PINAKBET REPUBLIC :: Exotic Ilokano Food

fried abaleng/abalin, abal-abal/sibbaweng beetle grub/larvae

2012-02-19T01:55:00.002+08:00

Abalin (also abaleng, or tateg [salagubang in Tagalog]), is the grub or larva of the abal-abal or sibbaweng (May/June beetle). While the adult abal-abal is more popularly known as a delicacy, its protein-rich grub is also edible and, as claimed by many "gourmands," even more palatable. Abalin is a popular fare especially in Cagayan and the rest of Cagayan Valley provinces, enjoyed and considered as an special delicacy by both Ibanags, Itaweses and the Ilokanos.These are usually found and gathered (dug out) near or on river banks in the rainy seasons, or prior to the onset of abal-abal season (May-June).

It's usually sold by the glassful early in the market or hawked around. It's kind of expensive but a best seller nonetheless because it's best as a kind of snack, besides being a scrumptious viand to go with rice. And it's a favorite pulotan (finger food) to go with drinks.

Nathaniel B. Gumangan, an Itawes from Enrile, Cagayan shared his simple recipe on how to cook a really good fried abalin (he supplied us the photographs used here), in some steps:

1. Wash and rinse the abalin thoroughly.

2. Soak the abalin in vinegar and salt for at least an hour.

3. And then, rinse with water. Put it in in a pan with some water. Boil the abalin. Simmer until water is reduced and eventually dry, stirring it occasionally with a ladle.

4. Add in a little cooking oil and cracked garlic. Add in salt or patis to taste. Stir-fry the abalin until crispy.

5. Serve hot and crunchy!

tabtaba/barbaradio/bakbakasi/dodol-dodol/bilbildong, freshwater blue-green algae salad

2012-02-12T15:48:00.000+08:00

Tabtaba, also known as bakbakasi, barbaradio, badbadiok, dodol-dodol, bilbildong, kulatlat, bakatel in different places, is a true delicacy, in that not many know that it's edible and palatable, and some doesn't have the guts to eat it because of the fact that this is actually gathered from the ground it's like the skin of the earth itself. When I was a kid, we used to "harvest" tabtaba in the fields just after the rice were cut and/or threshed when the rice field is somewhat dry, these bounty of the earth lay in the ground abundantly, waiting to be picked.

Some fortunate times, tabtaba is available in the market, during rice harvest season. This one, in the Don Domingo public market in Tuguegarao City.

Tabtaba is actually a kind of freshwater algae (lumot), named blue-green algae and the scientific name of the locally growing species in Northern Luzon is Nostoc linckia. It is rich in protein, with a protein content of 40-45% (dry weight), according to studies.

Tabtaba in the ground. (Photo: wikipedia.org)

Barbaradio for sale in the Bambang public market in Nueva Vizcaya.

This protein-rich algae is best prepared and consumed as a kind of salad. Wash and rinse well to get rid of the dirt stuck to its lobes. When it's thoroughly cleaned, put in a bowl then pour hot water into it to "cook" it. Let it wallow in hot water for some minutes, then rinse it. Dress with squeezes of calamansi, tomato and onion slices (add in young ginger, if you want), and drops of bugguong juice to taste. Some prefer to sauté tabtaba in little cooking oil, garlic, onions and tomatoes.

Tabtaba salad.

saluyot and rabong variation--with bulong-sili, kalunay and utong

2012-02-09T04:45:00.004+08:00

Now, talking more about dinengdeng, when rabong (bamboo shoots) is mentioned, among Ilokano folks, it is usually and readily thought so as being the righteous or de facto pair of the quintessential and ever-ubiquitous saluyot (Corchorus olitorius), that's it, dinengdeng a rabong ken saluyot: partners.

But then, as a veggie, rabong can go with almost any other veggies for that exclusively Ilokano-branded dinengdeng or inabraw.

Like, for instance, rabong with kalunay (Amaranthus spinosus) or kalkalunay (Spinacia oleracea) and the tender leaves of sili ti sairo/abuyo (bird's eye chili, Capsicum frutescens), and with bunga ti utong (string beans):

These freshly picked veggie goodies, with a little big help of bugguong...

Kalunay, local spinach.

Bulong/uggot ti sili, bird's eye chili.

Bunga ti utong, string beans.

... will turn into a delectable dinengdeng like this, with fried galunggong (round scad) to flavor:

Still, the open secret is that you have to cook it the veggies briskly and briefly, don't overcook, especially the leafy ones. Boil the shredded rabong first (some folks parboil rabong before cooking it as dinengdeng, to rid of its bitterness; but that depends on the variety of bamboo, some like the bayog (Bambusa spinosa) kind, sometimes doesn't need to be parboiled and rinsed; some Ilokano folks even prefer their rabong to be a bit bitter, anyway). When the rabong is tender, put in the utong, simmer for some minutes, and then put in the kalunay and sili leaves. Simmer for a minute then put off fire and remove the pot's cover so the leaves don't wilt. Serve immediately.

unnok/ginukan, freshwater shellfish

2012-02-07T14:39:00.000+08:00

Unnok or ginukan (Delillia sp.) is a freshwater mollusk or bivalve that grows in rivers, it is believed to be endemic in the Cagayan River especially along the towns of Lal-lo and Camalaniugan (unnok is abundant as well in the Abulug River), although it can be usually found in rivers close to the coastlines (deltas) in Northern Luzon. But nowadays unnok is becoming rare in Cagayan itself, reportedly because of the ongoing quarrying/dredging activities (actually mining of magnetite or black sand which is reportedly wreaking environmental havoc) along the Cagayan River which affect not just unnok but also the kabibi (Batissa violacea), another important shellfish endemic in the area (and other shells and fish, like the rare and expensive ludong). Quarrying/dredging/mining of sand in the river disturbs the habitat of these shells endangering their very existence.

This is somehow true because I myself rarely can find unnok for sale in the wet markets, whereas in the past years it's sold in abundance in regular market days.

And imagine my pleasant surprise when I found this in the Allacapan (Cagayan) market and was told that it came all the way from Laoag City (Ilocos Norte)! The vendor said unnok is almost a thing of the past in Cagayan, it's not readily available anymore as it were, and she's not exaggerating, I guess. I bought the whole remaining lot for fifty pesos:

We made it into a soup with lots of tomatoes and onions, and some bugguong juice to taste. The broth is so savory with a hint of sweet and sour tomato goodness.

The tiny bits of flesh has a distinct taste and texture among other freshwater shells that makes unnok a kind of delicacy, especially now that it's diminishing and becoming a rarity.

And of course, unnok meat is also prized because it's great to be made into a bugguong (salted). The vendor also sells bugguong nga unnok at one hundred fifty pesos a bottle (yes, it's that expensive). But I was able to convince her for a hundred bucks plus the fresh shells, so this is it, I got one, it's been years since the last time I saw bugguong nga unnok being sold.

It's perfect with a squeeze of calamansi and it's a great appetizer, just like bugguong nga ipon.

What an opportunity to once again blessed with this bounty, now that some greedy people are destroying nature that nurtures its very existence... What a pity that future generations might not enjoy this delicacy anymore, when it's already extinct in the Cagayan River...

Meanwhile, here's a video by Youtuber mjrfmpaul123 of unnok (ginukan) being prepared as a kind of "salad":

Enjoy!

kuditdit, kudit/kudet (bracket fungus, tree ear fungus)

2012-02-01T08:17:00.001+08:00

Come rainy or thunder-stormy season, especially when the late afternoon rains bring a plenty of lightning and thunder, you can expect that early in the morning, an abundance of mushroom has grown in the wild, like the uong-kalaw, uong-bunton, or uong-managadu and many others. The rains and the lightning also induce edible fungi, like the kuditdit (also called "kudet" or "kudit", bracket fungus or tree ear fungus). There are some kinds of kuditdit, some are commercially grown (large ones called oyster/abalone mushroom), but the most popular and most preferred of course is the small wild and "native" kuditdit which grows on dead/rotting trees. I used to pick, as a child in Nueva Vizcaya, kuditdits on fallen mango and tamarind trees.

Wild kuditdit growing on a dead tree. Photo from Wikipedia.com

Kuditdit has also become rare nowadays, and thus it has become a kind of another exotic fare. You can usually find them sold in the market and is quite pricey but nonetheless a best seller as it is a prized companion to a savory dinengdeng/inabraw especially when partnered with wild mushrooms.

Kuditdit for sale by the glassful.

When preparing kuditdit, you have to wash/rinse it thoroughly to remove dirt, but don't squeeze it too much and just rinse it once or twice only, to preserve its natural flavor and succulence.

Kuditdit is great with paria, leaves or fruit, and with other leafy vegetables and veggie fruit like pallang and tarong.

Kuditdit with wild mushrooms, kalunay (amaranth, wild spinach) and kabatiti fruit.

The soup/broth is so good with the fusion of two wild fungi goodness, sweetened by the young kabatiti!

the "other" seaweeds: kulot & aragan

2012-01-28T02:03:00.001+08:00

Talking about edible and palatable seaweed, especially among Ilokanos, and Pinoys in general, the more popular fare are the pokpoklo (or pukpuklo, Codium) and the ar-arosip (lato, Caulerpa lentillifera). But there are more, like the famous gamet (Porphyra crispata, nori) which is highly prized and priced in its dried state. Also the equally popular guraman (Gracillaria verrucosa, also called "ur-urmot" because of its supposed resemblance to you-know-what, ugh!).

And there's the kulot (Gelidiella acerosa):

And the aragan (kelp, Laminaria):

These two make perfect seaweed salad with sliced tomatoes and onions, a dash of salt or a dressing of bugguong.

Preparing these seaweeds for salad is a little tricky, unlike that of pokpoklo or ar-arosip which you can consume fresh as is. Kulot and aragan are tough and it needed a quick blanch of boiling water to soften them. You put the seaweed into a bowl and pour hot water on it for a quick hot bath. Do not "overcook" it, drain immediately when you see the weeds are kind of wilted and soft. The "secret" of subtly softening the rough and tough texture of the weed is to add in some vinegar just before scalding it.

The end result is a thing of beauty and delight:

This is one great appetizer!

sinanglaw? paksiw? which? sinanglaw-vigan & paksiw-laoag

2012-01-27T05:06:00.000+08:00

Sinanglaw? Pinapaitan? Paksiw? Singkutsar? Confusing, really. What's what and which is which? I have the same ordeal identifying or proving what's a real beef sinanglaw and that of beef paksiw (and why it's called paksiw, in the first place). It's kind of complicated, you see. Especially for a non-Ilocos (Norte/Sur) resident like me. I only know by heart pinapaitan because this is what I was introduced, and used, to as an Ilokano in Cagayan Valley (born and raised in Nueva Vizcaya with Ilokano forbears coming from Pangasinan and La Union [migrants], and now residing in the Province of Cagayan). So I begged some Ilocos writer-friends to educate me of/on their exotic delicacies...

Sinanglaw is almost exclusively Ilocos Sur, actually the pride of Vigan City itself. You can find a lot of sinanglawan in almost every Vigan nook and cranny.

While sinanglaw is also available in some eateries in some towns in Ilocos Norte, paksiw is the more, if not the most, popular, especially in Laoag City and in San Nicolas town. Sometimes sinanglaw and paksiw are misnomered in these parts in that if a stranger orders a "sinanglaw" he will be served with a paksiw instead, if not pinapaitan, or singkutsar. (Although when you mention pinapaitan in these parts, it is almost exclusively known only as in pinapaitan a kalding [goat], because goat is the real thing when it comes to pinapaitan, well, for some.)

But these Ilokano beef soup goodies are not really at odds with each other, because they share a lot in common, or have similar ingredients, they only differ in the preparation and of the way they are flavored, and favored, of course. Basically, they've got beef innards/entrails or offal in them, plus the most prized meat cut which is the lomo (tender loin), and the papait or pespes (the bitter "juice" of the partially digested grass in the intestines, also called chyme). Sinanglaw, by the way, is authenticated by the presence of boiled/softened beef skin/hide, or of parts from beef hocks and knuckles.

And so here is Ilocos Norte paksiw:

This is actually what the folks called "nadiguan a paksiw" (or perhaps "naidigo a paksiw"?) because it's paksiw soup poured over a bowl of raw or rare beef tender loin slices. It has none of the innards. The real "paksiw" here is the soup only as it came from the paksiw consisting of boiled intestines, liver, heart, pancreas and tripe, and soured with Ilocos vinegar (cane vinegar, "sukang iloko"), and mildly flavored with pespes.

From what I gathered, paksiw in Ilocos Norte (not the "nadiguan" above)--correct me if I'm wrong ,or wronged--is also singkutsar or sinangkutsar (more on and about singkutsar in future blog posts; I have yet to interview some singkutsar afficionados, heh-heh!). And paksiw is called paksiw because of the souring agent diluted in it, as compared to the purely bitter pinapaitan. Yes, it's primarily because of its sourness, of the suka, of course, as paksiw means "cooked with/in vinegar."

And here's the blessed sinanglaw of Ilocos Sur:

This is uncut lump of beef loin (unfortunately this looks like a tough meat, maybe not boiled enough, this is from a sinanglawan besides or across the cathedral), you are given a knife to cut it into your desired bite pieces, or have the vendor cut it out for yourself. Along with the meat are skin/hide, coagulated blood, some bits of liver and heart, and lungs/pancreas, some tripes. A hint of sourness is there, courtesy of pias (kamias). You can opt to make it more sour and spicy by adding in vinegar with fermented chili.

Here, the sinanglaw, with partner "condiments": the pespes (conveniently bottled), naartem a sili (chili fermented in vinegar), and chopped white onions.

Sinanglaw, now with the meat sliced and with the pespes.

Spiced and "embittered" the sinanglaw is ready.

And here's another sinanglaw from anotherr sinanglawan:

This one is more hearty and bountiful than the other, at a sinanglawan located right at the second floor of the Vigan public market, as my source have ventured into. "Hearty" because the meat is literally all beef heart, served one piece (a sizable part of the cow's heart boiled just tender enough to be chewy but so subtly soft to chew) and then cut into bite-size by the "server" for you. Plus some liver pieces, some tripe, some skin, and chunks of coagulated beef blood. And those pias slices that sour it all to a truly unique sinanglaw perfection.

And of course, that obligatory pespes to give the soup its true Ilokano flavor and distinct sinanglaw aroma.

You can opt to spice it with fermented chili, or put in more sourness with that sukang iloko to perk up your gastronomic sense and level up some other senses. :-)

various authentic, exotic, ilokano pinakbets

2012-01-19T15:25:00.001+08:00

More on and about pinakbet, this time, I'll show/present/feature various concoction or variations, most of it I cooked myself, trying-hard to be an authentic ilokano-pinakbet creator, utilizing the Ilokano-ness in me, my ever finicky Ilokano taste (literally, that is) to produce what's I think is real and kind of exotic Ilokano dish, of this ever ubiquitous vegetable stew.

This is basic pinakbet with the basic ingredient there is: paria, tarong, kamatis, sili, okra, and no more. I even have two different tarongs here, both "native" ones: small rounded ones and "slim" elongated ones, which are the perfect, or even required, eggplants for pakbet. My paria is also the round ones, natively grown (not hybrid), so-called Ilocos ampalaya.

Pinakbet with young garlic roots and leaves. This is a truly Ilocos pinakbet because of the presence of the young garlic (naganus a bawang). But I cooked this one (me, here in Cagayan), of course, having had the opportunity to be blessed with young garlic bundles being peddled on the talipapas along the highway in Nassiping, Gattaran town (in Cagayan; the vendors said it came right from Ilocos Norte). Naganus a bawang itself is made into a unique pinakbet a naganus a bawang, young root/bulb and leaves. In this particular pinakbet, I didn't cut the eggplant's pamurosan (stalk) because these are fruit so young and tender, almost busel (buds), and the tender stalk is edible as well. I just removed the hard sinewy part inside. Mind you, you can only find a tarong prepared that way in an Ilokano pinakbet or dinengdeng.

Very basic pinakbet cooked by my mother. Not sautéed, ever. And it has no sagpaw or parabaw (add-on/topping, fish or meat). With lots of tomatoes and ginger that almost fermented the veggies. You can see it has some pallang (winged bean).

One the most palatable, most delicious pinakbet I've ever encountered, prepared and cooked by the folks of Currimao town in Ilocos Norte. It has generous amounts of kardis and patani beans in it that greatly enhanced its aroma and flavor. Plus native parda and tiny sweet peppers. And utong (string beans). Its thick broth is a delightful fusion of sweetness, sourness, bitterness and moderated bugguong saltiness only a genuine Ilokano cook can manufacture :-)

Pinakbet I made spicier with a dash of cracked peppercorns, and with lots of crushed ginger.

This one is a bit oily because I added a sizeable chunk of lechon kawali (imagining its the adorable bagnet/chicharon, hehe!)

I added bagas ti kamote (sweet potato/camote roots, also called kaong in some parts of Ilocos Norte) here in lieu of the karabasa (squash fruit preferred and popularized by Tagalog in their variant of pakbet). I used the native round tarong here, similar to balballosa (wild round eggplant). I topped it with fried tilapia fish.

And this is my pinakbet with young marunggay pods/fruit (also called drumsticks), pallang and bagas ti kamote.

This is a pinakbet by Roger D. Ancheta of Camiling, Tarlac. Besides marunggay pods, it has the young singkamas (jicama) pods! Bunga ti singkamas is a favorite veggie of mine, I'm always craving for it nowadays that it has become a rarity. It's perfect for dinengdeng, solo or with pallang pods or with sabunganay (susop, banana blossoms), and soured with salamagi (tamarind) fruit, topped with broiled attasi (dalag, mudfish) or paltat (catfish).

buridibod yet again: camote, petchay and alukon

2012-01-14T15:38:00.001+08:00

This is yet another buridibod variation.We have previously featured our buribod with alukon floweretters and marunggay leaves and buridibod with marunggay pods. Here's one with alukon still and with "baby" petchays (young and small petchay). The basic ingredient here is the camote root. Buridibod is buridibod as long as it has the main ingredient, which is root crop, be it camote, or other root crops like taro, yam, and other starchy edible root.

As with the others, my buridibod this time is cooked with the camotes at the base of the lot, it is put in first after the bugguong is diluted in the boiling water, simmered sometime to cook it (the camote), and then the alukon and the petchay.

Do not overcook the alukon and the petchay. Put off fire and serve immediately while crisp and green, with the sweet starchy broth steaming.

atap/balang a paria (wild bitter-melons)

2012-01-01T09:06:00.000+08:00

Ilokanos are known and are famously distinct to be bitter-loving peoples in these northern parts of the Philippine archipelago, in terms of food geography (as Tagalogs south down under favor sourness in their sinigang or paksiw, or the Bicolanos in their coconut milk-sweetened and chili-spiced Bicol Express). And true-blue Ilokano pait connoisseurs love the most bitter in their food, the bitter, the better, so to say. As to veggies, they want their own Ilocos paria or native amargoso, smallish and round, especially in their beloved pinakbet.

An for the more pait extremist, he is familiar and most enamored to the balang a paria of paria ti bakir, a wild variety of the common paria which grows in forested areas or mountain sides specially during rainy months.

The shoots are the ones mostly gathered early in the morning after a rainy dusk.

These can be prepared simply into a salad, blanched briefly, then garnished with sliced tomatoes and bugguong.

Or as a perfect green leafy companion to mushrooms and other edible fungi soups, such as this kudit or kuditdit (bracket fungi) which also grows abundant in dead tree barks on rainy season:

Or in this uong ti garami/saba (straw mushroom):

But what's prized is the fruit it self. Tiny and round bitter goodies. Some folks are not aware that this is so good as well, they only know of the balang a paria leafy greens. The most bitter-loving Ilokano folk loves to roast the freshly-harvested fruit over live embers and then lace it with bugguong and adorn it with sliced tomatoes and onions.

And of course it can be made into a really scrumptious pinakbet a solo a balang a paria (stewed with no other veggies). Cooked exactly like pinakbet, with lots of bugguong to taste, lots of tomatoes, and onions and garlic and ginger.

In fact, paria a balang, if available, can be a good paria substitute for your usual pinakbet as these are more bitter and more odd-looking and therefore makes an exotic pinakbet of sorts. Now imagine if that famous rat

Bon appetit! Naimas a pannangan!

dalag/attasi/burikaw/buntiek (mudfish, snakefish)

2011-12-30T05:32:00.000+08:00

Mud fish is so common a freshwater fish in the Philippines you can find it everywhere in creeks, rivers, lagoons, lakes or in small and big irrigation canals and in the muddy fields and ponds. And it has quite a share of names, aside form the generic dalag, in Cagayan it's generally called attasi. While in some places, it has a name according to its size or growth. It's called burikaw when it's quite that big, and buntiek when it's small.

And there's a variety of ways and means you can prepare a sumptuous dalag dish. It's commonly cooked sinigang or paksiw a dalag, (or pesang dalag, as the Tagalog prefer) soured with any agent preferred (young tamarind fruit/flowers/shoots, pias, green mango, tomatoes, or vinegar) with soup or stewed dry. It's also great when grilled/broiled (tinuno/inasar/pinulpogan) to consume as is or made into a tinenneb, broiled mud fish poured in with hot water and then soured with crushed young tamarind fruit or with sliced tomatoes, garnished with sliced onions, and swpiced with hot chilis. Or even baked. Or fried. Or made into a buro, pickled with rice.

Paksiw a dalag.

Tinuno a dalag.

Baked dalag.

dinengdeng/inabraw, more, once more

2011-12-25T22:02:00.000+08:00

Just can't get enough with dinengdeng (inabraw, if you will), this Ilokano gourmand in me (yes I consider dinengdeng kind of a gourmet), I have it in almost daily basis, my life could be so sorry and bleak, truly incomplete without it in my table in a day. I have exclusively blogged about it here and here today, once more. And more to come next blog entries. For dinengdeng is so versatile a dish it can be done in countless of ways and means with a variety of available veggies (especially green leafy) in season or all year round, as long as there's the blessed bugguong ready to lend its distinct flavor and aroma to every dinengdeng combination you can think of.

So, here are some more of my dinengdeng creations:

Winged beans (pallang), string beans (utong) and camote tops soured with young tamarind fruit.

Kuditdit or kudet (bracket fungi, tree ear fungus) and wild ampalaya (paria a balang/paria ti bakir)shoots with kinirog nga udang (fried freshwater shrimps).

Wild ampalaya shoots and straw mushrooms (uong-garami or uong-saba) with fried fish.

Chayote with dried ipon (goby fries). This is my personal favorite, that of chayote and/or papaya (green papayas) solo dinengdeng, which I usually flavor with lots of crushed laya (ginger). The soup is so savoury and gingery hot.

Uong, young tarong, sabong ken uggot kabatiti, with shrimps.

A very savory dinengdeng I promise you, mainly because of its prized gamet (dried red seaweed). Gamet is like the Japanese nori. It enhances the flavor and aroma of the dinengdeng, especially its broth. Gamet seaweed is primarily gathered and dried in the northernmost towns of Ilocos Norte (mainly Burgos, and Pagudpod), and even in Cagayan (like Claveria). In this dinengdeng, you have there young tarong, sili nga aruy-oy (sweet pepper), and the flowers and shoots of kabatiti (the native, angular sponge gourd, patola).

Kalunay, katuday, uggot ken sabong kabatiti, with broiled native paltat (catfish).

Boiled utong (cowpeas) and sabong ken uggot ti karabasa (squash flowers and shoots), with bits of deep fried pork. Quite a different dinengdeng, you say, but it's good.

Tugi ( lesser yam, Chinese yam, Dioscorea esculenta Lour.), pallang, katuday (katuray, West Indian pea), and kalunay (spinach, amaranth, kulitis) with udang. This one, with the presence of the tugi, can also be called a buridibod. And it's so good, the soup is sweetish.

saluyot adventures in molokhialand

2011-12-07T05:18:00.000+08:00

(This was written and blogged during my brief stay in the Sultanate of Oman.)

There's this corresponding relativity to uniquely ilokanistic craving for the luxuriant bugguong, when you are away from your native land, Ilocos land. The same whim, or necessity if you will, the same desire akin to addiction, to please a selfish Ilokano palate's demand for the equally elusive saluyot to grace your dinengdengs. But being in a strange land, I initially thought this is an appettite for the impossible.

Do Omanis, do Arabs ever eat saluyot like we Ilokanos gobble this "slippery when wet" delicacy?

I thought only Ilokanos are crazy about the saluyot.

I was wrong.

Of course, they do have saluyot in the hypermarts. After some desperate scouring and foraging in one of those labyrinthine supermarkets, I finally bumped into a treasure trove of bagged saluyot languidly lying frozen and harder than diamond in one cozy corner of those huge freezers, among slabs of hardened spinach, green peas, beans, sweet corn and other frozen veggies. It's called molokhia. or mulukheyya. Or molokheyya. Whatever. It's the Egyptian Arabic name, according to Wikipedia, of the corchorus plant.

And yes, this one is imported from Egypt. And surprise, surprise, saluyot is a staple food in Egypt since the time of the pharaohs! Some Egyptians are even considering molokhia as their national dish. So that fact somehow demystifies our own popular thought that saluyot is exclusively Ilokano staple food and that it's supposedly endemic in Ilocos land. The Egyptians are devouring saluyot since time immemorial, period.

But the way we Ilokanos and Egyptians ingest saluyot/molokhia differ. While we love it fresh and whole, leaves and all, and boil it, stew it, pakbet it in bugguong, the Egyptians and others prefer molokhia in soups or as a soup base. That's what Ive discovered when I finally opened the plastic pouch of the frozen molokhia. I never thought of saluyot being cooked into a soup, a real soup.I only know saluyot soup as dinengdeng soup, boiled saluyot leaves with mixture of other leafy veggies or with bamboo shoots, its traditional Ilokano partner.

When I spotted the frozen molokhia, I was enthralled with the perfect picture of fresh saluyot leaves in the packaging and then and there readily dreampt of pinakbet a saluyot, saluyot leaves stewed dry in bugguong, vinegar, garlic, ginger, onion and peppercorns.

And I was horrified when I found out that my precious saluyot was a thick mush of a paste meant to be "soupified," indeed! My desire crumbled. What am I going to do with this mucus-like slimy mess? I wanted to say yuck! yuppie-like, but then this is saluyot all the same and I do not want to blaspheme on the sanctity, the sacredness of the blessed saluyot.

I googled for a possible recipe. and I found out an original egyptian molokhia soup recipe called "Egyptian greens soup" or simply "molokhia" (the dish and the plant are one, amongst Egyptians and Sudanese and other peoples in the Mideast). It requires some spices like coriander, chilli, cayenne and bay leaf. And chicken stock for soup base. And butter, to "fry" the soup.

I followed the recipe to the letter and here it goes, the saluyot soup boiling with a distinctly unfamiliar aroma wafting tantalizingly:

And after some time, here it is. It's still saluyot, flavor and fragrance and all. Although because of the added spices as contrasted to the simple Ilokano way, it become more of the aromatic herb that it was popularly intended and consumed in its Egyptian origin. But it's a very tasty, delicious, thick soup best for entrée. Or as is the Ilokano practice, it can go with your rice as labay and of course, it's perfect for that "bumanerber nga igup" that we usually enjoy with dinengdeng broth, especially with saluyot with that distinct "gumalisgalis" texture.

But still I'm not satisfied with my first Oman saluyot meal. I still crave for a whole and fresh saluyot with its leaves intact and not chopped or minced or pulped into a paste.

And imagine my joy when I finally came upon fresh saluyot bundles in the vegetable section of the hypermart. This is a local produce and I learned later it's plentiful in the local veggie souks (markets) though its availablity is not regular. And again, a sizeable chunk, or the whole of it, of the saluyot-ilokano-exclusivity myth in me is shattered. Of course, Omanis, the locals, the Arabs love saluyot, too. And it's a part of their own cuisine as well. Who else are buying these and for whom are the local farmers are planting these saluyots? Certainly, not only for the handful of expat Ilokanos or Filipinos here. But for themselves. They are also molokhia lovers and this is molokhialand. Get that.

And so, without much ado, I cooked my precious saluyot pakbet. You do the usual Ilokano way of stewing. the panagdengdeng act. The panamguong act. Use only a minimal amount of water. Throw in crushed garlic, crushed ginger, sliced onion, cracked or uncracked peppercorns. Simmer a bit, then place the washed saluyot tops and leaves. Simmer for a while. Optionally, put in some sagpaw like dried shrimps, dried fish or meat. Simmer some more. If the the saluyot is already kind of "slippery" or tender, put in some tablespoonfuls of vinegar (suka ti basi or suka nga iloko is preferred, but other blends like paombong is just as well). I do not add the vinegar at the beginning, I wait for some time for the saluyot to cook and only then will I add vinegar. This is for the saluyot to retain some texture and smoothness. Sometimes when you add suka by default (at the start), the saluyot "hardens" or "coarsens." But this is optional or preferential. After putting in the vinegar, simmer some more until it dries up with only a hint of broth underneath. Be careful to moderate the "broth drying" as it may burn at its base if you don't attend to it. You can retain some more broth if you want, to mix as labay with your rice.

And this is it, my favorite saluyot dish, pakbet basking in all its glory:

Once more, a close up of the heavenly dish in its rightful splendor:

But wait, here's more. I soon found out that there's a dried saluyot in the same hypermarket.

Look at those gorgeous Egyptian saluyot leaves in its petrified state. It's as if it promises a glorious psychedelic trip to gastronomic heaven. No, not to be smoked like a pot, you sucker, but to be ingested pakbet-wise after it is boiled up in bugguong in a pot. That, I have yet to try. But then again, we dry aba or taro leaves, paria leaves, mushroom, kudet or kuditdit, even marunggay leaves in the Philippines. And why not saluyot? This dried ambrosia, this saluyot, can be a concocted into an excellent soup or turned into a magnificent pakbet, all the same, fresh or dried or pulverized, it's still saluyot, molokhia or molokheyya. Does it matter?

(Originally blogged somewhere on 26 May 2008)

the panamugguong act: the panagsegseg

2011-12-06T10:56:00.000+08:00

So, at last, I should not worry about scouring stores for that elusive bottled instant bugguong which is, by the way, "in vogue" in most parts of the Philippines, Ilocos Region included. Surely, people is used to these instant mix things like instant sampaloc mix, instant kamias mix, instant ginisa flavor mix, instant meaty flavor mix, instant gata mix and so many other powderized and solidified mixes and other bizarre (but admittedly, nifty and practical) compact concoctions that they now prefer these to, well, instantly and without much ado, flavor their cooking. And bugguong is obligatorily included courtesy of the bottled liquefied brew. No more of the bagas of flesh, fishbone and all. Gone also are the canned bugguongs which proliferated the market in the past (remember the famous "naimas ken nabanglo" CK Bagoong? This was the most popular canned whole bugguong when I was younger). Although, of course, you can still have a sinukat or a jar of whole bugguong straight from the bugguong vendors who display their bugguong in big plastic vats and some still sealed in plastic container inside huge straw bags. They`re still there, the bugguong traders as there are still bugguong factories in Lingayen, Dagupan or Balayan (in fact, the enormously popular bottled bugguongs are also made by these big bugguong manufacturers). You'll just have to be keen enough and be wary when you buy sinukat or tingi as some, or most, bugguong vendors has this vicious practice of diluting their wholesome bugguong with boiled tap water just to bloat the quantity of their bugguong. This is one disgusting "business strategy" of most small and big vendors in the Philippines. They dilute your bugguong, they put formalin in your meat and vegetables, they sell you stale and expired and substandard goods, etc. This despite you paying the price they want. so, if you buy fresh bugguong or other stuff, you better have a suki that you can trust.

Instant bugguong is really the easy way to have your dinengdengs and pinakbets. But if you really want a hearty inabraw or pakbet that you can truly savor and enjoy because it's a labor of love, you should use fresh whole bugguong.

And do the process of panamagbugguong act--the panagsegseg.

The first of which is of course, you boil some cups of water in a pan. you can calculate the right amount of water according to the type of dinengdeng that you want to cook, or in the amount of veggies, or even in the kind of veggies. Soupy or broth types, naturally, need more water. Pinakbet types require less or even nothing (some extremely dry pinakbets really need only the bugguong juice and the vegetables' own sweet juice to cook).

The right amount of bugguong also depends on the above considerations. Pinakbet types require more, though. But be careful that it won't become too salty. A salty pinakbet, especially if cooked dry, cannot be "remedied" by adding some water later to neutralize its saltiness. Not if you really preferred it dry in the first place. Mind you, adding water to try to reduce saltiness will spoil your precious pinakebbet.

When the water is bubbling, scoop up boiling water into the bugguong bowl. The hot water will actually cook the bugguong and loosen the fermented fish in it so you could separate flesh and guts from fishbone. Use the ladle to squash, mash and squeeze the fish, fishhead and all, until its flesh and other fish parts turn into a kind of a puree and blend with the mixture.

Then with utmost care, slowly and with calculated balancing act, pour in the liquid into the pan. Use the ladle to trap or filter the fishbone while pouring the liquid to prevent fishbone and other thorny bony bits to fall into the pan. Others use a fine mesh to filter thereby saving them of accidentally pouring segseg or remnants. But then, again, we are doing here the traditional way of panagsegseg, no easy shortcuts, please, use the ladle and test and prove your Ilokano skills of the panagsegseg.

First pouring will not at all pour the fleshy liquid so you've got to ladle up some more hot water into the bowl and segseg it again, pour the segregated liquid again, until what's left in the bowl are only fishbones and dregs.

Let the bugguong broth simmer for some minutes, just give it time to boil to cook in its juice, in its own salty sweet essence. This way, to eradicate its angdod or for its peculiar bugguongy smell to evaporate and turn into a heavenly dinengdeng/pakbet scent. Then you can now blend your vegetables and other ingredients for another savory and wholesome binugguongan mélange.

tinuno a kabatiti/roasted patola (sponge gourd)

2011-01-18T02:05:00.002+08:00

One of my "most liked veggie fruit" is the native kabatiti (patola, sponge gourd, Cucumis acutangulus Linn.), the native bilidan (angular) variety (I prefer the bilidan kabatii than the one with soft skin and "nabanglo a kabatiti" (aromatic patola); the native bilidan is more sweeter and palatable, while the soft-skinned one is somewhat bland like tabungaw (upo; bottle gourd) or tangkoy. It's a childhood favorite as I was used to a vegetable diet which is typical in a farming community where I was born and grew. My mother would prepare it "special" by sauteeing the kabatiti sliced roundish with fragrant native bawang and native lasona, and then boil it. It's a very savory soup, so sweet, that I enjoy up to my adulthood. I make it occasionally, this time with sotanghon or misua or even bijon, and/or with Spanish-style sardines (in olive oil). Native kabatiti a bilidan is also a perfect veggie fruit ingredient in dinengdeng as it enhances flavor and sweetens the broth.

A kabatiti (bilidan) in trellis in our place in Nueva Vizcaya.

Native kabatiti is cylindrically short and roundish.

And one of my preferred preparation of the kabatiti fruit is roasted or grilled. Not many Ilokanos know that kabatiti can be prepared this way. This is a practice usually in the away or in farms. For me, this is the most delicious way you can consume kabatiti fruit as roasting it with its own juice trapped and intact inside assures you of its raw succulence and sweetness. It's just like roasting freshly picked straw mushrooms wrapped in banana leaves.

Here, I would have roasted my kabatiti over live embers but no charcoals available, so I just contented myself roasting them over LPG fire instead for a quick grilled kabatiti fix.

You know it's well and done when the kabatitis are soft (to the touch). Don't over-grill the fruit or it got burn all over and you'll have difficulty "skinning" the burnt skin that may "badly puncture" the fruit and spill much of its sweet juice.

After removing the burnt skin, cleanse with running tap water (when washing, do it slightly and don't squeeze the kabatiti or you'll be deprived of its prized juice!), and then cut the fruit this way:

See the succulence of it? The juice oozing out?

You can season it with a bit of salt or some drops of bugguong. Don't put in too much salt or bugguong, lest the sweetness will be overwhelmed. Garnish it with sliced tomatoes or young onions, if you like.

Perfect with steaming rice, even without the usual fried fish or meat. The burnt skin adding a unique aroma to the dish, akin to the prized smokiness of a bacon.

inabraw nga alukon/alukon leaves stew

2010-12-15T07:01:00.002+08:00

Alukon or alokon (allaeanthus glaber; also called bungon and baeg [in Pangasinan]) is more known for its flowers or flowerettes as a popular "mix" in some vegetable dishes, notably buridibod or in the simple dinengdeng, and in the quintessential pinakbet.

But besides its more popular flower, the leaves of the alukon tree is also edible and is equally great for that perfect dinengdeng of leafy veggie medley, or as a solo inabraw nga alukon (I used "inabraw" here because, usually, it is the term used when the dinengdeng is comprised mostly, or wholly, of leaves). I have yet to see alukon leaves being sold in the market, though. Maybe because some folks are not used to it or don't know that the leaves are edible and palatable as well. The leaves, of course, is abundant even when the tree is not in flowering/blooming season. As the tree is usually have its branches cut to gather the flowers, after a few days, fresh sprouts will bud that promise beautiful tender leaves for alukon lovers to consume. A small alukon tree grown in your backyard can supply you bountiful leaves all year round. Just cut the branches when all its leaves are matured to enable new branches to bud. Needless to say, I might swear I even love the leaves more than the flowers because it represent a true green leafy veggie for a truly hearty dinengdeng or inabraw. I just love the alukonness of it, the sweet sabeng or pas-eng--that distinct aroma that veggie lovers adore, and the unique tartness of it that caters to a genuinely Ilokano fondness for leafy green vegetable stews.

So, I cooked my inabraw nga alukon just as simply as boiling it in bugguong. I just took care of it not to overcook the tender leaves. And few moments before it is done, I placed atop the boiling stew a grilled paltat (catfish) as a sagpaw (add-on). Let the steam engulf the sagpaw for some more moments and then put off the fire and serve the inabraw immediately.

What comes next is a lovely sight and a heavenly scent is wafting--the yellow soup (the leaves turn the broth yellowish as is with other vegetable leaves like utong [sitaw, cowpea] leaves) tantalizing your palate.

It's so good with your steamed rice, the broth makes a perfect labay that turns your rice like a java rice!

Ahh, the simplicity of Ilokano gastronomy!

(Originally blogged January 30, 2010)

patani ken sabong-karabasa, lima beans and squash flowers stew

2010-12-14T09:28:00.006+08:00

Yet another dinengdeng! Yes, and this is a part of what would be a series of posts dedicated to the venerable Ilokano vegetable dish dinengdeng.

And this time, it's a medley of my favorite dinengdeng goods: sabong ti karabasa (squash flower) and patani (lima bean, also called java and burma bean), and with the ever-crisp pallang (winged bean).

The patani here is the white "flat bean" variety and not the rounded or "fragrant" ones. This is my favorite patani as its immature seeds are so sweet and its young pods is also good.

The beans are yet young and tender and so I don't need to peel off the seed's skin.

I boiled the beans first (in the bugguong broth) as it takes time for them to soften. When it's cooked or partially cooked, I added in the pallang. And then, a few minutes afterwards, the squash flower. The pallang and the sabong-karabasa should not be overcooked to retain sweetness, crispness and succulence.

pokpoklo salad

2010-12-10T15:13:00.007+08:00

Pokpoklo (also pukpuklo). A traditional Ilokano summer seaweed delicacy (pokpoklo is abundant during summers; also popular throughout the Philippines, and in Hawaii and Japan). Best as an appetizer.

Preparing it as a salad is simple. Just wash, rinse, to get rid of any bit of dirt or sand clinging in the morsel-like weed. Then toss it with fresh tomato slices. No need to put salt as this is already salty courtesy of saltwater (seawater). You can opt to sour it more with a squeeze of calamansi, or some vinegar (some folks love to just dip it in vinegar).

You'll love this slimy, salty, worm-like longish morsels (lots of Ilokanos just love it, though many prefer the ar-arosip [lato], this is so because loving pokpoklo is a kind of labor to acquire a distinct taste of its unusual sliminess and gumminess). Perfect with steaming rice and fried/grilled fish or meat.

(Originally blogged December 2, 2009)

ballaiba/balleba, eel grass, tape grass, ribbon grass (Vallisneria) salad

2010-12-08T18:55:00.002+08:00

There are some websites on and about the Ilokano (people) that feature the supposed traits and characteristics of a true, genuine Ilokano, ala-"You're a Filipino if....," and one goes that "maysaka a pudno nga Ilokano no nakasida wenno nakaramankan (wenno ammom ti maipapan) iti ballaiba." You're a truly G.I. (genuine Ilokano) if you know ballaiba, especially if you've eaten it.

But what the heck is this ballaiba (also balleba, ballayba)? First, I'll show you here a photo of a ballaiba salad, courtesy of a friend, Ms. Leilanie, to prove, even if it's only in a photograph, that it's indeed edible and being prepared best as a salad:

Let me then quote Dr. Abercio V. Rotor, a famous Ilokano professor and scientist and writer, on what's a ballaiba: "Balleba (Vallisneria) is an aquatic plant growing in clear streams, ponds and lakes, whose leaves appear like ribbon, hence it is also called ribbon grass. The leaves are gathered and served fresh with tomato, onion and salt."

Here are some photos of the ballaiba. It is commonly propagated and used as an aquarium plant. Its Wikipedia entry simply says it's an aquarium plant, period, and not mentioned (even in numerous websites that feature it) that it's also edible and prepared as food or viand. I want to believe that probably, only we Ilokanos are the ones eating it! Although I'm not that sure if it's also eaten by other Filipinos.


(Photo from http://www.moje-akvarium.net/en-plants-vallisneria-gigantea.php. You can see a lot of ballaiba photos by googling it.)

I surely and sorely miss ballaiba. It's been decades that I didn't see or have eaten this Ilokano delicacy. I think it's becoming rare (one reported cause of its becoming extinct in ponds and rivers is that ballaiba was a favorite snack by the voracious golden kuhol). As a boy in a farming village or barrio in Nueva Vizcaya, I am used to eat ballaiba because there are ponds and lagoons (called "kulos") in our place then where ballaiba grows abundantly. In hot summer days, when we children go and swim in these ponds, we also gather snails, wild balangeg, young lotus stalks, and ballaiba so we could have some food to bring home to appease the anger of our parents who discourage us to frequent the ponds for fear that we might got drowned, the sirena (mermaid) living there might pull us into the deep because we are gathering her hair. Yes, ballaiba is also called "buok ti sirena" (mermaid's hair). And yes, it's also called "I shall return" by some because of the fact that it's a kind of WYSIWIG--what you see is what you get--what you ingest is what you "undigest" is what you get! Get it?

Preparing ballaiba salad is simple. It's a kinilaw, in fact, because you don't have to cook it. Clean the tender leaves throughly in tap water. Then cut it into about a half-inch pieces. Then lapayen iti asin or squeeze it with rock salt to get rid of some of its galis or slipperiness. Rinse well. Then flavor it with a squeeze of calamansi and salt (and some MSG, if you like). Garnish it with tomato and onion slices. You can use bugguong instead of salt, if you prefer. Just add a little because the ballaiba would then be salty as it was first squeezed with salt.

more squash dinengdeng

2010-12-06T10:02:00.001+08:00

Here are some more dinengdeng a karabasa (squash/calabash) from past cooking escapades. I am re-posting these photographs from my old blog and certain web forums (that explains the watermarks). I want you to take note of the "buto-buto" (that's the stamen, that resembles something, hence, the obvious name) in the flowers which I don't take out in the muri process (read my previous post on dinengdeng a karabasa). I took these shots with the seemingly ignored squash flower buto in prominence.

Squash flowers, stalks, shoots, fruit with utong pods.

And this one squash concoction show with confidence the versatility of this incredible veggie: that you can make a wholesome dinengdeng by combining one and/or all of its flower, tops, leaves, tendrils, stalks--young and tender ones, of course--and fruit, into one complete sumptuous Ilokano delicacy.

Squash flowers, stalks, shoots, and fruit with grilled bangus (milkfish).

And here's my favorite squash dish (photograph below), the pure and simple squash flower solo. No stalks/shoots/leaves, no fruit, nothing but the most edible of them all: the flower, just the flower picked fresh in the morning, sweating yet in cool dew droplets, no hot and harsh sunlight has glimpsed on it, not a bee or a butterfly has yet betrayed its sweetness, it's yours alone to pick and to cook with its pollen and nectar intact, and wallowing in its own honeyed juice, it's yours alone to devour and relish with pleasing gusto.

(Originally blogged May 21, 2008)

bugguong, made in oman

2010-12-05T05:53:00.000+08:00

(This was written and blogged when I was in the Sultanate of Oman, of which during my brief stay, I craved for bugguong (fermented fish/fish paste) like no other. In that particular place, Sohar City, where we used to stay, no bugguong was in sight. At that particular time. But nowadays, I was duly informed that a newly built big supermarket/mall has rows of bottled bugguong paste in its "Asian" section, to the relief of the many homesick Ilokanos in the area.)

Been problematic a week after arriving here in Oman. Know what, I've been craving for bugguong more than a preggy woman craves for twin bananas or young coconuts or whitey jicamas and out-of-season santol and lomboy, anything edible, "mouthable," "stomachable," palatable with even a hint of bugguong in it. I can't stand it any more, any longer, any sooner, I want my dinengdeng and my pinakbet complete and compleat, I want my bugguong, I want my precious, precious, I badly want a bugguong-laced and bugguong-graced veggie, I want my sliced fresh tomatoes and young onions swimming in so-oh delicately goldenbrownish oh-so luscious bugguong sauce for my treasured dips!

We tried scouring the hypermarkets and stores, but not a sign of the elusive bugguong. Not even those fabled Vietnamese nước mắm or fermented fish sauce or paste. What's readily available are those patis, fish sauce, from the Philippines and some imported from Thailand. And of course those bottled pseudo-bugguongs called bagoong alamang or shrimp paste which are not even the freshest you can get but already sauteed and putrefying in additives.

And you'll wonder why don't some enterprising Pinoys try to legally export quantities of export-quality halal bugguong (monamon or tirong) in the Middle East? So that you'll not content yourself "smuggling" in a plane a pity jarful of it wrapped and sealed like a stinking mummy and surreptitiously concealed in your luggage. I've read somewhere in a certain magazine before that somebody has invented a way to solidify bugguong into cooking cubes ala-Knorr and Maggi broth cubes. I wish this method is popularized and commercialized so you can freely fill in a bagful of bugguong cubes in your hand carry suitcase and cradle it in your lap as if it's your precious child, without fear that its heavenly fragrance may irritate some infidel nostrils, or may threaten to emit a smell as sinister as a malodorous biological weapon of mass destruction.

But enough of those silly protestations. Be sensible. Those cravings are just a normal condiment of the exilic life, the OFW life. Of missing something, terribly missing something treasured and precious to the palate. And to your heart. But let alone missing terribly someone, some ones, loved ones. Bear with your foolish gastronomic cravings and try and learn to live without a goddamn foul-smelling bugguong!

But why not remedy this silly need? Fortunately, Sohar, the city where my wife is residing, is a coastal area (in fact, almost all Oman cities and towns lie along the coast) facing the Gulf of Oman (Iran is just almost a stone's throw away in the other side of the sea). And there are some fishing communities here, with lots of Omanis fishing for a living. Mind you, even a "small time" Omani fisherman is a "big time" compared with say, most Pinoy fishers. Their fishing gears and vessels are too modern or "high tech" compared to what our ordinary fishermen are using. Omani fishing boats are those stylish big and speedy ones with expensive outboard motors similar to vessels used by wealthy sportsmen who gamefish for sheer fun. There are fish ports in Sohar where you can buy the freshest catch for a pittance (although, prized fish like yellowfin tuna and king fish are still priced, expensive, costing an Omani rial or two a kilogram). There are bountiful catch of anchovy, mackerel, sardine, herring, ponyfish, scad fish, squid, cuttle fish and even baby sharks and other smaller fish so fresh some are still wiggling and wriggling. Yes, monamon, bilis, sapsap and other small fishes which are fodders for the kumikilaw or mangngilaw monster in you. And yes, the bugguong gourmand in you, why not? Eureka! With lots of monamons and bilis and abundant rock salt around, you can make your own D.I.Y. (do-it-yourself) bugguong!

So, there. We bought some kilos of the freshest bilis or herring (monamons were not available that one Thursday day when we went out "fishing") and we stuffed some in a plastic garapon, jar, with ample amount of rock salt, with hopes that in a week or two, we can satisfy our earthly urges with a promising bugguong. A gracious bugguong no matter what the outcome will be it would still be the same luxurious bugguong.

And look, the blessed fermenting fish in its lovely concoction of pure and simple bugguong juice, the sacred juice of Ilokanistic life and lives, the divine liquid of ambrosial proportions! What a blessing, what a bliss, indeed!

(Originally blogged May 15, 2008)

bitter is better: papait salad appetizer

2010-12-01T08:35:00.000+08:00

The papait (mollugo oppositifolia) is popular among bitter-loving Ilokanos who has the distinct and rather unique taste preference for something bitter--the more bitter, the better, which translates to the Ilokano's fondness for the "native" paria (the "Ilocos" variety: round [or oblongish] and smallish) or for the more exotic wild bittermelons or balang a paria or paria ti bakir/bantay. And yes, to our love of the authentic Ilokano goat/cow/carabao pinapaitan, or kappukan and imbaliktad, flavored with the animal intestinal bile called "pespes" (literally squeezed undigested weed in the beast's stomach; also "papait" in some places). Bitterness defines authentic Ilokano meat dishes as well as vegetable preparation, notably pinakbet with the Ilocos paria. Or dinengdeng with paria tops. Or freshly picked paria fruit simply roasted over hot embers, sliced thin and tossed in bugguong and kamatis slices and young lasona. Or even the kilawen a paria, raw and deliciously bitter.

And comes the even bitter papait that stands to its name of its bittery appeal and simpleness. Papait is great with pinablad (boiled ) balatong or other beans. And papait is even greater as it is, as a salad, simply blanched, and garnished with bugguong and kamatis.

I prepared my papait almost expressly (quickie). I blanched it in boiling water for a minute or less. You should never overcook it. One way of blanching leafy greens is to wash and soak and partially rinse the leaves in tap water then put it in an empty kaserola or pan over high fire. Let just the water that clinged to the leaves blanch the whole thing. Then after a few seconds, put off fire/flame and immediately transfer the blanched leaves in a bowl and toss it with your garnishes. This is also perfect for camote tops to avoid the darkening of the leaves/stems.

And here's my simple papait salad with bugguong and tomato slices:

This is heavenly, sweetishly bitter, so delicious, so appetizing with steaming rice, especially if you partner it with grilled or fried fish or meat:

(Originally blogged June 5, 2009)

langka/jackfruit and pallang/winged bean dinengdeng

2010-11-30T01:01:00.002+08:00

Langka (or anangka; jackfruit) is one of my favorite fruits, not just when it's ripe but most especially when the fruit is yet young and tender which is usually used/prepared as a "vegetable." Young jackfruit as a vegetable is not exclusively Ilokano as it is prepared and cooked in a variety of ways in the Philippines. Bicolanos love to cook it in coconut milk and chilis just like Bicol Express. In the Visayas, it is boiled with pork hocks or knuckles and kardis (kadios, pigeon pea). And it's great with sinigang be it meat (pork, beef) or fish. Ilokanos add it in their pinablad (boiled balatong, utong, pusi and other dried beans). It's also simply sautéed in oil with pork or chicken. And of course, as a dinengdeng with (or without) other veggies. I also love boiled langka as a salad, with KBL (kamatis-bugguong-lasona). I particularly prefer a solo dinengdeng a langka, stewed dry in bugguong and with kamatis (tamatis, tomato). I also stew it with young salamagi (tamarind) fruit whenever available.

One vegetable I love to pair with langka is pallang (winged bean). They'll be a great combination for a dinengdeng especially when lightly soured with kamatis or salamagi. Pallang as a solo dinengdeng soured with salamagi is also a favorite.

A "native" pallang.

Another variety (hybrid) of pallang called "puraw a pallang" ("white pallang")

And here's my dinengdeng a langka ken pallang. I cooked it somewhat dry with just a little but very tasty and delicious broth. The immature seeds of langka is sweet (the mature seed of the ripe fruit, meanwhile, is also edible and makes a great merienda when boiled, it tastes nutty like peanut):

Great with steamed rice suffused with a little cooking/palm oil!

yet another buridibod, with marunggay pods, shucked clam meat and grilled malaga

2010-11-27T22:56:00.000+08:00

I'm so in love with buridibud (buribod, baradibud; vegetables and root crop stew) that I always cook/consume this authentic Ilokano dish--as often as when I came upon any available ingredients in my regular forays in the veggie/wet local markets. Especially when it's alukon season, I always make a buridibod with alukon flowerettes and other greens like marunggay leaves and pechay (especially the small murumor ones, pechay sowed and grown like seedlings; or petchay with flowers).

And it's also perfect with young/immature marunggay pod or fruit (more popularly known as "drumstick" elsewhere outside the Philippines, especially in India).

I was a bit lucky that market day because aside from the abundance of marunggay pods and camotes, I also chanced upon heaps of shucked and dried small freshwater clam meat; and in the fish section, a bountiful supply of one of the fish I love--malaga (rabbitfish; rare and pricey in this parts).

The dried clam meat is from the tukmem (or bennek, or dukkiang). It's called "narnar" in Cagayan (also called "gasagas" or "ginasagas" owing to the process of how it was shucked from its shell, using a bigao-like bamboo strainer similar to "karadikad"). It's usually added to dinengdeng, or made into a delicious ukoy (fritter or patty).

"Narnar"

A close-up look at the "narnar"

Malaga fish to be grilled

These would be great for my buridibod! The malaga will be grilled a put atop a narnar-suffused buridibud!

Camote and marunggay pod (fruit)

This is how I "muri" or prepare the marunggay pods.

The grilled malaga

As with my other versions of buridibod, I boil bugguong first, and then put in the camote, and the marunggay pods after the camote is slightly cooked. (You can lightly mash some of the tender camote cubes if you want a more pulpy and sweeter broth.) The pods should not be overcooked. Next, I put in the the "narnar," and a few minutes before serving I put atop the grilled malaga. (You can put the fish earlier as in other sagpaw, but malaga is very delicate in that its flesh will become "maburbor" (disintegrated) if it's cooked for quite a longer time.)

And here's it, steaming right from the pot, ready to be served hot.

Here's the final product:

A closer look to savor its sumptous beauty:

marunggay salad express

2010-11-26T14:57:00.001+08:00

The leaves of the marunggay (moringa oleifera) or marunggi, as Ilokanos fondly call it, can be prepared in a variety of ways. Foremost, it is a basic, even vital, ingredient in the inabraw or dinengdeng potpourri of veggie leafy greens, shoots and tops and pods and fruits.

Or, as a solo marunggi broth perfect for a nutritious igup or labay.

I love it also as a leafy topping in my instant pancit mami.

It is also inevitable as a leafy mix in sauteed pinablad (boiled) a balatong (mung beans) and other dried beans/legumes or any other pusi like kardis, patani or parda. It's also a preferred garnishing in tinola a manok if sili or paria leaves are scarce.

And of course, as a salad or kinilnat as simple as itself, slightly boiled or blanched and dipped in bugguong with some tomato slices or a perres (squeeze) of calamansi. Or dressed, drenched with bugguong.

I love marunggi salad and I want it fast, quick, express that my fancy way of blanching it is that I just dip it whole, stalks with leaves intact, in a boiling water for a minute or two, season it, garnish it, and then enjoy it, as it is, again, with the stalks serving as a convenient "stick" to to hold it to your eager mouth, and consume the sumptous leaves right away with your steamed rice.

Ahh, the simplicity, the versatility and the Ilocano frugality of it all... What a gastronomic bliss!

(Originally blogged June 30, 2009)