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Tag: vegetable

  • Pork Meatballs with Water Spinach Egg Drop Soup

    This Pork Meatballs with Water Spinach Egg Drop Soup is very easy to prepare. It uses common ingredients.  The main ingredients are eggs, ground pork and water spinach leaves!  With these three (3) main ingredients, you can come up with an easy to prepare dish perfect for rainy or cold weather.  Your family will love this recipe. They will ask you to cook it always. In case you want to cook this dish again, use ground beef or ground chicken instead.

    Even beginner cooks will find that this soup is easy to prepare.  The steps are simple and easy to follow.

    Water Spinach in Filipino is called kangkong.  It is widely available in the Philippines.  Egg drop soup in its simplest form is very easy to make and is common in Chinese cooking.

    Pork Meatballs

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    Ingredients:

    Pork Meatballs:

    • 1/2 kilo ground pork
    • 2 egg yolks
    • 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
    • 1 tsp ground pepper
    • 2 tbsp fish sauce (patis)
    • 4 cloves garlic, minced

    Soup:

    • 1 bunch water spinach leaves
    • 1 thumb-sized ginger, julienned
    • 6 cups chicken stock
    • fish sauce (patis), to taste
    • ground pepper, to taste
    • 2 egg whites
    • 1 tbsp cooking oil

    Garnish (optional):

    • leeks
    • fried garlic

    Instructions:

    1. For the pork meatballs, mix the ingredients well until sticky and form into balls.
    2. In a pot, heat the oil and saute the ginger.
    3. Add the chicken stock and start adding the meatballs.  Boil until meatballs are cooked.
    4. Add the water spinach leaves and drop the egg whites.  Stir gently to mix.
    5. Season with fish sauce and ground pepper to taste.
    6. Garnish with leeks and fried garlic (optional).
    7. Serve

    Pork Meatballs

    Pork Meatballs with Water Spinach Egg Drop Soup

    This Pork Meatballs with Water Spinach Egg Drop Soup is very easy to prepare. It uses common ingredients. The main ingredients are eggs, ground pork and water spinach leaves! 

    Pork Meatballs

    • 1/2 kilo ground pork
    • 2 egg yolks
    • 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
    • 1 tsp ground pepper
    • 2 tbsp fish sauce (patis)
    • 4 cloves garlic (minced)

    Soup

    • 1 bunch water spinach leaves , , to taste
    • 1 pc ginger (thumb-sized , julienned)
    • 6 cups chicken stock
    • fish sauce (patis) (to taste)
    • ground pepper (to taste)
    • 2 egg whites
    • 1 tbsp cooking oil

    Garnish (optional)

    • leeks
    • fried garlic

    1. For the pork meatballs, mix the ingredients well until sticky and form into balls.

    2. In a pot, heat the oil and saute the ginger.
    3. Add the chicken stock and start adding the meatballs. Boil until meatballs are cooked.
    4. Add the water spinach leaves and drop the egg whites. Stir gently to mix.

    5. Season with fish sauce and ground pepper to taste.

    6. Garnish with leeks and fried garlic (optional).
    7. Serve

    Recommended Cookware:  Masflex Induction Non-stick 22cm Platinum Casserole With Glass Lid.  A Stainless Steel Pot will also be OK.

    Other recipes may be found HERE

    This recipe also appears in So Yummy! So Easy!

  • Beef Tapa Banh Mi

    What is Banh Mi?

    From Wikipedia:

    Bánh mì or banh mi refers to a kind of sandwich that consists of a Vietnamese single-serving baguette. This baguette is also called banh mi in Vietnamese. Split lengthwise, various savory ingredients fill the baguette.

    A typical Vietnamese sandwich is a fusion of meats and vegetables from native Vietnamese cuisine such as chả lụa (pork sausage), coriander, cucumber, and pickled carrots and daikon combined with condiments from French cuisine such as pâté along with jalapeño and mayonnaise.  However, there is a wide variety of popular fillings, from xíu mại to ice cream. In Vietnam, sandwiches are typically eaten for breakfast or as a snack; they are considered too dry for lunch or dinner.

    The baguette was introduced to Vietnam in the mid–19th century, when Vietnam was part of French Indochina, and became a staple food by the early 20th century. During the 1950s, a distinctly Vietnamese sandwich developed in Saigon, becoming a popular street food. Following the Vietnam War, overseas Vietnamese popularized the banh mi sandwich in countries like the United States.

    Banh Mi in Vietnam

    In Vietnamese, the word banh mi is derived from bánh (which can refer to many kinds of food, including bread) and mì (wheat). It may also be spelled bánh mỳ in northern Vietnam. Taken alone, banh mi means “bread” but is understood to be the Vietnamese baguette. Via synecdoche, it may also refer to a sandwich, with the term banh mi kẹp being used to disambiguate. In particular, banh mi often refers to the sandwiches made on Vietnamese baguettes, which may be called bánh mì Sài Gòn, after the city in which they were popularized. However, even in Vietnam, “a bánh mì for breakfast” implies a meat-filled sandwich for breakfast, not just bread.

    A folk etymology claims that the word bánh mì is a corruption of the French pain de mie, meaning soft, white bread.  However, bánh or its Nôm form 餅 has referred to rice cakes and other pastries since as early as the 13th century, centuries before French contact.

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    banh mi

    This banh mi sandwich recipe is a little bit different from the traditional banh mi recipe as we are going to use beef tapa as our meat.  Think this way, Vietnamese cuisine in fusion with Filipino cuisine. Beef tapa is often served tapsilog style (tapa, fried rice and fried egg).  This recipe shows us a different way to serve beef tapa.  We need to cook the beef tapa in advance prior to preparing this sandwich.  Check out the beef tapa recipe HERE.

    Ingredients:

    • 500 grams cooked beef tapa (recipe is HERE)
    • Baguette (or any similar bread)
    • Pickles
    • Soy Dressing

    Pickles Ingredients:

    • 1 pc small Carrot, finely julienned
    • 1 pc small White Radish, finely julienned
    • 8 tbsp White Sugar
    • 1 cup Cane Vinegar
    • 1 pc Red Chili, chopped

    Soy Dressing Ingredients:

    Instructions:

    1.  Cook the beef tapa as in the recipe found HERE.

    2.  Prepare the pickles:

    • In a bowl, mix the cane vinegar, white sugar, and red chili until the sugar is dissolved
    • Add the carrots and radish
    • Chill for an hour or more

    3.  Prepare the soy dressing:

    • Combine mayonnaise, liquid seasoning, onions, bird’s eye chili, and garlic in a mixing bowl
    • Chill for at least an hour

    4.  Assemble the sandwich:

    • Slice the bread in the middle, lengthwise
    • Lightly-toast the bread
    • Line the insides of the toasted bread with soy dressing
    • Add and distribute evenly the cooked beef tapa
    • Top the tapa with the pickles

    5.  Serve with potato chips

    banh mi

    Beef Tapa Banh Mi

    This banh mi sandwich recipe is a little bit different from the traditional banh mi recipe as we are going to use beef tapa as our meat. Think this way, Vietnamese cuisine in fusion with Filipino cuisine. Beef tapa is often served tapsilog style (tapa, fried rice and fried egg). This recipe shows us a different way to serve beef tapa. We need to cook the beef tapa in advance prior to preparing this sandwich.

    • 500 grams cooked beef tapa
    • Baguette (or any similar bread)
    • Pickles
    • Soy Dressing

    Pickles

    • 1 pc Carrot (small, finely julienned)
    • 1 pc White Radish (small, finely julienned)
    • 1 cup Cane Vinegar
    • 8 tbsp White Sugar
    • 1 pc Red Chili (chopped)

    Soy Dressing

    • 2 pcs Red Onions (small, sliced)
    • 1 pc Bird’s Eye Chili (to taste, chopped)
    • 3 tbsp Knorr Liquid Seasoning
    • 1 cup Lady’s Choice Real Mayonnaise

    Cook the beef tapa.

    Prepare the pickles:

    1. In a bowl, mix the cane vinegar, white sugar, and red chili until the sugar is dissolved

    2. Add the carrots and radish
    3. Chill for an hour or more

    Prepare the soy dressing:

    1. Combine mayonnaise, liquid seasoning, onions, bird’s eye chili, and garlic in a mixing bowl

    2. Chill for at least an hour

    Assemble the sandwich:

    1. Slice the bread in the middle, lengthwise

    2. Lightly-toast the bread

    3. Line the insides of the toasted bread with soy dressing
    4. Add and distribute evenly the cooked beef tapa
    5. Top the tapa with the pickles

    Serve with potato chips

    Other recipes may be found HERE

    This recipe also appears at So Yummy! So Easy!

  • Fried Okra | Fried Okra with Green Sambal

    Fried Okra | Fried Okra with Green Sambal

    This recipe for fried okra is easy to prepare but packs a lot of flavor.

    From one of the recipes in this blog:

    Okra, also known in English speaking countries as  Lady’s Finger or Gumbo, is always used in common Filipino vegetable dishes and every vegetable stall in the markets should always have this. The health benefits of okra include:

    its ability to lower total cholesterol levels
    improve digestive health
    improve vision
    boost skin health
    protect infant health
    prevent certain cancers
    strengthen bones
    improve cardiovascular health
    aid the immune system
    lower blood pressure
    protect heart health

    Aside from the fried okra, this recipe also comes with green sambal.  Green sambal is a spicy Southeast Asian sauce made with chili peppers.  The sambal ingredients used are green chilies (green peppers such as Anaheim (mild) or jalapeno (spicier)), garlic, shallots and olive oil. Since I am from the Philippines, instead of Anaheim Chilies, I used a combination of siling haba and green bell pepper.  WARNING:  This could get spicy!!!

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    You could also buy Green Sambal if you wish:

    For frying, I like to use cast iron skillets because they offer superior heat retention and even cooking.  Cast Iron Skillets look like this:

    Ingredients:

    • 2 bundles okra
    • Olive oil
    • 4 siling haba
    • 2 small green bell pepper
    • 3 green bird’s eye chilies (siling labuyo)
    • 1 garlic clove, minced
    • 10 shallots
    • salt to taste

    Instructions:

    1. Heat olive oil over high heat, and fry the okra (lady fingers) briefly until they are bright green in color, but still crisp. Remove the okra from the pan and set aside.
    2. Add the peppers, green bird’s eye chilies, garlic, shallots, salt and enough olive oil to a blender. Blend until nearly smooth.
    3. Reheat the oil in the pan, and sauté the blended paste.
    4. Serve the green sambal with the fried okra.

    Fried Okra | Fried Okra with Green Sambal

    This recipe for fried okra is easy to prepare but packs a lot of flavor.  Aside from the fried okra, this recipe also comes with green sambal. Green sambal is a spicy Southeast Asian sauce made with chili peppers.

    • 2 bundles okra
    • Olive oil (for frying)
    • 4 pcs siling haba
    • 2 pcs green bell peppers (small)
    • 3 pcs green bird’s eye chilies (siling labuyo)
    • 1 clove garlic (minced)
    • 10 pcs shallots
    • salt to taste

    1. Heat olive oil over high heat, and fry the okra (lady fingers) briefly until they are bright green in color, but still crisp. Remove the okra from the pan and set aside.

    2. Add the peppers, green bird’s eye chilies, garlic, shallots, salt and enough olive oil to a blender. Blend until nearly smooth.

    3. Reheat the oil in the pan, and sauté the blended paste.

    4. Serve the green sambal with the fried okra.

    fried okra

    Other recipes may be found HERE.

  • Easy Green Bean Recipe (with Maple Syrup)

    This easy Green Bean recipe could be a treat if you like eating green beans. These beans sautéed in butter and maple syrup are tender, sweet and delicious.

    What are green beans?  From Wikipedia:

    Green beans are the unripe, young fruit and protective pods of various cultivars of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris).  Immature or young pods of the runner bean (Phaseolus coccineus), yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis), and hyacinth bean (Lablab purpureus) are used in a similar way.

    Green beans are known by many common names, including French beans, string beans, snap beans, and snaps.

    They are distinguished from the many differing varieties of beans in that green beans are harvested and consumed with their enclosing pods, typically before the seeds inside have fully matured.

    This practice is analogous to the harvesting of unripened pea pods as snow peas or sugar snap peas.

    Easy Green Bean Recipe

    The photo above are of whole green beans packed for sale (photo from Wikipedia).

    What is maple syrup?  From Wikipedia:

    Maple syrup is a syrup usually made from the xylem sap of sugar maple, red maple, or black maple trees, although it can also be made from other maple species.

    In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before the winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring.

    Maple trees are tapped by drilling holes into their trunks and collecting the exuded sap, which is processed by heating to evaporate much of the water, leaving the concentrated syrup.



    This easy Green Bean recipe only takes a few minutes to prepare and is very tasty.

    Ingredients:

    • 2 cups green beans
    • 2 tablespoons butter
    • 3 tablespoons maple syrup
    • Salt and pepper

    Instructions:

    1. Steam green beans until softened.
    2. Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat.
    3. Add the maple syrup and green beans saute for a few minutes.
    4. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

    Easy Green Bean Recipe

    Easy Green Bean Recipe (with Maple Syrup)

    This easy Green Bean recipe could be a treat if you like eating green beans. These beans sautéed in butter and maple syrup are tender, sweet and delicious.

    • 2 cups green beans
    • 2 tbsps butter
    • 3 tbsps maple syrup
    • Salt and pepper

    1. Steam green beans until softened.

    2. Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat.

    3. Add the maple syrup and green beans saute for a few minutes.

    4. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

    Check out the other recipes HERE.

  • Oven-Baked Summer Squash Fries

    This Oven-Baked Summer Squash Fries is very easy to do.

    A summer squash has a strong resemblance, in flavor and texture, to a zucchini. You can, in fact, substitute zucchini in this recipe, but it will probably bake a bit more quickly.

    There are many variants of summer squashes.  What are they?

    What is a summer squash?  From Wikipedia:

    Summer squash are squashes that are harvested when immature, while the rind is still tender and edible. Nearly all summer squashes are varieties of Cucurbita pepo, though not all Cucurbita pepo are considered summer squashes. Most summer squash have a bushy growth habit, unlike the rambling vines of many winter squashes.  The name “summer squash” refers to the short storage life of these squashes, unlike that of winter squashes.

    Summer squashes include:

    Cousa squash, pale-colored zucchini varieties purportedly of Middle Eastern or West Asian descent. Not to be confused with cushaw, a type of winter squash.
    Pattypan squash (scallop squash)
    Tromboncino or zucchetta, unusual among summer squash as being a vining plant and a Cucurbita moschata variety.
    Crookneck squash
    Straightneck squash
    Zucchini (courgette)
    Immature ridge gourd luffa is used as a summer squash in India, where it is known as turai or dodka.
    Aehobak (Korean zucchini) belongs to the species Cucurbita moschata.

    summer Squash fries
    Photo from Wikipedia

    Ingredients:

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Grease a large baking sheet with olive oil and set aside.
    2. Cut your summer squash into wedges. Remove the seeds if they are quite large and set wedges aside.
    3. Whisk the eggs in a dish and set aside.
    4. In another dish, combine the bread crumbs, paprika, mustard powder and salt and pepper.
    5. Start by dipping the wedges, one by one, into the egg mixture and then the bread crumb mixture. Place each wedge on the greased baking sheet. Continue until all the wedges are done.
    6. You can bake the wedges as is for about 30-40 minutes (until soft inside and golden brown on the outside), but if you want a more golden texture, drizzle or spray some olive oil on top of the wedges. Flip half way through baking.
    7. Serve with ranch or another favorite dip.

    Go try this Oven-Baked Summer Squash Fries recipe!

    summer squash fries

    Oven-Baked Summer Squash Fries

    This Oven-Baked Summer Squash Fries is very easy to do.  A summer squash has a strong resemblance, in flavor and texture, to a zucchini. You can, in fact, substitute zucchini in this recipe, but it will probably bake a bit more quickly.

    • 1 piece summer squash (medium)
    • 2 pieces eggs
    • 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs (try panko breadcrumbs for a crunchier texture)
    • 1 tsp paprika
    • 1 tsp mustard power
    • Salt and pepper
    • Olive oil

    1. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Grease a large baking sheet with olive oil and set aside.

    2. Cut your summer squash into wedges. Remove the seeds if they are quite large and set wedges aside.

    3. Whisk the eggs in a dish and set aside.

    4. In another dish, combine the bread crumbs, paprika, mustard powder and salt and pepper.

    5. Start by dipping the wedges, one by one, into the egg mixture and then the bread crumb mixture. Place each wedge on the greased baking sheet. Continue until all the wedges are done.

    6. You can bake the wedges as is for about 30-40 minutes (until soft inside and golden brown on the outside), but if you want a more golden texture, drizzle or spray some olive oil on top of the wedges. Flip half way through baking.

    7. Serve with ranch or another favorite dip.

    Check out the other recipes HERE.

  • Ensaladang Kangkong (Water Spinach Salad)

    Ensaladang Kangkong (Water Spinach Salad)

    This Ensaladang Kangkong (Water Spinach Salad) recipe is very easy to make and goes well with fried or grilled meat, particularly fish.  This recipe only needs a few ingredients and takes just two steps to complete! Ensalada in English is salad.  Kangkong is known in English as water spinach, river spinach, water morning glory and water convolvulus.

    ensaladang kangkong

    In Southeast Asia, kangkong is known as Chinese spinach, Chinese watercress, Chinese convolvulus, and swamp cabbage.  Kangkong is usually available at Asian markets.  In case you cannot find kangkong in your neck of the woods, suitable substitutes are either kale or spinach leaves.

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    A key ingredient that makes this salad very tasty is bagoong.  Bagoong is a Philippine condiment made from fish or tiny shrimps (krill) that are salted and fermented for several weeks.  In general, bagoong made from shrimps produce  a firmer and more colorful paste.  Bagoong made from fish is in liquid form and is darker.  For this recipe, the preferred bagoong is of the shrimp paste variety.  Amazon carries a wide variety of bagoong from the Philippines.

    Ingredients:

    • 1 bunch kangkong blanched and drained
    • 4 pcs medium tomatoes sliced
    • 1 pc medium onion chopped
    • 4-5 tbsp shrimp bagoong sautéed

    Instructions:

    1. Put everything in a bowl and toss until completely mixed.
    2. Serve with fried or grilled fish and steamed rice.

    Ensaladang Kangkong

    Ensaladang Kangkong

    This ensaladang kangkong recipe is very easy to make and goes well with fried or grilled meat, particularly fish.

    • 1 bunch kangkong (blanched and drained)
    • 4 pcs medium tomatoes (sliced)
    • 1 pc medium onion (chopped)
    • 4-5 tbsp shrimp bagoong (sautéed)

    1. Put everything in a bowl and toss until completely mixed.

    2. Serve with fried or grilled fish and steamed rice.

    Check out other recipes HERE.