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Welcome to the San Francisco Bay Area. Welcome to My Bay Kitchen!

Growing up in Baguio City, Philippines, I learned most of my cooking from my late mother,  just watching her in the kitchen.  She had no recipe books or cheat sheets, just the skills and knowledge  gained from my grandmother and great grandmother. I honestly believe that the best dishes are probably the ones that are passed on by word of mouth and practice, perfected not by measuring cups or kitchen timers, but by intuition and the pouring of one’s heart into the cooking. I have personally tried each of the recipes in this blog, injecting my own tweaks to make them more healthy and easy to prepare. More…

I hope you will enjoy cooking the recipes as well as the story that goes with each of them. Select from the Category drop down menu  or visit this site’s pages by making a selection from the top menu bar. You can also use the search button to look for recipe key words.

Oh, and keep coming back for a second serving!

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Steamed Stuffed Bitter Melon a la Siomai

. Pork, Vegetables

If you have the acquired taste for bitter melon, you might enjoy a recipe of this steamed gourd stuffed with a ground pork mixture.  Think about it as having siomai with a twist!

I’ve seen other recipes of this concoction but I wanted to do it without overcooking the bitter melon to keep its nutrients and luscious green color.

There are ways to temper the bitterness of the gourd.  In this case, I soaked the bitter melon slices in salted water for about 15 minutes before rinsing and draining them in preparation for the stuffing.

There will be leftover pork mixture, so you might want to make meatballs out of it.  They can be steamed or fried.

INGREDIENTS:

2 medium-sized bitter melons

1/4 pound ground pork

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 medium tomato, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon red chilly pepper

1/4 cup raisins

1 tablespoon corn starch

DIRECTIONS:

Slice the bitter melon into 1 1/2 inch- thick rings. Using a teaspoon or kitchen knife, remove the seeds and hollow out the center of the rings.  Soak the rings in salted water for about 15 minutes before rinsing and draining them.  Set aside.

Meanwhile combine ground pork and all remaining ingredients and mix well.

Stuff the center of the rings with the pork mixture, making sure to create a little “hill” on top of each ring.

Boil water in a pot and place a steamer tray over it.  Place the stuffed bitter melon rings in the steamer (you may have to do it in batches), and cook for about 6-7 minutes.  Cooking the rings for longer periods will make the rings pale and mushy. 

Make tiny balls out of the leftover pork mixture and steam them in about the same amount as the stuffed bitter melon rings.

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Beer-braised Pork Chops

. Pork

I couldn’t have been more serious when I complained about the liquor ban as part of my city’s (Baguio, Philippines) protocols and restrictions to deal with the coronavirus. Sure, I enjoy my pre-meal San Mig Lights, but beer has always been part of my cooking, and this recipe is proof.

Whenever I prepare recipes needing beer, everything depends on where I am. In California and Hawaii, I’d usually use Bud Light or Corona. But when I’m in the Philippines, my beer of choice is San Mig Light, and that’s what I used in preparing this pork chop recipe!

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 tablespoons, corn starch
  • 4 pork chops, 1/2-inch thick
  • 1 tablespoon butter or margarine
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup San Mig Light beer
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

Directions

Combine corn starch, salt, and pepper in a large resealable plastic bag. Add pork chops and shake well to coat thoroughly. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and heat until sizzling. Add pork chops (you might need to do this in batches.) Saute until browned on either side, about 2 minutes. Turn pork chops over and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Transfer pork chops to a plate. Add beer, vinegar, brown sugar, and rosemary to the skillet and mix well. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Return pork chops to the skillet, cover, then reduce heat. Simmer until pork chops cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer pork chops to a plate. Increase heat to medium and boil pan juices in the skillet until thickened, whisking often, about 3 minutes. Top pork chops with sauce.

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Fried Baguio Pechay Rolls

. Appetizers, Pork, Vegetables

This recipe is similar to the more familiar cabbage rolls except that instead of using the regular cabbage, I used Baguio pechay, also known as Napa cabbage. The pechay is named after my hometown, Baguio City, in which, along with nearby Trinidad Valley, this leafy produce abounds.

The rolls are breaded and fried, but you can always skip the frying if you’d rather have “fresh” rolls.

Either way, the rolls make for a delectable meal, or appetizer.

INGREDIENTS
1 head, Baguio pechay

1/2 lb. ground pork

1 large potato, peeled and sliced into tiny cubes

3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced into tiny cubes

2 tbsps Oyster sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup cornstarch

1 cup bread crumbs

1 egg beaten

Olive oil for frying

2 cups water

Sweet and sour sauce

DIRECTIONS

Cut about half an inch off the hard end of the pechay and carefully separate the leaves. Boil water in a pot and place the individual pechay leaves to cook for just about 3 minutes or so. Drain the leaves and set aside.

In a frying pan, heat about two tbsps of Olive oil. Add garlic and onions and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook until they turn slightly brown. Add in the ground pork. Add salt and pepper to taste. When the pork is nicely browned, add the Oyster sauce and mix well. Cook for another minute. Using a strainer, drain the pork mixture to get rid of excess oil and liquid.

Take one pechay leaf at a time, place about a tablespoon of the pork mixture on the hard end and roll away from you, making sure to fold in either side of the leaf. Repeat for the rest of the pechay leaves.

Heat about 3 tablespoons of Olive oil in a pan. Coat each roll with cornstarch, then dip into the beaten egg, and finishing off by rolling it over the breadcrumbs.

Fry the breaded rolls in batches and until they’re browned and crispy on all sides. Remove from the pan and place on paper towel to drain excess oil.

Serve the rolls warm with your favorite sauce or dip. I used sweet and sour sauce.

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Boneless Bangus Donburi

. Seafood

A visit to a Japanese restaurant is never complete for me unless I order unagi (eel). I’m perfectly fine having it either as sushi or as a rice bowl (unagi donburi.)

Unlike in California, I don’t have a source of packaged eel where I currently am in Baguio City in the Philippines. But I have found a worthy, readily available alternative to unagi domburi:  boneless bangus (milkfish). I have even come up with my local version of the unagi sauce, using my choice of beer, San Mig Light,  as a substitute for sake.

INGREDIENTS:

2 pieces, boneless bangus belly, unseasoned

3/4 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup, San Mig Light beer

2 tablespoons, pickled ginger for garnish

2 tablespoons, chopped green onions

2 cups, cooked white rice

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp Olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

Slice each bangus belly into 2 portions. Lightly season with salt and pepper.

Prepare the sauce by combining soy sauce, sugar and beer in a pan. Heat the pan over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a quick boil then simmer for a few minutes, stirring until the sauce thickens.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Heat a grill pan over high heat before brushing it with Olive oil. Add boneless bangus and grill the bangus belly on both sides till browned, brushing them with the unagi sauce.

Place cooked rice on a bowl, lightly coating it with unagi sauce. Place two slices of the grilled bangus over the rice and top with a generous pinch of pickled ginger and some green onions.

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Beer Boneless Bangus Belly

. Uncategorized . , , ,

You don’t have to be a gourmet chef to use wine or beer in your cooking. Recipes that include some alcohol as an ingredient are commonplace in many cuisines worldwide.

This recipe is my take on the Chinese-style beer fish.  My twist? I used boneless Bangus (milkfish) belly popular in the Philippines.  Additionally, I didn’t have light beer on hand (I prepared this recipe in the midst of an Enhanced Community Quarantine because of the Covid-19 pandemic which included a ban on the sale of liquor), so I used a “stronger” kind of Philippine beer called Red Horse.  The results were surprisingly amazing!

So the next time you open up a bottle of beer, save some for your cooking, will you?

INGREDIENTS

2 pieces, Bangus belly

2 small fresh tomatoes, quartered

2 small white onions, peeled and quartered

1 ripe mango, peeled and cut into tiny cubes

3-4 cloves, garlic, peeled and crushed

2-inch ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks

2 tbsps. soy sauce

2 tbsps. Oyster sauce

4 ounces, beer

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsps. Olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Thoroughly wash the Bangus belly, pat dry with paper towel and rub with salt and pepper to season.  In a small bowl, mix soy sauce, Oyster sauce and beer. Heat a deep frying pan or wok on high heat until smoking. Reduce heat to low and add Olive oil.  When oil is hot, add the fish with skin side down until crispy.  Flip over the fish and add garlic, onions, ginger and tomatoes, spreading them across the pan. Pour over the sauce mixture. Ensure that the fish is fully coated. Continue cooking for another 3-5 minutes.  Turn the heat off.  Carefully transfer the Bangus belly, sauce and ingredients into a serving platter. Add the mango slices to garnish.

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Strawberry Champorado

. Carbs, Fruit, Uncategorized

Almost all Filipinos grew up eating champorado — chocolate rice porridge — for breakfast or snack. Many will recall their experience partnering it with tuyo or dried fish.

But what will champorado be like without the chocolate?

I recently came across a news feature about a different kind of champorado being served for breakfast at a boutique hotel inside Camp John Hay in Baguio City.

I was very intrigued, but I also realized that if there would be a place that would popularize a unique iteration of this traditional, favorite Filipino breakfast fare, it would be Baguio where this cool-weather fruit abounds.

I came up with this recipe just by looking at photos of the hotel’s strawberry champorado, and thought I’d come up with my version of it.

For one, instead of the usual plain malagkit (sweet, glutinous rice), I used a Cordillera blend sold in Baguio City’s public market. It is a mixture of black rice and malagkit. 

I didn’t have to add sugar like one would when preparing the traditional champorado. The strawberry syrup already provided sweetness that was needed. I also added coconut milk and cream plus a topping of, what else, fresh strawberry, and desiccated coconut.

No tuyo for my champorado  version, but I’m thinking of adobo flakes for next time.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup, Cordillera champorado blend (or plain sweet, glutinous rice)

5 cups, water

1 cup, coconut milk

1 cup, strawberry-flavored syrup

1 cup, all-purpose cream

1/2 cup  evaporated milk

Fresh straberries, cut in half, for topping

1 tbsp, desiccated coconut, for topping

DIRECTIONS

In a deep pan or casserole, bring 5 cups water to a boil. Add rice and continue to cook until tender. Add in the coconut milk, evaporated milk and strawberry syrup and mix well. Keep on stirring while cooking to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan. After about 5-7 minutes, turn off heat. Add in the all-purpose cream and stir.  Transfer the champorado to individual serving bowls and top with desiccated coconut and fresh strawberries. Serve warm.

 

 

 

 

 

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Binagoongang Adobo (Adobo in Shrimp Paste)

. Pork, Stew

I first saw this dish in a bar/restaurant menu, and it immediately piqued my interest. It has never occured to me that I can enjoy two popular Filipino dishes — binagoongan and adobo — fused into what I initially thought was an odd single recipe. How would a mixture of tastes — salty, sour, sweet and spicy — turn out? After preparing this dish in my kitchen, I now know the answer: a perfect combination.

I always have bagoong (shrimp paste) in the pantry for my occasional pinakbet and as dip for unripe mango. Now I may have a second bottle of bagoong on standby for this pork adobo!

INGREDIENTS

1 lb pork belly, sliced into serving pieces

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup white vinegar

2 tbsps brown sugar

1 head garlic, peeled and chopped

1 tsp black peppercorn

2 pcs. dried basil leaves

2 tbsps shrimp paste (bagoong)

2 tbsps coconut oil

2 pcs. Thai chillies, chopped

1 pack (1.76 fl. oz) coconut milk powder dissolved in 1/4 cup water

1/4 cup sliced white onions

 

DIRECTIONS

Marinate the pork pieces in soy sauce, vinegar and brown sugar for about an hour.  Heat the coconut oil in a deep pan and sauté the garlic. Add the pork pieces to brown before pouring in the marinade. Add peppercorn, basil  leaves, Thai chillies and shrimp paste. When the liquid starts to boil, bring to a simmer and continue to cook until the meat becomes tender (45 minutes to an hour). In the last ten minutes of cooking, add the coconut milk and sliced onions and mix well. Serve warm with steamed rice. Reserve the sauce to pour over your rice.

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Garlic Cloves Adobo With Mushroom

. Stew, Vegetarian

If you’re familiar with Filipino cuisine, you sure have heard about and tried the adobo in all its  variations: chicken, pork, squid, mushroom, peanuts,  you name it. But an adobo whose main ingredient are garlic cloves? It’s not for the faint of heart but it’s definitely good for the heart.

The idea for this unconventional adobo came about as I was reminiscing the good old San Francisco days, particulary my visits to The Stinking Rose, a gourmet restaurant near Chinatown whose every menu item featured garlic, and those trips to Gilroy for the annual garlic festival (garlic ice cream, hmmm!)

All adobo recipes include garlic anyway, so why not cook up an adobo made of peeled garlic cloves, lightly enhanced with sliced button mushroom?

And so the rest is adobo history!

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup, peeled, whole garlic cloves

1/2 cup, sliced button mushroom

1/3 cup white vinegar

1/3 cup soy sauce

2 tbsps brown sugar

1/2 tsp. whole black peppercorn

2 pcs. dried bay leaves

1 tbsp Olive oil

1/4 cup sliced green onions for garnish

A sprinkling of sesame seeds

 

DIRECTIONS

Heat Olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add garlic cloves and cook until slightly browed.  Add mushroom and cook for about two minutes before adding in vinegar, soy sauce, bay leaves and peppercorn. Reduce heat to low. Add in sugar and continue cooking for another five minutes. Turn off heat and transfer the adobo to a serving bowl, pouring the remaining sauce over the garlic and mishroom. Garnish with green onions and sprinkle sesame seeds over the dish. Serve with steamed rice and fresh, sliced tomatoes.

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Pork Quinoa Casserole

. Casserole, Pork

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(Originally published on 10.23.2018 in Positively Filipino)

Quinoa is a very late addition to my diet and home menu. Since being introduced to this gluten-free, protein-rich South American staple, it has become a favored item on the dining table — for myself and for occasional guests.

For the most part, I never thought of quinoa as a main dish.  Occasionally, aside from substituting for my rice, I use it to make cold or warm salads.

This recipe started as an experiment.  I thought of preparing a main dish that blends sautéed ground pork with the nutty texture of quinoa and the freshness of raw broccoli and carrots, then throwing in some other ingredients like pecan, cranberries, and finally garnishing the dish with fresh onions and tomatoes.

To seal together the “cacophony” of flavors and texture, I mixed in some oyster sauce.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup quinoa, cooked according to package instructions

1 cup grated fresh broccoli

1 cup grated fresh carrots (peeled)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 lb. ground pork

1 large white onion, peeled and chopped

1 large tomato, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup chopped green onions

3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

1/2 cup ground pecan

2 tbsps Olive oil

3 tbsps Oyster sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Heat Olive oil in a medium pan.  Add in garlic and cook until lightly browned.  Add half of the onions and cook until fragrant. Add ground pork and sauté until browned.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix in the quinoa, broccoli, carrots and pecan.  Stir-fry for about 5 minutes.  Add in Oyster sauce and continue to cook for another three minutes.  Remove from heat and transfer to a serving dish.  Garnish with the remaining white onions, green onions, tomatoes and cranberries.