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Shrimps, Pumpkin and Long Beans in Coconut Milk

Though I still maintain a balanced diet for me and my family, I think being-slender-is-in-my-genes-I-can-eat-what-I-want is no longer the right attitude. Carbs and fats are slowly yet surely getting into my system (and metabolism) nowadays. Ahaha yeah… I had my wake-up call. The website of a magazine for expats in Beijing has our photo in their gallery and… my goodness! They should have told me they’ll take my picture so I was able to hold my breath for a while and say ‘cheese’. I definitely put on some weight… or is it just the angle? On a lighter note, that particular photo captured A and I in one of our moments in our sweetest smiles.

Oh well… and so I decided to cut on my rice intake and eat more veggies instead. Without the usual 4-hour brisk walking for the next 2 months, I hope this works. Haha enough sulking.

I still have a cup of coconut milk left from the Thai Green Curry I cooked the other day and instantly I thought about setting it aside for a veggie dish. I bought the usual shrimps and decided to use a bowlful for guinataang gulay (vegetable in coconut milk). Yummy! Our lunch last Saturday!

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Thai Green Curry

I love Thai food (and anything Southeast-Asian) and that is a fact. It all started when I fell in love with authentic Tom Yam soup and Mango Fish served home-style in a restaurant managed and operated by our company’s Thai staff back in Brunei. Its distinct taste is just something we crave that we regularly frequent a small but cozy Thai restaurant in Yong An Li. Though there are few recipes I bookmarked for quite sometime now but have yet to recreate, particularly from Eet Smakelijk!, this is the first time I had the time (and the heart) to try. I happened to find a packet of Thai Green Curry Paste a week ago with a recipe attached that is surprisingly easy. Of course, I didn’t follow it exactly as written; made a few alterations on the how-to and voila! My first time to cook Thai! I’d say the result’s a success what with the added Thai spice in our lives for lunch.


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Meatballs in Sweet & Sour Sauce

I found frozen meatballs as I was unpacking our grocery bags. Obviously A grabbed a pack as it says ‘Italian Meatballs.’ Oh well I know right away it can’t be truly Italian. I fried a ball and yeah it has some Chinese sausage flavor in it. Not bad. Not bad but definitely un-Italian. I’m quite sure if I serve them plain and fried with ketchup they’d eat only few pieces. (Or maybe I am speaking for myself hehehehe…) And so my sweet and sour sauce saves the day! Also good for lumpiang shanghai, fried chicken nuggets, etc.

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Simple Curried Chicken Wings

What dish would you prepare in a busy day when you find out you only have chicken wings inside your refrigerator? Ah… one can think of a lot of things I would say. Oh well, I also found two pieces of potatoes, the usual spices and curry powder. Tada! A simple curried chicken dish. Yeah yeah, no coconut milk and other things so I refuse to call it chicken curry… but it’s finger-lickin’ good! ;-)

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Lasang Pinoy 17: Egg Fried Rice

Erwin Ines is this blog’s regular Contributor. A Credit and Financial Analyst in Manila, Erwin migrated to Canada in 2003 and made a drastic career change a year and a half later. With his passion for food and love for cooking, he decided to take a Continuing Education Chef Training Course at George Brown College’s Chef School in Toronto.

China Crisis
(Circa 1983)

Eggs are probably one of the most versatile ingredients next to the chicken. However, many in this world of ours relate eggs with breakfast and or with desserts. In my case, I’d prefer eggs with breakfast. I love breakfast and just couldn’t wait the next morning to prepare my Double Toasted Bagel Cream Cheese with Two Eggs Easy. Every now and then, I would change my bread to Rye or Whole Wheat and prepare a Western or Mushroom Omelette or Frittata. Last winter, I cooked four (4) pieces of crunchy bacon alongside this combination and mixed one crunchy slice with my omelette of the day. My morning was almost always so gratifying that I was in heaven on earth after taking such a huge meal. That meal would last me until about 3:00 P.M. before taking my quick leftover lunch. My early morning days-off would almost always turn into brunch. They were precious early mornings I cherished every week. I don’t get tired of cooking eggs. In most occasions, I’d flip the egg just to practice my speed and skill in tossing much like creating fire in the saute pan. That was my initial take on eggs.

At the moment, I am just totally confused on what to present for Lasang Pinoy so I resorted to writing this idea right away. I’m sure I won’t be presenting something “Pinoy” but maybe something more contemporary, western or classical as one might have expected as I myself have; living in the northeastern hemisphere in the western world. Initially, I wanted to combine eggs with potatoes and bread, but yet again I had to plan and to organize my ingredients to the last spec. I knew firsthand that would turn out something really flavourful, fulfilling and majestic, but yet again, time is not working for me. Spring is already here and summer is just lurking behind. It really gets out of hand during this once a year, 12-week phenomenon in Canadian summer; so with my schedule. It might get even longer and hotter due to global warming which only means more menacing work ahead. With this upcoming battle with summer, I had to devise a personal meal plan that worked. I’ve been avoiding processed food for health reasons and rice was the next best thing that was available in my pantry. I have been experimenting with rice lately cooking Chinese Congee with Julienned Green Onions (some say scallions) and Ginger. It’s fast and quick meal. It’s also a delicious and fulfilling fare similarly to my breakfast of toast and eggs. For LP17, I have decided to cook my version of Egg Fried Rice. It’s one way of cleaning up the fridge of leftovers before proceeding to Chinatown’s sweet market buys.

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Lasang Pinoy 17: Chicken & Marbleized Quail Eggs Adobo

Angelo of Eat Matters decided to tackle egg as an ingredient for the 17th round of Lasang Pinoy. Oh I thought about omelets right away but then, nilagang itlog has always been my favorite. Be it plain hard-boiled eggs as snack or breakfast just like what nourishes a poor Chinese laborer in construction sites here in Beijing, or toppings to a hearty chicken noodle soup. And so I present to you… chicken and marbleized quail eggs adobo.

A lot of things had been said about adobo – the national dish, soul food, the non-Pinoy’s favorite Pinoy food. There are also so many ways to cook adobo and for quite sometime I have always wanted it soupy but nowadays… mean and dark it is, just as I remember it as a kid.

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