for the recipes.

Sesame shortribs – Korean style

A bowl of vegetable sinigang

Continue reading →

Pasta with Salsa Amaya – Herring, Sundried Tomato, Capers, Olives, Mushrooms and Garlic

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One of the things I request from friends or relatives visiting from Manila is Connie’s Kitchen Salsa Amaya. It is a bottled blend of herring, olives, mushrooms and herbs soaked in olive oil.

I saute some garlic to bring out some flavors and stir in the bottle’s contents to come up with a flavorful sauce.

I toss some cooked pasta in and serve it promptly, the aroma unmistakably Filipino but with an Italian twist.

This definitely cannot be found in any New York Restaurant menu. Somebody patent it, quick!

And if you are a friend who would like to be on my good side, please ship me some Connie’s Kitchen goodies. Other favorites include Kippers in Capers, Herring in Oil, Daing na Bangus, and Tinapate.

Drool.

Ginisang Collard Greens – Sauteed Filipino Style

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#filipino #vegetarian #realfood #foodie

Collard greens are readily available in any grocery store, and may be a more accessible substitute for more familiar vegetables such as bokchoy and string beans. It’s very versatile because of its ease in preparation, neutral taste and texture, so it can easily be used for many Filipino vegetable dishes.

“Ginisa” in Filipino means to saute, and that’s really the only thing I did to this dish, other than “make it Filipino” by adding fish sauce as a flavor base. That’s pretty much it, no frills and no fanciness. But let me share the easy prep anyway: