Beef and Pepper Stri-Fry

Image by panduh via Flickr

Beef Stir fry at Online Cooking Schools.

A Chinese - restaurant favorite catches our eye this week. A simple and basic feast that can be easily done at home.

Ingredients:

12 oz. beef, thinly sliced across grain

1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. vegetable oil

3 peppers, thinly sliced (use 3 different colors for variety)

2 cloves garlic, crushed and pressed

2 ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into 1/2 wedges

ground pepper

Procedure:

1. In a bowl, combine beef, 1 tsp. soy sauce, 1/2 tsp. sugar, 1/4 tsp ground pepper.

2. Using a skillet, heat 1 tsp oil on medium-high. Add beef in single layer. Cook without stirring for a minute or two. Transfer into a plate. Return skillet on medium high without cleaning.

3. Add remaining oil to skillet. Add peppers, garlic. Stir fry for 5 minutes or until crisp tender.

4. Add tomatoes and remaining sugar. Cook for 3-4 minutes until saucy while stirring. 

5. Return beef to skillet. Add 1/4 tsp black pepper and remaining soy sauce. Cook 1 minute while stirring.

6. Serve over rice.

Tip: Select truly ripe tomatoes so they'll soften enough while cooking to get saucy.

Humba

Humba recipe. Photo by digipam

I first encountered humba when I visited the province of Catanduanes. It looks like adobo but sweeter. It is also not sliced into bite sized pieces but was a hock part of pork. Little bit oily for my taste but it is a special meal done for special occasions. 

Ingredients:

1 lb. pork
1 cup water
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 cup vinegar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. pepper or 1 tsp. peppercorns
1 tsp. oil

salt to taste

3 potatoes, peeled and quartered (optional)

hard-boiled eggs (optional)

Procedure:

1. Combine all ingredients in a big pot and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for about an hour or until pork belly or hocks are tender.

2. Fry potatoes in a separate frying pan and add to the pork once nearly done.

3. Add the hard boiled eggs before serving.

Beef Sisig

Beef Sisig. Photo by besighyawn

Sisig is normally consistent with pork. History even points out its origin in Angeles City, Philippines. Lucia Cunanan of Angeles City has been credited with inventing sisig. The Philippine Department of Tourism has acknowledged that her "Aling Lucing's" restaurant had established Angeles City as the "Sisig Capital of the Philippines" in 1974. Cunanan's trademark sisig was developed in mid 1974 when she served a concoction of boiled and chopped pig ears and cheeks seasoned with vinegar,calamansi juice, chopped onions and chicken liver and served in hot plates. Today, varieties include sisig ala pizzailo, pork combination,green mussels or tahong, mixed seafood, ostrich sisig, spicy python, frog sisig and tokwa't baboy, among others.
Here is the queen of sisig herelf Lucia Cunanan fondly knowns as Aling Lucing , talking about how sisig came about.

For those icky with using porks ears, snout and brain as part of their recipe, beef is a good alternative among others.

Ingredients:

1 pound of sirloin or rib-eye beef

onion 

dash of soy sauce

lemon juice or calamansi

1/4 cup vinegar 

2 big jalapeno peppers or siling labuyo

egg (optional)

Procedure:

1. Option A

• Put beef in the oven at 350 degrees fahrenheit (175 deg C) and cook it for an hour. 

    Option B

• Boil beef in water with salt and pepper plus onion wedges. Cover and let boil for an hour. Then grill.

2. Chop up the onion and jalapeno peppers into small pieces.

3. Likewise, chop the beef into bite sized pieces.

4. In a heated pan, saute onion and beef. 

5. Add in vinegar, dash of soy sauce for coloring plus salt and pepper to taste.

6. Toss in jalapeno peppers and serve immediately while warm.

For additions: If using sizzling plate, you can crack an egg on top and mix together with calamansi or lemon juice. 

For pork sisig recipe, click here.

Pork Sisig

Pork Sisig with Calamansi. Photo by besighyawn

Sisig also refers to Sizzling sisig, a Filipino dish made from parts of pig’s head and liver, usually seasoned with calamansi and chili peppers. It is a constant companion of beer and thus a good "pulutan" due to its oily contents. 

Preparing sisig comes in three phases: boiling, broiling and finally frying. A pig's head is first boiled to remove hairs and to tenderize it. Portions of it are then chopped and grilled or broiled. Finally, it is fried with onions and served on a sizzling plate. Variations of sisig may add any of the following: eggs, ox brains, chicharon (pork cracklings), pork or chicken liver, and even mayonnaise. Recently, local chefs have experimented with ingredients other than pork such as chicken, squid, tuna and even tofu.

Ingredients:

1-1/2 lbs pork cheeks (or 2 lbs deboned pork hocks)

1/2 lb beef or pork tongue

1/2 lb beef or pork heart

1/2 lb liver (pork, beef or chicken)

2 cups water (for boiling)

1 cup pineapple juice (for boiling)

1 tsp whole black peppers (for boiling)

Marinade:

1 cup chopped onions

3-4 finger hot peppers (siling labuyo) (seeded and chopped)

1/4 cup vinegar

1/4 cup calamansi juice (lemon juice)

1/4 cup pineapple juice

1 tbsp minced fresh ginger

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp whole black pepper (crushed)

1 pc bay leaf (crushed)

Salt to taste

Procedure:

1. Combine pork cheeks (or deboned pork hocks), heart, and tongue in pineapple juice, salt, water and crushed whole black pepper and bring to a boil; simmer for about 1 hour or until tender.

2. Drain and cool to room temperature.

3. Slice pork cheeks/hocks, liver, heart and tongue, into 2″X3″ X 1/4″ thick pieces.

4. Place in bamboo skewers and grill over charcoal briquettes until pork rind is crisp and browned.

5. Chop the grilled pork cheeks/hocks, liver, heart, and tongue into 1/4 inch sized cubes.

6. Mix the chopped meat with the marinade seasoning mix of garlic, ginger, onions, vinegar, calamansi (lemon) juice, hot peppers (siling labuyo), bay leaf, salt and pepper.

7. Keep the marinated mixture in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours before serving.

It is a tasking recipe but worth the wait.
This is a video in Tagalog. A different version of pork sisig with tofu. Don't mind the background music. 

This one has an Englisg subtitle. Much easier to follow. 

This one is done first in the oven which is the same as that of our beef sisig recipe.

Rind Eintopf (German Beef Stew I)

Beef Stew or Rind Eintopf with noodles. Photos By SDeluz

Eintopf (German, lit.: "one pot") is a traditional type of German stew which can consist of a great number of different ingredients. Technically, the term refers to a way of cooking all ingredients in one pot, not to any specific recipe.

Many different regional specialty recipes for Eintopf are known in Germany; for example the Kassel area has a type called Lumpen und Fleeh ("rags and fleas" in the local dialect) which is quite similar to Irish stew.

This is basically known also as beef stew. "Rind" being a German word for "stew".

A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables (such as carrots, potatoes, beans, peppers and tomatoes, etc.), meat, especially tougher meats suitable for slow-cooking, such as beef. Poultry, sausages, and seafood are also used. While water can be used as the stew-cooking liquid,wine, stock, and beer are also common. Seasoning and flavourings may also be added. Stews are typically cooked at a relatively low temperature (simmered, not boiled), allowing flavors to mingle.

Stewing is suitable for the least tender cuts of meat that become tender and juicy with the slow moist heat method. This makes it popular in low-cost cooking. Cuts having a certain amount of marbling and gelatinous connective tissue give moist, juicy stews, while lean meat may easily become dry.

Stews may be thickened by reduction or with flour, either by coating pieces of meat with flour before searing, or by using a roux or beurre manié, a dough consisting of equal parts of butter and flour. Thickeners like cornstarch or arrowroot may also be used.

Stews are similar to soups, and in some cases there may not be a clear distinction between the two. Generally, stews have less liquid than soups, are much thicker and require longer cooking over low heat. While soups are almost always served in a bowl, stews may be thick enough to be served on a plate with the gravy as a sauce over the solid ingredients.

Every Wednesday is my lunch date with the couple Koziol. Their dining room is lined with different kinds of recipe books. Part of their passion is to try out different recipes per meal. They are a couple of food lover and critic as well. Here is one of the recipe we have shared together.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo beef

1 beef bouillon cube

worcestershire sauce

1 big carrot cut into strips

1 big onion cut into wedge + 1 small onion chopped small
5 cups water
salt and pepper
spring onion
1 can sliced mushroom (or fresh ones if you prefer)
chopped parsley

Procedure:

1. Boil the beef in 5 cups of water with salt and onion cut into wedges. Boil for 30 minutes.

2. Keep the beef stock and cut the beef into bite sized pieces.

3. In a pot, heat up oil and saute onion with beef. Put some worcestershire sauce. Cover for 3 minutes.

4. Add the beef stock and let boil.

5. After boiling, add all the rest of the ingredients. Let simmer for 5 minutes and serve.

Tip: You can add extra carbohydrate by adding either rice, pasta or potatoes.

Chicken Nuggets

Chicken nuggets with chili sauce dip. Photos by SDeluz

What makes the chicken nuggets a kids favorite? Nearly all kids adore chicken nuggets this is not only because of their crispy coating. Their bite-sized dimensions make them ideal for dipping. Serve chicken nuggets with mayonnaise, ketchup or barbecue sauce for a mouthwatering dinner.

A chicken nugget is a molded piece of chicken product, breaded or battered, then fried or baked. Fast food restaurants typically deep fry their nuggets in vegetable oil.

The chicken nugget is a meat product that was invented in the 1950s by Robert C. Baker, a food science professor at Cornell University, and published as unpatented academic work. Dr. Baker's innovations made it possible to form chicken nuggets in any shape. McDonald's recipe for Chicken McNuggets was created on commission from McDonald's by Tyson Foods in 1979 and the product was sold beginning in 1980.

Instead of visiting your local fastfood for this much loved food, you can easily make it at home. Here's how:

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo boneless chicken breast

salt and pepper

2 eggs

bread crumbs

Procedure:

1. In a bowl,beat the eggs and add salt and pepper.

2. Cut the chicken breasts into 1 1/2 thin sized pieces so it will cook easily. Put all cut chicken pieces into the egg mixture and leave for 30 minutes (minimum).

3. Heat up a pan with oil for deep frying.

4. Roll each chicken piece into bread crumbs before deep frying. Fry for less than 2 minutes or until it reaches a golden color. Transfer on a plate lined with paper towel to drain.

For dipping: Pick your own choice from catsup, mayonnaise, chili sauce or my very own dip for all.

Baked Glazed Ribs

Photos by SDeluz

These are delectable and fall right off the bone! The hint of anise adds an unexpectedly delicious flavor to these ribs. 

Ingredients:

3 kilos pork spareribs 

2 medium onions, cut into wedges 
1 medium onion, finely chopped 
6 tablespoons soy sauce 
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 
3 whole star anise pods 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil 

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger 

1/4 cup honey 

1 tablespoons brown sugar 

1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 

1 tablespoon lemon juice 

Procedure:

1. Place ribs in a pot full of water with beef cubes to make a broth. Add the wedged onions, 4 tablespoons of the soy sauce, pepper and star anise. Bring all to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and let simmer in meat juices until ribs are tender when pierced, about 1 1/4 hours. Stir occasionally. 

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add remaining chopped onion and saute, stirring often, until onion is soft. Blend in the ginger, honey, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and remaining 2 tablespoons of soy sauce plus half cup of the beef stock. Cook all together, stirring, until well blended. Remove from heat. 

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). 

4. Using tongs, remove ribs from stock pot and arrange in a single layer in an 11x16 inch baking dish. Brush evenly with the honey mixture and bake in the preheated oven, basting often with pan drippings, about 30 minutes or until ribs are well glazed. 

Some prefer to add 1/4 cup beer and cinnamon on the honey mixture. Enjoy and take care of your cholesterol level. ;-)

Siomai

Image via Wikipedia

Siomai (Cebuano/Tagalog: siyomay) in the Philippines is often ground pork, beef, shrimp, among others, combined with extenders like green peas, carrots and the like which is then wrapped in wonton wrappers. It is either steamed or fried resulting in a crispy exterior. It is normally dipped in soy sauce and squeezed calamondin, and for some, with an oily, spicy garlic mix.

Making this can be a tad tiring due to lots of tiny bit chopping but once wrapped, can be put in deep freezer for future use. 

Ingredients: 

Photos by SDeluz

.5 (or half) kilo ground lean meat beef
2 big carrots finely chopped
1 big onion finely chopped
1 can water chestnuts cut in quarters
1/4 k shrimp finely chopped
wonton wrap
1 big egg
salt and pepper
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp rice wine
2 tsp soja sauce
garlic powder
a dash of cinnamon
petersilie

Procedure:

1. Mix all ingredients.

2. Leave it for 2 hrs in the fridge.

3. Wrap 1 tbsp of mixture in wonton wrap.

4. Brush steamer with oil and put siomai with enough space in between (roughly 1 inch). Make sure the water is briskly boiling when you put the siomai.

5. For beef siomai, steam for 45minutes. For pork siomai, 20 minutes. 

6. Use toyomansi as dip (I prefer use kikkoman sushi / sashimi sauce).

Embotido

Image by El Negro Magnifico via Flickr

Embutido is a type of meatloaf prepared Filipino style. Though a well known dish for the holidays, Embutido can be enjoyed everyday without any hassle. Several meat processing companies now produce this meatloaf for commercial purposes; all you have to do is grab one from your favorite grocery store. But if you like to cook and would like to earn extra, try this recipe and market it at your place. It can easily be kept in deep freezer for future consumption.

Ingredients:

1 k. ground meat (pork)
1 can  chorizo* cut into slices
1 can vienna sausage cut into slices

4 boiled eggs

2 bell pepper finely chopped (preferred 1 red and 1 green)

2 onion finely chopped

2 grated carrots

grated cheese

1/4 c powdered milk

1/4 cup catsup

dash of soy sauce or any liquid seasoning

dash of pepper 

1 T salt

1/4 cup raisins

toasted bread, use as bread crumbs

8 raw eggs (scramble) (ratio is -- 4 eggs : 1 k ground meat)

1/3 cup sweet pickle relish

aluminum foil (10"x12" size)

                       Photos by http://www.flickr.com/photos/


Procedure:

1. Prepare a steamer and set aside. Alternatively, prepare a baking pan and a wire rack and preheat oven to 350°F.

2. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix until well blended.

3. Divide the mixture into 2 to 4 portions (depending on how many you want to make).

4. Spread and flatten the mixture onto the center of each foil, divide the slices of hard cook eggs and Vienna sausages.

5. Place each slices at the center of each mixture. Hold the foil onto your hand and roll until the ends of the mixture covers the eggs and sausages. Alternatively, by holding each ends of the foil, roll the mixture back and forth until it covers the slices of eggs and sausages in the center.

6. Finally, roll the aluminum foil into a tightly packed log about 1″ to 2″ in diameter, sealing on both ends. Repeat with the remaining pork mixture.

7. Place the embutido in a steamer and steam for an hour. Alternatively, place embutido in a wire rack on a baking pan, half filled with hot water.

8. Cover with aluminum foil (Be sure the steam will not escape). Steam-bake in the center of the oven for an hour.

9. Remove from the oven. Let it cool and slice into rings. Serve with your favorite catsup or sauces.

10. Refrigerate unused embutido.

* Some don't like the smell of chorizo. You can omit or add this based on your preference. Some also prefer to fry the sliced chorizo even after steaming it. There's no right or wrong in this. Just as long you were able to thoroughly steam the chorizo. Happy learning online cooking!

Korean Beef Barbecue

Photos by SDeluz

This is a recipe I learned from a college friend who owned an eatery near our college campus in Las Pinas, Manila. He fries it until it is really dry and adds some toppings. I customized it so that it will be saucy and had it paired with a vegetable. Much nicer with quail eggs but there's no available fresh ones here in Germany.

Ingredients:

.5 kilo beef steak cut into thin slices
4 tbsp soy sauce
1 big lemon (8 kalamansi)
2 big cloves of garlic chopped
5 tbsp chili sauce
4tbsp sugar
broad beans
2tsp flour

Procedure:


1. Mix all ingredients (except broad beans and flour) and marinate overnight.

2. Fry the beef on hot margarine leaving the sauce on the bowl. 


3. Mix the 2 tsp flour on the marinate sauce and pour on the beef once it is halfway cook. 


4. Add broad beans and simmer til cook. 

Bacon Smokies

This is an easy recipe to bring for potluck gatherings. Few ingredients that will produce enough for everyone. Cocktail hotdogs will do in lieu of wieners.

Wiener is a German sausage named after Vienna.

Photos by SDeluz

Ingredients:

• 1 pound sliced bacon, cut into thirds
• 1 (14 ounce) package beef cocktail wieners
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, or to taste

Procedure:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Refrigerate 2/3 of the bacon until needed. It is easier to wrap the wieners with cold bacon. Wrap each cocktail wiener with a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Place on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle brown sugar generously over all.
3. Bake for 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until the sugar is bubbly. 

Tip: Put Aluminum foil on the tray before baking. This is for easy clean-up afterwards.


You want a dip to go with this? Then try Bacon Smokies Dip.

Pork Adobo (Filipino Cuisine)

Adobo is the name of a popular dish and cooking process in Philippine cuisine that involves meat or seafood marinated in a sauce of vinegar and garlic, browned in oil, and simmered in the marinade.

Although it has a name taken from the Spanish, the cooking method is indigenous to the Philippines. When the Spanish conquered the Philippines in the late 16th century and early 17th century, they encountered an indigenous cooking process which involved stewing with vinegar, which they then referred to as adobo, which is the Spanish word for seasoning or marinade. Dishes prepared in this manner eventually came to be known by this name, with the original term for the dish now lost to history.

While the adobo dish and cooking process in Filipino cuisine and the general description adobo in Spanish cuisine share similar characteristics, they refer to different things with different cultural roots. While the Philippine adobo dish can be considered adobo in the Spanish sense—a marinated dish—the Philippine usage is much more specific. Typically, pork or chicken, or a combination of both, is slowly cooked in vinegar, crushed garlic, bay leaf, black peppercorns, and soy sauce then often browned in the oven or pan-fried afterward to get the desirable crisped edges.

Adobo has been called the quintessential Philippine stew, served with rice both at daily meals and at feasts. It is commonly packed for Filipino mountaineers and travelers because it keeps well without refrigeration. Its relatively long shelf-life is due to one of its primary ingredients, vinegar, which inhibits the growth of bacteria.

Outside of the home-cooked dish, the essence of adobo has been developed commercially and adapted to other foods. A number of successful local Philippine snack products usually mark their items "adobo flavored." This assortment includes, but is not limited to nuts, chips, noodle soups, and corn crackers.

Although Adobo is said to be the easiest Filipino Dish, I for one had qualms learning it for none of my family members can givee me a specific ratio of how much soy sauce to use per vinegar. Everyone has been saying that you would know if its enough or not (tantyahan lang). So, I persevered with Cordon Bleus and baking before finally, I saw from a posting of one of my FB friends, the Adobo that i like. Succulent looking with barely there sauce that gives you the look of an authentic Filipino Adobo.

Photos by Sheryll Ann Deluz

Pork belly, with the rind (skin), is traditional for cooking adobo. If you have access to good quality pork, choose pork belly with the thinnest layer of fat. The marbled fat is what makes adobo what it is but there is no reason why you can’t cut down on the amount of fat. Other pork cuts may have even less fat but too little fat, or none at all, will affect the texture and quality of the cooked adobo.

Ingredients:

1/2 k. of pork belly, skin on

1 whole garlic, crushed

1/2 tbsp. of peppercorns, crushed

2 bay leaves
1/4 c. of vinegar

1/4 c. of soy sauce
1/2 c. of water

finely chopped onion leaves

Procedure:

1. Place the pork cubes in a wide shallow pan, add the crushed garlic, crushed peppercorns and bay leaves Pour in the vinegar. Set the heat on high and bring to the boil without stirring.

2. Continue boiling, uncovered, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the pork starts to render fat.

3. Stir and cook until the edges of the pork start to brown.

4. With the heat still on high, pour in the soy sauce and about a half cup of water.

5. Bring to the boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer the adobo for an hour to an hour and a half or until the pork is very tender and the liquid considerably reduced.

6. To serve the adobo, transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle the toasted garlic bits (optional) on top followed by the finely sliced onion leaves.

Tip: Add more water if you want it to have more sauce or blended chicken liver to have a thicker sauce. 

Tip Tip: Ratio of  1/4 cup vinegar to 1/4 cup soy sauce to 1/2 cup water.

PS: Thanks Liza B-V for sharing with me your recipe.