My Expat Mommy

My Tasmeem Doha 2013 Food Preparation Workshop Experience -- Part 1

2013-03-14T10:24:00.001+03:00

Warning: A bit of a long post, this was also the thought process documentation I submitted to our workshop leaders to incorporate with the other participants' written documentation for our exhibition. You will find my own Tinola Recipe here. I'll be writing more about my Tasmeem Doha 2013 Experience in my other blog Doha Domestication.

In this workshop, I decide to make Tinola, a traditional Filipino chicken dish most commonly prepared as a viand to rice. As a variation, I had initially thought of the various ways this dish could be turned into, mostly as a viand. Eventually, I decided to vary the dish and turn to another Filipino Classic, the Lugaw or more commonly known for its Spanish name Arroz Caldo.

Being a Filipino, I know when it comes to dishes, the first thing that other nationalities would normally think of is Adobo. Again, I would think that the dish is a recipe coming from the Spanish colonizers. Filipino cuisine, more often is a fusion of a local dish and another foreign dish. This being, that the Philippines have been colonized/ ruled by different nations throughout its history and their influences are more commonly evident in our present day dishes. It can be observed that Filipino dishes would more often than not have a Spanish, American, Japanese influence and on other dishes, influence also by Chinese and Indian traders who had come to the Philippines to trade prior to the Spanish colonization. It is a surprise really that the Filipino palate did not develop any preference to the various spices they have introduced to the country.

Although Adobo is very popular for a Pinoy Dish, in this workshop I would like to prepare something which I believe has a distinct Filipino origin. The Tinola by its name alone is very Filipino. As I researched its origin, it turns out that the dish is truly Filipino. According to Wikipedia:

Tinola in Tagalog or Cebuano, or la uya in Ilocano is a soup-based dish served as an appetizer or main entrée in the Philippines.^[1] Traditionally, this dish is cooked with chicken, wedges of green papaya, and leaves of the siling labuyo chili pepper in broth flavored with ginger, onions and fish sauce. A common variant substitutes pork for chicken, chayote instead of papaya, or moringa leaves known as marungay or malunggay or "kamunggay" (in Cebuano), instead of pepper leaves.^[2] However, an all-vegetable broth in Cebu with 'kamunggay' in prominence is called "utan kamunggay" or "utan bisayâ".
Tinola was invented in the late 19th century. The dish was also referenced in José Rizal's first novel, Noli Me Tangere.

The above description aptly describes what the dish is all about. And had I been in the Philippines I would be preparing this classic the same way. However, being here in the Middle East, circumstances call for substitution since like leaves of chili pepper is not available here in Qatar. Also, with the chicken being so oily here in Qatar (I don’t know why) the traditional cooking method of sautéing the chicken and eventually coming up with a very oily oily soup doesn’t really look so appetizing. However, for the purpose of the workshop, I decided to present the traditional cooking method just so I would be able to present how a simple soup dish can be converted into a full meal with the variation of the last few steps.

As I mentioned, I decided to use the traditional cooking method, so after I have prepped the ingredients, I have heated the oil in a saucepan over medium flame. Once hot I have put in the garlic and sautéed it for a minute until soft. I then added the ginger. Once fragrant, I added the shallots and sautéed them together until the shallots are soft and translucent. I have then added the chicken, sautéed for about 5 minutes and left it for another 5 minutes on low flame. Once the chicken started to brown and about halfway cooked, I added the papaya and the chicken broth cube. Adjusted the heat to medium flame and left it to cook for 5-8 minutes and then I added the rice wash which will serve as the broth for the dish. I adjusted the flame to high to bring it to boil which took about another 10-15 minutes. After which I adjusted back the flame to medium-low heat to simmer. I have also added the long green pepper at this time. I cooked it for another 5 minutes and turned of the heat, at which point I have added the scallion. The residual heat from the broth will cook the scallions in just a minute or 2.

As a variation to the dish, the vegetables will be replaced with rice and egg. The method will also vary a little but, what I would like to point out is that although there is a very minimal variation in the recipe, it would not be very obvious that these two dishes are very similar.

Again I started with prepping the ingredients the chicken and only the vegetables needed for sautéing. This time, I have dry-rubbed the chicken with turmeric. The reason is to give the dish a very mild yellow color (I’m not sure why it had to be yellow, but that’s just how it is. I still actually don’t know how they make it yellow in the Philippines, but the turmeric is just my own touch. So basically the heirloom lineage for our family, I guess will start from me). Just like the first dish, I had sautéed the vegetable chicken and chicken broth together. Then I added the rice sautéed it for about 5-8 minutes and then added the rice wash. I then continued stirring until the rice is cooked. This part is a little bit tedious and somewhat tiring since I really had to stir the chicken and rice until the rice is cooked. For the very small amount of ingredients I have, it took me 30 minutes on this part. Maybe because I made the mistake of using biryani rice. I am not very familiar with biryani rice since we don’t use this in the Philippines. Jasmine rice would be more appropriate for this dish. The biryani had also given the dish a very different smell so it was really a wrong move on my part. Although I’m still glad that the taste did not really deviate from the original recipe, but the texture of the dish is really different. The biryani did not have that much starch in it I guess to really turn the dish moist.

When the rice is starting to cook, I had then cooked the egg in a different pan. Once cooked, I added the peeled hard boiled egg into the dish.

I have also prepared garnishes just like how we normally served the dish in the Philippines. This includes chopped scallions, shallots, and chili pepper, sliced lemon and roasted minced garlic. Usually the lemon juice will be mixed with soy sauce and chili pepper and poured over a bowl of this Lugaw.

In this two dishes it could show that basically both are chiken and rice dishes. The only difference is that the Tinola serves as a viand for rice, unlike the Lugaw where the rice is already incorporated in the cooking process. Both this dishes exhibit the strong garlic-onion-ginger taste in them.

In the Philippines, I will be surprised if there will be any Filipino who did not grow up with these two dishes. Not only is it a classic but it is very economical and practical that any household would be always be happy to include it intheir menu.

Twisted Crab and Corn Soup

2013-02-18T15:14:00.001+03:00

Today I had salad for lunch. Today I commit not to have rice intake. Today I'm supposed to go back to the gym. But it won't happen. The other half of the Fam is sick. Dada with his arthritis and our Big Ate and Little Oyen are both down with the cold. So today, at 10am, I had to rush back home to tend to these loves. The biggest challenge was what food to offer them. All of them don't want to eat anything. Both Yaya and I already offered everything we have available, willing to cook anything they will ask. Since I only had 2 hours to stay home before I go back to work again for a scheduled meeting, I didn't have time to go run to the supermarket to pick up anything soft I could offer them. But then, scouring through the pantry, I found we have lots of different powdered soups available. Those packet types which you only need to add water and boil. I'm sure you know the kind. The challenge is how I could make it look and taste appealing for them to eat, given the circumstances. Not only that, i can't just serve them diluted soup powder in water right? And so this is how I came up with this "twisted" crab and corn soup. Basically it is just the Knorr Crab and Corn Soup mix with a little twist to make it healthier and more delicious.

Ingredients:
2 tbs Knorr Crab and Corn Soup (powdered mix)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbs butter
1/4 cup misua noodles
mushrooms, sliced
bell pepper, finely chopped
celery leaves, finely chopped
3 cups hot water
1/4 tsp vinegar
salt and pepper (as desired)

Method:
In a pan, melt the butter and gradually add the soup powder while stirring it continuously to avoid lumps from forming.
Add the mushroom. Cook for about a minute while stirring continuously.
Add the half of the water. Stir until of the pasty mix of butter and soup powder is fully dissolved.
Add the vinegar, bring to a boil then lower the heat to simmer for about 1-2 minutes.
Add the bell pepper and misua noodles. Stir until misua is cooked.
Slowly pour in the egg in a steady stream while stirring rapidly to make shreds.
Add the rest of the hot water until you reach desired soup consistency. Add salt and pepper as desired.
Garnish with celery leaves and serve. Enjoy!

Mommy Tip: You know what I really loved about this spur of the moment recipe? Just stir in chopped chili peppers and this soup tastes so much similar to the hot and sour soup served in the Chinese restaurants! But don't take my word for it, try it for yourselves! :)

You might also like:

Creamy Chicken Sopas

Single Serving: Our New Instant Hit - Shin Ramyun Noodle Soup

Arroz Caldo (Chicken Lugaw)

Roast Turkey: Our Christmas "Lechon" for 2012

2013-02-11T16:35:00.001+03:00

"The star of our Noche Buena Feast"

Oh geez, it's been one and half years already. Time does fly so fast! First of all, let me first thank the who had still continued to check out this site even if I've been too "lazy" to update it. Oh no, I did not just say that... let me jus say, I "lacked the creative juices" to write in the last year. Haha!
Well, to be quite honest about it, 2012 had been quite a roller coaster year for me and my family and so with everything had been going on, updating this blog didn't make it to the priority list. But, I think that's ok, since loosing weight never made it too! :)
So, why don't we kick off the blogging year with a festive mood (even if we're 2 months late, haha!). Let's start off with the star of our Noche Buena feast last Christmas. This is actually something I am so proud off. That was about my third try to roast a turkey, and finally, I was able to roast it just right, with the meat cooked through but not too overcooked that it was dry. This one was just right. And, I'm not sure if all of you would agree, but I think I made the right decision when I decided to cook the turkey in its brine first before transferring it to the oven to roast. This way, the meat is already half-cooked and all I had to do is to brown the skin and cook the meat all the way through making sure that there are no bloody juices coming out from the turkey when we slice it.

Ingredients:

1 whole turkey (around 3kg)
2 carton pineapple juice
4 large celery stalks, sliced
2 carrots, sliced to 4-5 parts
4 red onions, quartered
1 head garlic, crushed
fresh rosemary
fresh lemongrass
spring onions
salt
crushed black peppercorns

Method:
At least one day before roasting, prepare the brine by mixing all of the ingredients in a pot that can fit the whole turkey.
Add in the turkey and let it sit overnight, turning over the turkey from every few hours to ensure balance of seasoning in the meat.
Before roasting, pre-cook the turkey in the pan by putting it over medium to high fire and letting it boil for about half an hour then lower the heat, cover and simmer for at least 2 hours more.
Turn off the heat, transfer the turkey to a roasting rack and let it sit for about half an hour to drain off the liquid.
Take the as much vegetables from the broth and insert it in the turkey's cavity.
Put the turkey in a roasting pan and into the oven and roast for about 3-4 hours at 180deg.
Turn off heat, let the the turkey sit and cool down before transferring to the serving tray.
To prepare the gravy, use the drippings from roasting the turkey, add a little broth you used earlier and let it simmer while stirring gradually until it is reduced to half the original amount and to your desired thickness. Add more broth as desired.
Serve and enjoy with the rest of your holiday feast!

Mommy tip: serve with roast potato wedges for added goodness! :)

You might also like:

Roast Chicken with Cheesy Cream Sauce

Fresh Lumpia

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adobo Fried Rice

2012-07-17T14:46:00.001+03:00

A little twist to our usual Adobo fare

Ok, let me be honest with you, this was just an experiment, but the I have been toying with the idea for a few months before I made it. Yes, I do have2 bandehados of them, hehe! I actually made if for a paying corporate client, who I had catered for 2 weeks for their training sessions. I know, I know, I shouldn't have experimented, hehe! But just I said, I have had the recipe in my mind for a few months now, so I was quite confident I could make it work. I mean it is still Adobo, and surely you fellow Expat Mommies out there will agree with me that we can make one mean Adobo with our eyes closed! :)
And so, this recipe will come in two parts. First would be Fried Chicken Adobo, and then this would be the main component for the Adobo Fried Rice. For this particular recipe, I will cut down on the ingredients so that it would serve a family of 4-6 or thereabouts. :)

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, adobo cut
2 medium potatoes, sliced to wedges
3 hard boiled eggs, sliced to wedges for garnish
3-4 cups cooked rice, cooled
6 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cloves garlic, minced & roasted (for garnish)
1 medium onion, sliced
1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns
2-3 tbs cane vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
cooking oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
In a deep bowl, combine soy sauce, vinegar, half of the crushed garlic and onions together to make the marinade.
Wash chicken and drain of excess water then put into the marinade. Toss to coat chicken evenly. Add the potatoes. Again, to toss to coat the potatoes evenly with the marinade.
Cover and set aside for at least half an hour.
Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the chicken and potatoes in batches, startingwith the potatoes first. Ensure that all potato and chicken pieces are fried on a single layer in the pan. Fry until golden brown. When cooked, transfer into a plate lined with paper towel to remove excess oil. Set aside the marinade.
In a smaller pan, transfer the marinade and put over high heat until it boils. Then lower the heat and simmer for about 5-8 minutes then turn off the heat. Set aside.
Once done with the frying and if the frying pan is big enough, use this to make the fried rice by removing the used oil, leaving only about 3 tbs in the pan.
Add the remaining crushed garlic and cook until brown and fragrant. Add the rice. Toss until chunks of rice have disintegrated. Add the adobo sauce. Continue tossing until the rice is evenly coated with the sauce. Make sure to continue stirring/ tossing to avoid rice from sticking unto the bottom of the pan. Cook until the sauce had dried up and the rice is no longer moist and sticky. Adjust taste with salt and pepper. Toss in the fried adobo chicken and cook for another minute or so.
Turn off heat. Leave for about 2 minutes to rest.
Transfer into a serving plate and garnish with the fried adobo potato wedges, hard-boiled egg wedges and roasted garlic (I would put some chopped spring onions if available, for added flavor and fragrance :) ).

Mommy Tip: This is a full meal in itself so no need to add any more viands. Good for any meal of the day, be it breakfast, lunch or dinner. :)

You Might Also Like:

My Expat Daddy's Sweet and Spicy Adobo

Pork Adobo sa Star

Pork Humba

Sinigang na Hipon

2012-07-15T09:59:00.001+03:00

Perfect for those idle Friday lunches :)

Aint' that photo above just mouth-watering? :)

Though I must admit, our shrimps here in Qatar is nothing compared to the shrimps and prawns available in the Philippines. But then, shrimps are shrimps are shrimps and surely, except for those who developed an allergy to these babies, we could not resist a shrimp dish once laid out on the table.

Our family is no different. Even the kids love them. Have you seen my Garlic Butter Shrimp post last month? That was an instant hit! And for a mom like me, it's always heartwarming when your kids love the food you've laid out on the table. Right?

On this particular weekend, the Expat Daddy got about two kilos of them from the Abu Hamour Fresh Market so we had extra to make this Sinigang, one of my all time favorite dishes. Of course most you Adobo fans out there may disagree, but for me Sinigang is my Ultimate Signature Pinoy Dish! :)

Ingredients:

1kg medium shrimps

2 large tomatoes, halved

1 large radish, sliced

string beans, sliced

okra, sliced

eggplant, sliced

1 small onion, sliced

1 clove garlic, crushed

lettuce (kangkong is preferable, if available)

4-5 cups water (or rice wash)

2 tbs Knorr Sinigang Broth Powder (other brands would do)

salt to taste

Method:

In a pan, put the water the crushed garlic and the tomato. Bring to a boil and simmer until tomatoes softened and starts to disintegrate. Put in the Sinigang Broth powder and salt. Cover and continue boiling for about 2-3 minutes to blend the flavors.

Add the vegetables one at a time starting with the radish which takes the longest time to become tender. When the radish is fork tender, add the string beans, then the eggplant, okra and onion.

Add in the shrimps. Cover and let simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the shrimps change in color. Add the lettuce, cover and simmer for another two minutes.

Turn off heat. Keep covered and let sit for about another 2 minutes. The residual heat will continue to cook the lettuce/ kangkong.

Serve with hot rice and a dipping sauce combo of fish sauce, lemon and chili. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Beef Ribs Sinigang sa Sampaloc at Gabi

Paksiw na Pata

Labanos Kilawin

Single Serving: Baked Parmesan Fish Fillet

2012-06-29T15:38:00.000+03:00

Baked Parmesan Fish Fillet

Geez, I didn't realize this post has been in the draft for a few months now. Good thing I had browsed through the photos in the laptop to check which dishes I haven't posted yet. Hmmm... I really thought I've already done this post. But well anyway, another simple dish for you Expat peeps, and the best thing about this dish is that this can be prepared as a single serving for you who are living on your own.

Usually I buy these frozen fish fillets in the supermarket for parties, like when I have to make dishes such as Sweet and Sour, or Lemon Butter fillets, it is much more convenient to buy these packed fillets instead of doing the filleting myself. And even for our own home cooking, I use these fillets because our Big Ate loves this. At this instance though, I have opted to try making something different out of the fish. This time, I have prepared the fish with a bit of Parmesan cheese and some herbs and then baked it with tomatoes and onions for added flavor. Hmm... honestly, it isn't much of a fit for the PascuaFam's palate so I guess I wouldn't be making it again. I'm guessing because the flavors used are leaning a bit to Italian cooking, and we're not much into Italian dishes. Well, that is only my guess. But I'm not saying it isn't good, because it is. It's just that it didn't become a hit in our household but who knows, you might like it, so don't take my word for it, and please do let me know how you liked it. :)

Ingredients:
1/2 kg fish fillet
3 tbs Parmesan Cheese
1 tbs olive oil
1 large tomato, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
Ginger, sliced
spring onion, sliced

Method
Preheat oven at 180deg. for about 15-20 minutes.
Thaw and drain fillets with excess water. Season both sides with salt, pepper and parmesan cheese then drizzle with olive oil.
In a baking pan put all the vegetables on the bottom of the pan then lay the fish over the veggies.
Put in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes. When cooked, turn off heat and remove from the oven.
Transfer into serving plate. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Pan Roast Hamour with Light Soy Sauce

Barbeque Beef Ribs

A Very Simple Roast: Garlic and Butter Chicken

Ginataang Tilapia

2012-06-29T14:32:00.001+03:00

Ooops! Sorry for the blurred photo, took this with my phone :(

Surprisingly, I have not yet posted a recipe for this dish. I guess because it has always been common favorite among Pinoy households that I just assumed everybody knows how to prepare Ginataang Tilapia. The inspiration to this post actually is not really to share the recipe but to share to Doha peeps out there our discovery in Safari Supermarket (the one in Abu Hamour, near the Catholic church just a few hundred meters away from QDC). Well, we have just discovered that prices there a bit lower than those of Lulu, Carrefoure and Family Food Center. I couldn't tell exactly how much the price difference is, but what I do know is that doing our usual grocery shopping, the total bill comes to about a couple of hundred Riyals lower than when we do the shopping from the other supermarkets. How do I know, it's because whenever we do our grocery shopping, the Expat Daddy and I have this little game where we guess what the total cost of our shopping would be. So like every time, we know just how much more or less it would turn out, and most of the time we would just be about maybe QR20-30 off from the accurate amount. But then when we shop at the Safari Supermarket, we are always around QR150-200 over that correct amount. So yes, it's not exactly a very scientific experiment, but we are truly enjoying our little game, and double the fun when it's about QR200 less than our usual guesses. :)

So anyway, going back to the Tilapia. I'm not sure if you do but we notice that frozen Tilapia is really not as good as the fresh ones we get from the wet market, right? So for the frozen one the usual dish we make of it is something that would include fying it first to a crisp before adding it to whatever sauce we like at the moment. And the frozen Tilapia in Safari Supermarket is no different. But what's good about it is that they have these frozen Tilapia packs which are just QR7.50/kg ($2.00), about 4-5 pieces, so good for 1 family meal. So imagine that, for about 4-6 family members, this meal would just be less than QR2.00 per person, right? If that doesn't make you smile, well.. I don't know what will. :)

Ingredients

1kg Tilapia

cooking oil for frying

2 eggplants, sliced

string beans, cut

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 small onion, sliced

1 cup coconut milk powder diluted in 1 cup of water

1 tbs vinegar

1 tbs soy sauce

salt and pepper

Method

Thaw the Tilapia, wash and drain excess water. Sprinkle with salt and set aside.

Heat oil and fry the eggplants until lightly browned. Do not overcook. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel to remove excess oil.

In the same pan, fry the fish to a crisp. Transfer into another plate lined with paper towel.

Use a slightly bigger pan for the rest of the cooking. Heat about 2tbs of the used oil then add the garlic. Saute for about 2-3 minutes or until soft and fragrant then add the onions. Cook until soft and translucent.

Add the string beans. Saute for another 3 minutes then add the diluted coconut milk.

Lower the heat and let simmer for about 5-8 minutes or until desired consistency is achieved.

Add soy sauce and vinegar, do not stir.

Return the fish and eggplants into the pan. Keep for about 2-3 minutes then check and adjust taste with salt and pepper.

Turn off heat. Serve with hot rice. Enjoy!

Mommy Tip: I always enjoy this dish with a dipping sauce of soy sauce, lemon and chili for that added kick! :)

You might also like:

Ginataang Tambakol

Pineapple Chicken in Coconut Milk

Eggplant Salad (Ensaladang Talong)

Garlic Butter Shrimps

2012-06-28T14:20:00.002+03:00

Definitely better than my singing according to the Expat Daddy :)

Finally! A new dish for the blog! Haaysss... been a SAHM for 2 months now, and honestly, I feel that I've become more "tamadin". Since the kids too have been on summer vacation, our life had just been relaxed and well, that has been what we have been doing in the past couple of months, relaxing. With it, embarrassingly enough, I have neglected the blogs for a while. Actually, there's been a lot to write about even if we were just staying at home and I have all noted them in my mind, but, I don't know... There really is no excuse for it but 100% laziness! LOL! But this time, I do resolve to take care of these. So I really really hope you readers are still out there. I truly am sorry for not updating the blog. I hope that you had stayed. And so with this, I think there is no better way to start blogging again but with a very simple yet delicious recipe. Something you fellow expat and non-expat moms out there could easily cook in less than 15 minutes or so. Yet so delish that the Fam would surely love you more for it. Just as the the Expat Daddy told me, I can cook this all I want, as long as I stay away from singing! Hahaha!

Even the girls are so in love with the dish :)

Ingredients:

1kg med-large shrimps
1 cup Sprite/ 7 UP
1 cup butter
1 head garlic, finely chopped
salt & pepper to taste
spring onion or parsley, chopped (optional for garnish)

Method
Clean the shrimps, drain with excess liquid and put in a bowl. Marinade with Sprite and a dash of salt for 15 minutes.
Using a non-stick pan, melt half of the butter in medium to high heat. Add the garlic. Cook for about 3-5 minutes or until garlic is soft and light brown in color (do not burn).
Add the shrimps, leaving out the marinade in the bowl. Cook for about 4-5 minutes, tossing only once or twice to cook all the shrimps evenly.
Remove shrimps from the pan, lower the fire a bit then add in the marinade into the pan. Simmer until the liquid is reduced to half.
Return the shrimps in the pan and the remaining half of the butter, stir-fry for about a minute or two or until the remaining butter is fully melted then turn off the heat. Let it rest for another 2 minutes for the shrimp to absorb the flavor of the sauce.
Transfer to a serving platter then sprinkle with the chopped spring onions or parsley. Serve with steamed or garlic fried rice. Enjoy!

Mommy Tip: If available, serve on a sizzling plate to add a bit of smoky goodness to its flavor :)

You might also like:

Butterflied Tilapia with Sweet Ginger Sauce

Fish Fillet in Lemon Butter Cream Sauce

My Expat Daddy's Cuttlefish Kilawin

Creamy Chicken Sopas

2012-03-13T11:19:00.000+03:00

This discovery I was so happy about. See, our girls love chicken sopas. I mean no matter how I make it, even during times when the end product was really just so so, like when I am doing several other tasks while cooking or when I just whip it up with some missing ingredients (specially homemade broth). But what really made me love this new version of this chicken sopas was the reception it received from the Fam. They really loved this way better than the other times I used to make it. Even the Expat Daddy noticed the difference. It's thicker and creamier and the chicken flavor more enhanced. This thanks to the Knorr Cream of Chicken powdered soup that I have added into the ingredients. It just changed the whole meaning of chicken sopas for the girls, and I know they wouldn't like it any other way now! :)
Ooops! Don't get wrong, this is not a sponsored post, but I really just loved to highlight how it tasted so much better than before. Actually, I am not really fond of powdered instant soups. I just find it so starchy and really really tasting like flour. So I really don't know what made me think of adding the cream of chicken to the chicken sopas I was making. Well, maybe just because it's been in the cupboard for a long while now. That's just me, I buy things for the simple reason that I may need it sometime and it would be out of stock in the supermarket. Oh yes, a small note, the Knorr packet I was referring to was the one imported from the Philippines. There are lots in the supermarket really, those which were manufactured in the region, but we don't like that. They have this distinct flavor that I think people in the region prefer. Not really to my Filipino taste. I usually buy Philippine products really, when it comes to sauces and seasonings. Just to play it safe.
And so yes, as I've said, we just love this creamy version of chicken sopas and I don't think I'll ever do it any other way. :)

Ingredients:
1 pack macaroni (cooked as per package instructions)
1 cooked chicken breast
1 carrot, sliced
1/2 celery stalk, sliced
1/4 small cabbage, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, finely chopped
3 tbs cooking oil
6 cups chicken broth (or water with 2 chicken broth cubes)
1 pack Knorr Cream of Chicken powder (Philippine made)
1/2 small can evaporated milk

Method:
Cook macaroni, drain and set aside.
Boil chicken breast. Remove from broth, when cool, pull the meat and set aside.
Keep the stock aside. Use this to dissolve the cream of chicken powder and set aside.
In a deep sauce pan, heat oil then add the onions. Cook for about 2-3 minutes then add the garlic. Saute until soft and fragrant.
Add the pulled chicken breast. Saute for another 5 minutes then add the carrots.
Saute for 5 more minutes then add the rest of the vegetables and the macaroni.
Saute to ensure that the noodles don't stick to the bottom of the pan.
Add the chicken broth (or water and broth cubes). Stir then cover.
Simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring from time to time to infuse the flavor to the macaroni.
Add the dissolved cream of chicken powder. This time with continuous stirring to blend completely with the rest of the ingredients in the pan.
Simmer for another 5 minutes with continuous stirring.
Turn off heat. Add the milk, stir then cover. Let sit for 2-3 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Arroz Caldo (Chicken Lugaw)

Roast Chicken with Cheesy Cream Sauce and Vegetables

Kiddie Party Spaghetti (Sweet Spaghetti)

Single Serving: Grilled Pitik (Slipper Lobster)

2012-03-03T00:01:00.000+03:00

When the Expat Daddy came home last week with a 5 gallon plastic bag full of crabs and cuttlefish, the bag also contains 2 pieces of moderately sized slipper lobsters or what we call in the Philippines Pitik or Pitik -Pitik. That was actually the first time I would be able to cook and eat that crustacean. I must say it wasn't bad at all! The meat is soft yet firm, almost tasting like crabs but not as sweet.
To add some flavor I have used a combination chopped garlic and green bell pepper and grated mozzarella cheese. What I did was to cut the lobster in half but not through the shell so I would be able to top the opening with the veggies and cheese. Before doing that, I have first seasoned the lobsters with a pinch of salt and pepper.
I have then put the lobsters on the grill to cook until the cheese had fully melted. When the melted cheese had formed, I have turned them over to cook the topside meat. Took me about a total of 15-20 minutes to cook them.
We enjoyed eating the lobsters as is, with just a glass of ice cold coke. :)

Roasted Chicken with Shiitake Mushroom and Black Bean Sauce

2012-02-27T10:38:00.001+03:00

Were there also times in your household when you just can't seem to think of anything to eat anymore? That you get a bit tired of your usual fare of chicken, beef, and fish. Well to us it does happen a lot! Even if I love to cook, there just are days when we just couldn't think of anything to make with the chicken or the beef in the ref. When it's our nanny or yaya doing the cooking, our chicken most of the time turns into Adobo, Afritada, Fried Chicken or Roast Chicken. It had now been a running joke between myself and our yaya whenever she asks me what she would have to cook for dinner. I always tell her that she had already been asking me that question everyday and until now she still doesn't know the answer! Hahaha!
Well, these I believe are also common fares for ordinary Pinoy families here in the Middle East. And sometimes, we must admit, we just want something new. But something new doesn't mean dining out or having dinner take out. Sometimes, it is just giving a fresh tough to an ordinary dish. Fortunately last Saturday, I had a sudden inspiration to do just that. And was I so glad that the kids loved our new dish. Something so simple yet, delicious and I was able to add veggies in the dish too! Don't you just love that? :)
The dish call for a simple roasted chicken recipe. I have halved the chicken for a faster cooking time in our turbo broiler, but you know what, you can just even buy a cooked roasted chicken from Lulu or Carrefoure then you can skip the roasting part and just go straight to preparing the sauce. I have also posted here my Garlic Butter Roast Chicken recipe if you're looking for that garlicky flavor in your chicken.

Ingredients:
1 roast chicken
5 pcs dried shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 small green bell pepper, sliced
spring onions, sliced (for garnish)
2 tbs olive oil
1 pack black bean sauce
1 tbs oyster sauce
2 tbs light soy sauce (kikkoman)
2 tbs brown sugar
1 cup water
salt and pepper

Method:
If you will be roasting the chicken yourself, just pat dry, rub with salt and pepper and put in the turbo broiler or oven to roast. When cooked, remove from oven and set aside.
To prepare the sauce, put the pan over medium high heat and pour in the olive oil.
When hot, add the onions. Stir fry for a minute then add the mushrooms. Stir fry for another 2-3 minutes.
Add the bell pepper and cook for another 2-3 minutes then remove from the pan. Set aside.
Using the same pan, pour in the 3 sauces, stir and bring to a boil then add the water. Stir a little then simmer for about 5 minutes.
Add the brown sugar. Adjust taste with salt and pepper.
As it starts to boil, return the stir fried vegetables.
Simmer for another 5 minutes or until the desired consistency of the sauce is achieved. Turn off heat.
Chop the chicken and transfer into a serving dish.
Pour the sauce over the chicken. Garnish with spring onions.
Serve with steaming hot rice. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Torikatsu (Breaded Chicken Cutlets)

Chicken Teriyaki

Pan Roast Hamour (Lapu-Lapu) with Light Soy Sauce

Pork Menudo

2012-02-26T10:49:00.002+03:00

We were pleasantly surprised when an uncle came back from vacation two weeks ago. Another aunt had kindly sent us a package of pork, menudo-cut. To those of you who are not from these parts of the world, pork packages are quite common here in Qatar, actually. Although they are now starting to sell pork at QDC, most people do not have access to the shop anyway, so having pork in your refrigerator is quite a privilege. And so, the following weekend I decided to cook the pork, mainly because we were not able to go food shopping and we don't have anything else to cook :)
Pork Menudo is quite a common dish in the Philippines, apart from Afritada, it is one of the easiest pork stew recipe to make at home. It is also a popular dish during Fiesta or other occasions. Personally though, I would opt for the Afritada anytime, since Menudo includes other ingredients I don't particularly go for with my dishes, like the hotdog and the raisins. Of course you may say you can strike them out anytime, but taking them out defeats the distinct taste it provides to the dish.

For this dish, since we do not have pork liver, I have included liver spread instead to achieve the thickness to the sauce that liver gives to the dish. But of course, had liver been available, I would not have second thoughts using it instead of the spread. I soooo love pork liver!

Ingredients:
1kg pork, menudo cut
2 hotdogs, sliced
1 potato, diced (2cm cubes)
1 carrot, diced (2 cm cubes)
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 tbs raisins
1 tbs liver spread (optional, in the absence of pork liver)
1 tbs cooking oil
1/4 cup tomato sauce
2 tbs soy sauce
2 cups water

Method:
Parbroil the pork in a little water, simmer until all of the water evaporates then add the oil. Saute for about two minutes.
Add the onions, saute until onions are soft then add the garlic. Toss a few times then lower the heat.
Add the potatoes and carrots. Cook for 5 minutes, while tossing a few times.
Pour in the soy sauce and tomato sauce. Saute until both sauces fully coat the meat. Add half a cup of water and cover. Simmer for about 15-20 minutes, checking from time to time if the sauce is drying up, in which case add half a cup of the remaining water each time.
Stir in the liver spread, raisins and hotdogs. Adjust taste with salt and pepper.
Add the bell pepper. Simmer for another few minutes until desired consistency of sauce is achieved. If the sauce is too thick add a little more water and taste test again. Bring to a boil and turn off the heat.
Transfer into a serving bowl and serve with steaming hot rice. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Beef Ribs Pochero

My Expat Daddy's Sweet and Spicy Adobo

Chicken Afritada

3 Mini Ladies and a Mommy

2012-02-23T14:43:00.001+03:00

3 Mini Ladies and a Mommy is now alive! Check out My Expat Mommy's first couple of posts. :)

And to my fellow Qatar peeps out there, don't forget to visit Doha Domestication too! :)

Kulinary Cooking Club: Lomi

2012-02-21T10:24:00.005+03:00

For a few months now, I have been cooking with a group fellow foodies around the world known as the Kulinarya Cooking Club. Members of the group were assigned a month of the year to think of the theme for the members to cook and blog about. This month, our hosts, Abigail of My Nappy Tales and Marni of Kensington Kitchen had come up with a very interesting theme. This is to cook something that reminds you of your first love. And so, I'm whoa!!! Wait a minute! Hahaha! Geez, I really don't know how to do it. As I am not comfortable talking about topics like these in general outside of my circle of 6 closest friends, I really don't know what to do about this. LOL! Geez, how am I to talk about my sacred love for Allan Caidic, the PBA player! Hahahaha! Yes, friends, Allan Caidic is my first love! I believe i was about 13 then, first year high school when I started to have crushes or appreciate boys in general. At that time, I have just moved to La Salle Lipa for high school and at that time, PBA is so big for high school girls. Although that was the only time I had been introduced to the sport, I also got hooked with the influence of my new classmates and friends.
The good thing about it was that at that time, La Salle was just a high school and so all of us had come from different schools in elementary. It was equal ground for everybody. Being so timid as a child, I found transferring to a new school very refreshing. I thought it would be the best time to reinvent myself to be more outgoing and friendly. So there, I guess really that was the time I fell in love. I fell in love with Life itself. A whole new world had been opened up in front of my and it is time to take it all in and enjoy myself. I can be who I am, to be more open to new ideas and experiences. I fell in love with everything, my school, my classmates and friends, all the clubs and extra curricular activities, even my classes and teachers. I think that was even the stage where I learned to giggle and enjoy myself! Haha!
And so, for this month's cooking challenge, I have opted to cook something that best reminds me of my high school life in Lipa City. What else but the very popular Lomi. See, your visit to Lipa wouldn't be complete without having a taste of the heavenly noodle soup that is available in big and small restaurants and even hole in the wall eateries. And, if I may say so, this is totally different from the Lomi you get from other parts of the country. Our Lomi in Lipa does not include vegetables in its recipe, instead it is just a simple noodle and meat dish, but oh so delicious. Unfortunately, for my dish I wouldn't be able to recreate that particular type, due to the circumstantial limitations I have in my part of the world. So before anything else, to all Lipenos out there reading this blog, who I know are very propreitary to the lomi, pardon me, and I am not in any making any presumptions that this is Lipa Lomi (Oh my, you wouldn't believe the comments I've read on recipe blogs which had titled their post as Lomi ng Lipa when they are in no means a representation of the dish, so I wouldn't be attempting to do the same! Hehe!) Anyhow, this is My Expat Mommy's version of Lomi. Maybe in the future, I'll also get to prepare the Lomi, Lipa City style!

Ingredients:
1 pack egg noodles (large/ wide),
6 cups water for cooking the noodles
4 cups chicken broth for the soup (or 1 chicken broth cube for every 2 cups of water)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
1 cup shitake mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup corn flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
chicken liver
kikiam
squid balls
vegetable oil
salt and pepper

Method:
Cook the egg noodles by putting it in boiling water and simmer until done. When cooked, drain hot water and immerse in cold water, drain and set aside.
Cook the the liver, kikiam and squid balls by frying them separately. Slice liver, half the kikiam and quarter the squid balls and set aside.
Using the same oil from frying the garnishing, saute onion and garlic in a pan. When slightly cooked, add the carrots and shitake mushrooms. Saute for another 3-5 minutes.
Add the noodles, saute for another 2-3 minutes then add the broth. Bring to a boil then lower heat to medium low to simmer for about 15 minutes with continuous stirring to prevent noodles from sticking in the bottom of the pan.
Adjust taste with salt and pepper.
Dissolve corn flour in 1/4 cup of water and pour slowly into the pan with continuous stirring to prevent lumps from forming.
Stir in the liver, kikiam and squid balls.
Turn off heat then pour in the beaten eggs, this time stirring hard to prevent from forming big chunks of cooked egg.
Transfer to a bowl and serve with a mixture of soy sauce, lemon and lots of chili pepper for a very hot yet delicious afternoon snack or dinner. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Chicken Mami (Noodle Soup)

Shin Ramyoon: Korean Spicy Instant Noodles

Kulinarya Cooking Club: Arroz Caldo (Chicken Lugaw)

My Expat Daddy's Cuttlefish Kilawin

2012-02-16T10:31:00.001+03:00

I would have titled it as Kilawing Pusit, as cuttlefish being a mollusk, belongs to the same class as squids and octopuses. Last week, our Expat Daddy with a large garbage bag full of cuttlefish which he bought from his fishermen friends (if you've been following this blog, by now you would have already known about the Expat Daddy's circle of friends! LOL!).
Oh my, you can just imagine my shock when I saw those fresh cuttlefishes, some still breathing! It's really something more than we can handle. Thing is, the Fam is not really into mollusks. Aside from the times that our Big Ate craves for Calamares (which I have also posted here), we are not really big on adobong pusit and so I don't really know much when it comes to ways to cook the cuttlefish.
It was a good thing that the Expat Daddy's relatives are coming over to the rescue and take these mass of seafood off our hands.
But before they go, they opted to grill some of them and a couple make into Kilawin. And oh wow! Was it good! Admittedly, I didn't even want to taste it in the beginning as it is something new to me but it was such a pleasant surprise to the palate. The cuttlefish is sweet and soft, not chewy at all and combined with the marinade it was such a delish appetizer! It's like eating gummy bears, hahaha! And now I start to drool. :)
Preparing the dish is no different from the Tuna Kilawin that our Expat Daddy also makes, only difference is in the preparation where the cuttlefish is first cleaned, skinned and washed with very hot water before mixing it with the marinade.

Ingredients:
2 medium cuttlefish, cleaned and sliced
1 medium onion, finely sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
ginger (about 1in size), finely chopped
2 chili peppers, finely chopped (optional if you want it hot)
1 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbs lemon juice
1 tsp salt (adjust as desired)
1 tsp white pepper
spring onion, chopped

Method:
After cleaning and skinning the cuttlefish, wash and dip into hot water to slightly cook the meat. Remove and drain of excess liquid. Set aside.
Prepare the marinade by mixing all the ingredients in a bowl. Taste first if the desired combination of salt and sour is achieved. Adjust as required. Mix well to blend the flavors perfectly.
Mix in the cuttlefish and toss. Taste to ensure desired blend of flavors is maintained.

Transfer into a serving bowl, garnish with spring onion and serve. Enjoy!

Mommy Tip: To save leftovers, Drain excess juices and transfer into a resealable container. Serve cold.

You might also like:

Kilawing Labanos

My Expat Daddy's Sweet & Spicy Adobo

Ensaladang Talong (Eggplant Salad)

Katara Sports Day for Family Bonding on Valentine's Day

2012-02-12T13:46:00.002+03:00

And so, from our pig out sessions during the Doha Food Festival last week, we now compensate with a healthy bonding activity this coming Valentine's day which also happens to be Qatar National Sports Day. To celebrate, the government agencies and corporations have lined up a number of sporting activities around town for all the family to enjoy. And the best part of it is that they're all free of charge!

For the PascuaFam, The Expat Mommy would be suggesting that the family trip to the Katara Cultural Village to participate in a couple of fitness sessions among a list of activities they have lined up. you can find more about the Katara Sports Day Event and the PascuaFam's bonding itinerary at Doha Domestication.
I would also like to call on Expat Mom's out there, why don't we try out the Zumba together? It's at Building 15 from 11:15am - 12:15pm. Heard it's the in thing these days! If you're interested to try this out with me, you may email your registration at fitness@katara.net. :)

Corn Dogs

2012-02-12T12:07:00.002+03:00

My girls and I have very different motivations when we thought of making corn dogs over the weekend. For me, it was the memory of childhood when I used to fight my way in the school canteen just to be able to get one. I remember this was so popular and so special for me since I couldn't buy it anywhere else. I don't think we even called them corn dogs then. It was more popularly known as waffle. In any case I just loved them.
In the case of my daughters, they only knew of the hotdog waffles we used to get from the stalls in the malls. But of course it just is not the same and they know it. Their intrigue for corn dogs started in the internet cooking games they play. Corn dog is one of the easiest and fastest dish to prepare and available at lower levels of the game I think. And so from there, they wanted to see the corn dogs first hand. And what better way to achieve it? Ask mei-mei!
It was a good thing that I have corn meal on stock in our pantry, which is the crucial ingredient in making corn dogs, in terms of texture and color as this gives you the yellowish color of the dough. I have bought it a few weeks back from Megamart for another purpose, but came in handy when we decided to make the corn dogs in the spur of the moment. It also came at the right moment since we need a little break during our review marathon for this week's quarterly exams, for which we could not go out for the weekend.

Ingredients:
hotdogs (quantity as desired)
barbeque sticks
cooking oil for deep frying

Batter (makes about 12 corn dogs):
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup corn meal
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbs baking powder
2 eggs
2 tbs vegetable oil
1 cup milk
a pinch of salt
cooking oil for deep frying

Method:
Prepare the hotdogs by inserting the stick halfway through in its center. Dry and set aside.
To prepare the batter, whisk eggs, sugar and milk in a bowl. In another bowl, sift all dry ingredients together and slowly mix it into the egg and milk mixture, until there are no more lumps in the batter. Add in the oil and beat until it has fully blended with the mixture.
Use a sauce pan to maintain a high level of oil for deep frying, about 3/4 full. Heat the oil until hot to allow fast cooking. To test if the oil is hot enough, drop a small amount of batter into the oil, if it makes a low and fast sizzle and immediately floats on the surface then the oil is ready for use.
Sprinkle a small amount of flour to the hotdogs before dipping it into the batter.
Cooking may have to be done one at a time. Take one hotdog, dip in the batter and roll to coat it evenly.
Lift fast from the batter and transfer to cook in the pan. Again holding the stick roll to cook the dough evenly.
When the dough had formed, remove from oil and dip into the batter again for a second layer. Return to the pan and cook again for about 2 minutes until golden brown.
Remove and transfer into a plate lined with paper towel. This is best eaten while hot and crispy so serve when it starts to cool a bit. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Almond and Oatmeal Cookies

Homemade Pancakes

Three Layer Pizza Tortilla

Taste and Fun Food Festival, 8 - 11 Feb 2012

2012-02-05T12:23:00.009+03:00

The week had just started but it's looking like the PascuaFam is gearing up for a fun weekend in 5 days, or would it be earlier? Of course with the Expat Mommy's passion for food, it is but expected that the entire crew will be seen at this year's Taste & Fun Food Festival to be held at the Qatar Exhibition Center on 8 - 11 February 2012.

It is exam week though so it will not be a party party weekend for us, so I'm thinking of taking the girls either on the 8th or 9th of February during their afternoon playtime. The hours between 4-6PM daily are sacred to the girls as this is their free time where they can engage on an afternoon play, watch their favorite kids channel or play a bit of games on the net. I make sure to respect their own personal time to maintain a structure in their daily activities. On their part on the other hand, they also know that at 6-8PM, it is study time. Hence, eliminating any power struggle to make them study. The moment I say it's study time, all three girls go straight ahead to collect their diaries and books to start with our lessons. Another tiny little thing that makes me so proud of my girls!

And so, since it's going to be exam week next week, they are aware that most of our weekend will be spent studying that's why I'll be taking them to the Food Festival in its early days. Surely, it will be loads of fun not just for the girls but including myself too, even for just a short time!

For more details on the Taste & Fun Food Festival, please visit My Expat Mommy's other blog, Doha Domestication.

You might also like:

Qatar National Day: Darb Al Saai

Celebrating Mother's Day at the Kites Family Day

Doha Mums Winter Carnival

The Expat Nanny's Going on Holiday and How to Get in Touch with My Expat Mommy :)

2012-02-02T10:13:00.004+03:00

And so tonight, our The Expat Nanny will be flying out to go home to her family in the Philippines. Surely she is so excited. Unfortunately, just as she is now preparing to leave there are still some glitches that just came up this morning while she is acquiring her exit permit. But we're now working on it, so by God's grace she'd be able to leave tonight.
In the meantime, the PascuaFam will be left here to enjoy whatever's left of the Qatar winter with the rest of the family and our Expat Yaya. Ok, now I can see some eyebrows raising this very moment! LOL! But before you do that, let me just say that our Expat Nanny and our Expat Yaya are both considered family already and although we do pay them wages, we still allow them to find other opportunities to earn. See, you just can't end contracts with family, right? And so, in order for them to be able earn an OFW income, we have partnered to put up My Expat Mommy Catering and Food Delivery Services and as a half-true joke actually, we have appointed our Expat Nanny to be our "Sales and Marketing Director", our Expat Yaya as our Finance Director and the Expat Mommy as the CEO. LOL! I mean who knows, in God's own time, we might be a real flourishing Food Company! Well, as we all say, it's free to dream, and so we choose to DREAM BIG! :)
Having said that, let me again introduce to you My Expat Mommy Catering and Food Delivery Services for all your catering requirements, be it for parties, small get-togethers, office and school lunches, or even just for intimate family dinners. I have posted our packages and price list in the Notes Section of My Expat Mommy's Facebook Page.
To our regular customers or those who by chance, already got hold of our fliers and business cards and trying to reach us through our mobile no. printed there, you may in the meantime, reach us by posting or leaving a message with us on Facebook, leaving a comment in this blog or using our alternative contact information below.

Mobile: (974) 77662084
BBM: 234842A8
Email: myexpatmommy@yahoo.com

It would be our pleasure to be of service to you and your family and friends. And as The Expat Mommy always says: Enjoy! :)

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Pancit Guisado (Mixed Noodles)
Puto (Steamed Rice Cake)
Baked Goodies: Your Perfect Gift this Christmas

Single Serving: Daing Na Bangus (Milkfish in Garlic and Vinegar Marinade)

2012-02-01T12:40:00.004+03:00

Milk fish is probably one of my favorite fishes, no actually it is indeed my favorite fish in this lifetime. So when the Expat Daddy started bringing home about 5kgs of bangus which he purchase from his fishermen friends near his worksite, I am in Bangus Heaven. Unfortunately, I am the only one in the family who loves Bangus, and so I have too many in my hands to think of ways to cook them. Thus, what I did, is to marinate the fish in batches to be cooked for either breakfasts or during times when we can't think of anything interesting to eat. Actually I do always have beef tapa, chicken tocino and daing na bangus (and sometimes Tambakol (tuna) in adobo marinate) in the ref. The girls love the meat for their lunch box while we usually have the fish during Friday breakfast.
See, I guess the best fit description for me would be a DIY homemaker. Not a real fan of consumerism, so definitely bad business to the suppliers. Well, let's just say, if I can sew my own clothes, I would! LOL!
Ingredients:
3 pcs milkfish (roughly 200gms each)
1/4 cup oil for frying
Marinade:
1/2 cup vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbs salt (if you intend to cook it immediately after marinating, please add generous amount)

Method:
To prepare the fish, wash and clean removing the gut, gills and scales. Drain then slit the fish lengthwise from the tip of the backside of the head through to the other end of the tail, thus butterflying it in the process.
Rinse and pat dry with a kitchen towel.
Using a flat baking pan or Pyrex shallow bowl, lay the fish flat on its skin and set aside. If possible, lay all 3 fishes in one layer. In this instance, I have cut the fish to two parts to fit my resealable container.
To prepare the marinade, mix all of the ingredients in a separate bowl then pour over the fish. Let sit for about half an hour before storing in the refrigerator. Make sure to keep it covered when in the ref.
When ready to cook, heat oil in pan and wait until oil is smoking hot.
At this point, slowly slide in the fish skin side down. Cook for about 5-8 minutes.
Serve with fried rice, fried egg for a heavenly Daing-Si-Log combo.

Mommy Tip: When the fish is perfectly marinated, you wouldn't be looking for any dipping sauce anymore. You may then serve with a siding of Tomato and Cucumber Salsa or Ensaladang Talong (Eggplant Salad), both recipes may be found here and here.

You might also like:

Single Serving: Tapsilog

Single Serving: Chicken Tocino

Bangus Bistek with Tausi (Milkfish with Black Beans)

Buko Pandan

2012-01-30T11:10:00.001+03:00

I mentioned in my previous post that when our Small Ate received a call back for a print ad modelling job, we flaked the birthday party of a very close friend. Well that friend of ours didn't mind that we weren't at the party, surely she still enjoyed herself to the hilt and the party was a success. What I am sure she minds is that the Buko Pandan I promised her did not also reach the party! LOL!
When I posted the photo of the Puto Pandan in My Expat Mommy Facebook Page, she complimented that it looks delicious and it made her crave for another pandan dessert dish which is Buko Pandan. So since she has a standing invitation for her birthday bash, I promised her that I'll bring the dessert for her. And the rest as they say, is history. Everybody now knows that the Buko Pandan did not reach the party! :)
Last night was not so hectic so I had the chance to make the dessert. It was such a hit that it was finished even before we had dinner. So obviously I need to prepare a fresh batch for our friend.
Preparing the dish actually is very simple, it's just like making your ordinary buko salad. Well, that is, if you are in the Philippines. But here in Qatar, the main setback is finding the ingredients. So far, I have not yet seen any pandan extract in any of the supermarkets so I had to make my pandan water from scratch. Fortunately, I already had an idea how to do it from the Puto Pandan I made previously. Now it is the buko which is posing as an impediment to the perfect Buko Pandan I intend to make. Of course there is no choice but to use the frozen "young coconut" available in the Pinoy Supermarkets and Lulu Hypermarket. The first pack I bought was Lucia brand grated young coconut. It was not good! First off it is not young at all! I mean it is in no means a buko at all. The grated coconut was already mature and also, when I thawed it in a strainer to drain the water, the next day the coconut was already spoiled, even in this cold weather. So that was no good at all. At this point, I am already tempted to use the bottled macapuno. But then it wouldn't be a Buko Pandan anymore would it?
Fortunately, last Friday when I and the girls walked through Al Nasser St., we passed by one small Pinoy store and they carry frozen buko also. I tried the Pinili Brand sliced young coconut and they were perfect. They truly are buko in every sense. But they were sliced in wide sections so we still had to julienne them to look like grated buko. And so, by far, that would be the best trial I ever made. From this point I will no longer be intimidated by the Buko Pandan dessert. Now I know that even in Qatar, we can still make the perfect buko pandan dessert whenever we want to. :)

Ingredients:
2 packs young coconut (Pinili Brand sliced young coconut)
1 box unflavored gelatin powder (5 sachets per box)
2 tbs refined sugar
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 can all purpose cream
a few drops of green food coloring

Pandan Water:
4 fresh pandan leaves
4 cups water

Method:
First, prepare the pandan water by boiling the pandan leaves in water. Let simmer for about 10 minutes then turn off the heat. Let it cool and set aside for 1-2 hours for the pandan to fully infuse its flavor.
Thaw the frozen young coconut and drain of water. Set aside.
To make the gelatin, reheat the pandan water over medium heat and bring to a boil then remove the leaves. Add the sugar and stir. Lower the heat and whisk, slowly adding 1 packet of unflavored gelatin powder after another. Make sure that you are continuously whisking the water while doing this to prevent lumps from forming.
Once all gelatin is fully dissolved, turn off the heat. Transfer the gelatin mixture into a a shallow flat bowl or mold. Set aside until the gelatin is formed and firm.
Slice the gelatin to form 1cm cubes. Slice the young coconut thinly to look like grated pieces.
Mix together in a salad bowl with the all purpose cream and sweetened condensed milk.
Chill (ooops! we actually skipped this part, hehe!) and serve. Enjoy!

You might also like:

Thai Pandan Chicken

Hotdog and Cheese Bread Rolls

Simply Baked Mac

Introducing My Expat Mommy, a.k.a. The Stage Mom!

2012-01-29T15:13:00.009+03:00

Our fashion model wannabe

And the ad agency tells me: "Please, please no matter what you do, please don't post the photos on Facebook yet, until we have launched the ads!" Oh wow, such a strict reminder, and I'm following it, ain't I? Have you seen it on My Expat Mommy Official Facebook Page? Not really, eh? LOL!

Yes I'm a self confessed stage mom! Ha ha ha! And no matter how hard I try to keep it under my sleeve, I just can't stop giving you a tiny little hint of another proud mommy moment for the Expat Mommy --- our Small Ate has been chosen to be part of a print ad here in Qatar! Yaaay!
Ok, there. Much as I'd love to, I really can't share any more details yet. Of course, also out of respect to the people who we had worked with. I brought our Small Ate for a go-see sometime last year and totally forgot about it. Actually, I was so sure, we won't get it hehe! Not that I don't have faith in our Small Ate, but nobody told me there's going to be an interview! Hahaha! Of course, we weren't ready for it. Then they asked her to sing --- and we don't sing (not me, just the little one, hehe!) then they asked us to dance --- and we don't dance (not me, just the little one, hehe!). The thing is it's her first time to do these kind of stuff. I actually just thought of bringing her there just for the fun of it. She had always been a star since she was born. Really, no joke! She was born barely 7 months and even then, as tiny and fragile as she is in the NICU of the Women's Hospital, everyone just keeps on telling me how beautiful she is. Terrified as I am if she'll make it or not, still I can't help but feel so proud, she really is such a beautiful baby! Ok, ok, fine she's my daughter therefore I am excused in praising her to high heavens haha! As she grows older, she's always been called the "magandang bata" or "ms. beautiful" so I guess (no I'm not guessing here, I'm being smug, ha ha!) it won't hurt if we capitalize on that asset. Am I right or am I right?
I think no matter how far fetched, every mommy somehow wildly dreams that at any point in their lives, they become a model or actor/actress, host, beauty queen, sports star, etc. Of course for most of us, it was nothing serious, just that, a wild dream. So when that opportunity came up, I just tried to grab it as much as I can. It's no big deal if we don't get it anyway... I mean, as I said, just for the fun of it! So imagine my surprise and elation when we received a call back last Thursday. The Expat Daddy and I are actually on our way to the birthday party of a very close friend, but when I received the call, you guessed it, we flaked the party! :)
It turned out that the call back was just for a short confirmation that they have called the right candidate. We were asked to come back the following day for the shoot. We were asked to bring her own clothes and shoes to be used. And so this is where the stage mom part came in. Right after the meeting, we immediately headed to the Villagio Mall to shop for clothes. They asked for a few pairs, and I may have gone wild a bit, spending almost a thousand Riyals for the next day's shoot! LOL! Good thing our ever dependable yaya is now with us (I now call her our Expat Yaya), she helped me prepare everything, from clothes to shoes, to accessories, to water and snacks, it was not until a bit after midnight that we finished packing. A box full of clothes and a bag full of shoes and knick knacks.
The shoot was scheduled for a full day from 10AM till 4PM, the first part of the day was patience I tell you. We have come on time at 10AM. However, when we arrived at the designated place, nobody was there. No one even informed us if there is going to be a delay or if the shoot had been cancelled. I was a bit concerned since the Expat Daddy had only 1 day off and I know we are wasting his day off, sitting there. Good thing I was able to get the mobile no. of their Filipina secretary who advised me that the shoot is pushing through, just getting delayed. They arrived at past 12 noon. Yeah, I know, we have already been waiting for a couple of hours now. In my mind, I was just thinking... oh well, this is also what the other famous celebrities have gone through when they were just starting out, hehe! Ganyan talaga sa showbiz! Ha ha ha!
It was a good thing that the people involved in the shoot were such nice people so I have just let the delay slide. They have been very accommodating and their energy is just rubbing unto us. It took them about half an hour to set up. You may think that with this long wait our Small Ate would be restless and cranky at this point... Well, a little but not so much as I bribed her to cooperate, hehe! I wouldn't really call it bribe though, I am calling it "salary". I showed her a QR50 bill and told her that if she sits it through and they say she's been a good girl then she will get QR50 from me, which she can spend as she pleases. So she is looking forward to the 50! And when they started with make up... all the impatience had totally left her! She was just so thrilled to be made up to her heart's content! I'm not sure anymore how many times she went back to the make up artist to have a retouch!
Truly, she enjoyed the experience as much as the Expat Mommy did. Just too bad, we are not yet allowed to post any pictures from the "official shoot" but nobody told me I could not post my sidelights pictures. And that's exactly what I'm doing now.
Of course I'll update you once the ads are out! For now, just sharing another proud mommy moment, hope you share the thrill.
And by the way, I have just recently published another blog 3 Mini Ladies and a Mommy, which I intend to post parenting experiences, things I try to teach the girls and also the learnings I got from them in return. Hope you visit that too sometime... Ooops! not yet though, let me just post a few more entries before you do. :) I'm thinking to post this on that blog too, so see you there!

The make up part is what excites her

Our Little Miss Sunshine :)

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Pancit Guisado (Mixed Noodles)

2012-01-24T14:24:00.000+03:00

The Fam's ultimate comfort food! This is one of our eternal go to dish whenever we couldn't think of anything better to cook for dinner... Yes, mostly dinner. See, I arrive home with our Big Ate at about 4PM, while the grandma arrives at about 3:30PM and the Expat Daddy at 5PM. Upon arriving home, the first thing we do is eat! I know this is not a good practice as it ruins our meal schedule. But then we are just too famished upon arriving home and so if there's a thing called brunch, we have what we call lunner, which a meal combining both lunch and dinner. :)

And so with this, we usually kind of loose our appetite for dinner. But of course, we'd still be hungry, hehe! So what we usually do is think of a light meal for our dinner. Just to satisfy our hunger. This would often be either a soup or noodle dish. One of our favorites though is pancit, that's why we always keep stock of pancit canton and bihon at home, and then the basic vegetables like cabbage, carrots and string beans to go with it.

For this dish in the photo however, it's a more elaborate dish with all the works and trimmings. This is how we prepare our pancit for our special occasions, most ordinarily on birthdays, because after all, we Pinoys believe that pancit is the representation of long life.

For this dish you might notice that I only have included oyster sauce, salt and pepper for seasoning, this is because, I already have a very flavorful chicken broth, cooked from bones and other parts we have discarded whenever we debone our chicken for other dishes. I keep those chicken parts frozen until "Pancit Time" to make the broth adding vegetables and herbs to make it more flavorful. This my friends is what makes our pancit special. So if you ask me what my secret ingredient is, it's actually just the broth I cook my pancit with. :)

If you are however not in the mood for making your own homemade broth, you can always use chicken broth cubes, my brand of choice is Knorr -- the once imported from the Philippines, as it has less artificial flavoring compared to the other ones sourced here in the Gulf. :)

Ingredients:

1 large pack of Pancit Canton (preferably UFC brand)

1 large pack of Pancit Bihon

5 cups chicken broth

1 large carrot, sliced

1/4 large cabbage, chopped

1 cup sliced string beans

1 celery stalk, sliced

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 large onion, sliced

parsley, chopped

1 cup chicken breast, cooked and diced

1 cup chicken liver, cooked and sliced

1/2 cup frozen shrimps, cooked

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup oyster sauce

salt & pepper

Method:

First cook the chicken, liver and shrimps separately by dropping them into boiling water with salt. When cooked, remove from pan, drain and set aside. This will be used later on for garnish.

Heat oil in a wok on high heat. Add the garlic, cool until lightly browned then add the onion. Saute until soft and translucent.

Add half of the cooked chicken and saute for 1 minute then add the carrots and string beans. Saute for another 5-8 minutes then add the cabbage and celery. Add salt and pepper up to desired taste.

When cabbage is cooked, take out vegetables leaving only a small portion to infuse flavors into the noodles.

Pour in the broth. When starting to boil, pour in the oyster sauce and stir.

Add the Bihon. Ensure that all the noodles are soaked with the broth. You may cut up the bihon with kitchen scissors when soft. After about 3-6 minutes add the canton. Let simmer until canton is soft.

Toss in half of the reserved vegetables and half of the shrimps. Toss until the vegetables and shrimps have been evenly distributed with the noodles. Continue tossing until broth had evaporated, leaving the noodles still a little moist.

Turn off the heat and toss in the parsley.

To serve, transfer into a serving dish, garnish with sliced cooked chicken liver, the rest of the chicken and shrimps and fresh chopped parsley.

Enjoy!

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Kulinarya Cooking Club: Fresh Lumpia (Spring Roll)

2012-01-23T12:00:00.001+03:00

I am pleased to have joined a group of Filipno cooks who enjoy writing just as much as enjoy cooking. The Kulinarya Cooking Club showcases each month a unique theme for the recipes to be shared by its members. For our year opener this month, our hosts, Thea of Words of Nosh and Pearl of Sassy Chef decided to challenge us with a healthy dish or a healthy version of a dish we'd love to serve for our birthday. Whoa! To me at least, that is quite a challenge! Hahaha! I must admit, I am not a healthy eater. I always go for a feel good veeerrrryyyy fiiiillllingggg food. Took me a while before I could decide on which dish to make.
Eventually, I settled for what people have been requesting recently when we have get-togethers at home. May not be my favorite dish of all, but I'm not saying I don't like it. I love it and best of all our guests always love it too!
For the filling, I did not include any meat and made it pure vegetables. Also, instead of making the fried spring rolls which is a staple in our celebrations, I will be sharing our recipe for Fresh Lumpia which is a new favorite. By "our" means I will have to give credit where credit is due. The wrapper as always is prepared by our Expat Nanny. I did not attempt to take away the spotlight from her! hahaha! Yes, she's our expert in the wrapper division! However, I do think that the recipe calls for far too much eggs. I guess I'll have to adjust this one when I got the chance. :)
So all in all, I can say, the dish is truly healthy with less oil and less fat!
Ingredients:
Filling
1 tbs minced garlic
2 tbs finely chopped onion
2 medium sweet potato, diced
1 medium potato, diced
1 carrot, chopped
1 cup string beans, chopped
2 cups cabbage, chopped
2 tbs chopped parsley
1/4 cup frozen green peas
2 tbs vegetable oil
1/4 cup oyster sauce
salt and pepper to taste
crushed roasted peanut for garnish and sauce
chopped parsley for garnish (optional)

Wrapper
makes 25-30 8"-sized wrappers
25 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
1 can evaporated milk

Sauce
1 tbs vinegar
2 tbs soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbs corn flour (diluted in 4 tbs water)
2 cups water
4 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
crushed peanuts

Method
To cook the filling:
Heat oil in a pan. When hot, add the garlic. Cook until soft then add the onion.
When onion is soft and translucent, add the diced sweet potatoes. Stir fry for about 3 minutes then add the potatoes. Cook for about 5 minutes then add the carrots and string beans and sweet peas, stir fry for another 3 minutes.
Add the oyster sauce. Stir. Adjust taste as desired with salt and pepper.
Add the cabbage and cook for another 3-5 five minutes toss until vegetables and flavors are evenly distributed.
Turn off heat then add the parsley. Toss a few times to distribute the parsley evenly. The residual heat will cook and infuse its flavor into the vegetable mix.
Transfer into a strainer to drain excess juices from the vegetables.
To make the wrapper:
In a bowl, beat eggs and add milk. Beat well until fully blended.
Add the flour, continue beating until a smooth batter is formed.
Heat the pan over low fire. Pour about 1/4 cup of the mixture into the pan.
Tilt the pan to distribute the batter evenly, forming a very thin crepe (like a thin pancake).
Once the edges start to lift off from the pan, turn over the wrapper to cook the topside.
When both sides are totally formed and dry, remove from pan.
Do the same with the rest of the mixture.
You will be able to make about 25-30 wrappers.
To make the sauce:
combine all ingredients except the diluted corn flour and crushed peanuts in a pan and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about 8-10 minutes.
Adjust taste with salt, pepper and sugar if desired.
Adjust the heat to lowest setting then pour in the diluted corn starch. Stir and continue cooking for another 5 minutes or until desired consistency of the sauce is achieved.
Turn off heat and set aside to cool.
To serve and enjoy:

Each wrapper will be able to hold about 2 tbs of filling. To wrap, put the filling about a centimeter below the center. Form into a rectangular shape leaving about an inch on both sides of the wrapper free.
To close, fold the lower part over the filling, then fold both sides to the center, sealing the filling firmly.
Roll the wrapper to forward to the direction of the upper part of the wrapper.
Transfer to a plate and pour over with sauce and top with crushed peanuts and chopped parsley (optional).
Enjoy!

Mommy Tip: make sure to use a non stick pan when making the wrappers. I myself have a pan reserved for this use alone :)

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Pancit Canton Stir Fry with Shrimp & Broccoli

2012-01-23T09:19:00.002+03:00

Kung Hei Fat Choi! Oh the power of television --- the power of Ms. Kris Aquino! Hahaha!
I must admit one of the shows we never fail to watch in The Filipino Channel is Kris TV. We always enjoy the discussions she have with her guests. They were not just entertaining, but informative too. I have learned quite a number things from those lively discussions and cooking demonstrations.
The past week was all about the Chinese New Year, and after watching it day in and day out, we just can't resist! The show's power seems to really rub on us and also got interested in following some tips advised by their guests. Actually, what we did was mostly the ones related to food. So, out of the blue, we had a buffet spread last night to celebrate the Chinese New Year! Hahaha!

Our menu consists of fresh fruits, Palitaw (our own version of sticky rice, in the absence of the very popular tikoy), Pancit Canton for our noodle dish, steamed fish, whole chicken (including the head and feet, mind you!), Bola-bola (which I will be making again when I find wanton wrappers, to turn it into siomai), and steamed mushrooms.
This is my very simple version of Pancit Canton stir fry. I have only used one small packet of Pancit Canton since we already had dinner and as what had been said on the show, we have to finish all of the food until the next day only.
Ingredients:
1 small pack UFC Pancit Canton (you may use other brands, but personally I prefer this because of its texture)
1/2 cup carrots, sliced
1 cup cabbage, chopped
2" celery stalk, sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup broccoli, chopped (bite size)
1 small onion, sliced
1/4 cup shrimps (frozen)
2 tbs cooking oil
2 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs oyster sauce
1 1/2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Heat oil in a wok in medium to high heat. When hot, add garlic, cook until tender but not brown.
Add the onion, cook until soft and translucent.
Stir in the broccoli and carrots. Stir fry for about 5 minutes or until vegetables are fork tender but not wilted.
Add the shrimps. Stir fry for 2 minutes then add the celery and cabbage. Cook with continuous stirring for another 3-5 minutes until cabbage is slightly cooked.
Remove shrimps and vegetables from the pan leaving only a small portion to infuse flavors into the noodles.
Add water and oyster sauce. Bring to a boil then lower the heat. Add the noodles.
Stir until noodles are cooked, about 5-8 minutes. Put back the cooked vegetables.
Adjust taste with salt and pepper. Stir fry for another 3 minutes or until the broth dries up but still moist.
Turn off heat. Transfer into serving plate and serve hot. Enjoy!

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