Creamy or soupy, munggo (mung bean) is definitely Pinoy soul food. Cold rainy days and we just love it with fried fish. Summertime and it is still munggo that we crave for. There are also many ways to enjoy it as it could be paired with just about anything – from fried bangus (milkfish) or tilapia and tuyo (dried salted fish) to adobong manok at baboy. You may also add in hibi (dried shrimps), use pata (pork leg) for a flavorful broth or just plain monggo soup sprinkled with chicharon pork cracklings. And just like sinigang na baboy, the veggies I include in it depends on what’s available. Back home, talbos ng ampalaya (bitter gourd tendrils) is a runaway favorite, even dahon ng malunggay (moringa leaves). In Beijing, I can only play around with talong, sitaw and ampalaya (string beans, eggplant and bitter gourd).

Mix it with home-made chicharon. . .

Top it with fried daing bought from a tiangge (flea market) at the Worker’s Stadium that tastes exactly like it’s from Manila.

As A likes it, creamy with Chinese chorizo. Oh well I never tried that before until now and it turned out surprisingly delicious!

Ingredients:
2 cups munggo
1/2 kilo pork, cut into tidbits
2 eggplants, cut ala-pakbet
4 medium-sized tomatoes, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
4 tbsp of diced garlic
patis (fish sauce) or salt

Simmer munggo in a pot of water (about 5-6 cups) until the beans soften. Add water if necessary.

In another pan, cook the pork in its own juice with little salt until it renders fat and the meat is brownish. Push the cooked meat to one side and fry the chopped garlic until golden brown. Throw in the onions and tomatoes, add patis and saute until the tomatoes are mashed.

Pour the saute mix to the pot of munggo (or the other way around) and mix well. Adjust the taste. Add the eggplant and simmer until the beans and eggplant are cooked.

Above is how I normally cook munggo guisado (stew) , but I know another way of doing it. When mom does it Dad calls it gawain ng tamad (the lazy man’s way). . .

Simmer munggo and pork in a pot of water for about 30 minutes. Add in the garlic, onions and tomatoes and bring to boil. Add patis and continue cooking until beans soften, tomatoes mashed and pork is tender.

Iska

I am not a professional cook. My only claim to having a culinary background is a short stint as my dad’s teen ‘sous chef’ in his carinderia ages ago. Dad ran small eateries since I was a young kid - serving standard ‘turo-turo’ food ranging from the likes of menudo, adobo, pritong isda, dinuguan, binagoongan, bopis, munggo, pinakbet and giniling to merienda fares like goto, ginataan, pancit bihon, halu-halo and saging con yelo.

My father, a farmer in his hometown before working his way to becoming an accountant, definitely influenced my cooking in a lot of ways than I thought. My siblings and I were raised in a backyard full of fruit trees and vegetable garden. We spent weekends and the summer breaks running around with ducks, chickens, goats and pigs. I had wonderful memories of gathering eggs, butchering chickens, selling vegetables and the sweet aroma of preserved fruits. But my love for art led me to a degree in Architecture. Just few months after getting my license, I went abroad and lived independently at age 23. Definitely no maid, no cook, and a totally different food culture. Along the way I met lots of friends and spent what seemed a lifetime learning new tricks and recipes.

Now living in Auckland, I am a work-from-home mum who juggles time between work, fun and family - in pursuit of work-life balance. No matter how busy I am, I love the idea of cooking for my family. My blog chronicles home cooking greatly influenced by life outside my home country from Southeast Asia to Beijing and Auckland. And most of the time, being busy also means easy (sometimes quick), affordable meals.