Adobong Kangkong (Philippine Water Spinach Adobo)

Simple Filipino Meal, Dish #3

[ts]
I know, I know, I know. Adobo again? I guess we can't help it!

Another classic adobo dish, besides chicken and pork, is adobo kangkong. I must say, I really love adobo kangkong. Actually, it's one of our mother's favorites too. She's on an adobo kangkong spree: we've had adobo kangkong about four times in 2 weeks now! It's that good.

Kangkong is water spinach. In the Philippines, we used to joke that kangkong just grew in the "canal" -- ie, in the sewer! The stalks are hollow (so cool) and the leaves are long and slender.





In classic adobo manner (seen here and here), in the pan goes garlic, then everything else: kangkong, soy sauce, vinegar, and black peppercorns. Cook until the kangkong is the desired doneness.



There it is!

Sometimes I think my favorite part are the leaves. But then, other times I think I like the stalks best. I'm so confused. I guess I just love kangkong unconditionally.



(You may have noticed that JS is conspicuously silent. She says she doesn't like adobo kangkong! She's crazy.)


Simple Filipino Meal

Dish #1: Chicken Tinola
Dish #2: Oyster Torta
Dish #3: Adobo Kangkong
Dish #4: Baked Tahong




eatingclub vancouver adobo posts:
Chicken Adobo
Pork Belly, Two Ways
Adobo Kangkong (Adobo Water Spinach)
Adobo Mushroom Tart
"Chinese Adobo" Clams and Oysters
Chicken Adobo in Coconut Milk (Adobo sa Gata)
Coconut Adobo Halibut Tails (Adobo sa Gata)
Roast Chicken Adobo
Brown-braised Pig's Feet
Adobong Baka (Philippine Beef Adobo)

eatingclub vancouver Filipino food
Bibingka
Mama's Ampalaya (Bitter Melon)
Faux Kamote-Que
Philippine-Style Chicken "BBQ"
Fried Hasa Hasa (Mackerel)
"Savory" Chicken Wings
Sinamak (Chile-infused Vinegar)
Pan-roasted Halibut w/ Fava Beans, Potato-Onion Cakes & Bagoong Butter Sauce
Bulalo & Bangus: an even simpler Filipino meal
Baked Tahong (Mussels)
Adobo Kangkong (Adobo Water Spinach)
Oyster Torta (Oyster Omelette)
Chicken Tinola (Chicken Soup w/ Green Papaya & Pepper Leaves)
(Chinese) Roast Pork Belly / Lechon
Tilapia wrapped in Banana Leaves
Pork Belly, Two Ways
Chicken Adobo
Embutido
Salabat (Ginger Tea)
Lechon Manok (Philippine Roast Chicken) & Lechon Sauce
"Chinese Adobo" Clams and Oysters
Bistek (Citrus Beef with Caramelized Onions)
Beef Kaldereta (Beef Stew with Bell Peppers)
Atsara (Green Papaya Pickle)
Sardinas na Bangus (Milkfish in the style of Sardines) and Pressure Cooker Fear

Oyster Torta (Oyster Omelette)

Simple Filipino Meal, Dish #2



[ts]
While the Chicken Tinola was cooking, we had to think of another dish for our meal.

Since we had this whole jar of oysters (from our Oyster Po' boy), we had to use it up! And what could be simpler than eggs?

Our "normal" tortas -- what we think of when someone says "torta" -- have ground pork, green onions, soy sauce and sesame oil.

These "oyster torta" are actually like those (Chinese) oyster omelettes they serve with congee. I guess this dish is "multicultural." {wink}

Here are those oysters again.

I chopped them into not-too-small pieces with our recently-purchased chef's knife from Superstore. A President's Choice knife. Not bad at all.

I also chopped up some green onions.



Then it was just a matter of beating some eggs and adding the oysters and green onions. Seasoning too, of course.

Onto the fry pan!

We've realized that we don't like the smell of canola oil when it's frying. Stinks up the house. So, JS tried buying this rice bran oil. It smells better, I think.

It's torta batch-cookery from here on.

We don't usually have gadget-y gadgets like this, but this mold was bought by my brother, who, for some reason, kept fantasizing about perfectly round fried eggs, like on those Egg McMuffins.



It was too much trouble for me. I just used it for our "presentation" tortas. =D

See, aren't they pretty?





Simple Filipino Meal


Dish #1: Chicken Tinola
Dish #2: Oyster Torta
Dish #3: Adobo Kangkong
Dish #4: Baked Tahong



eatingclub vancouver Torta (Omelette)
Golden Egg Torta
Oyster Torta
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

Some eggy eatingclub dishes
Tarragon-Carrot Deviled Eggs
Golden Egg Torta
Hunanese Stir-fried Eggs with Green Peppers
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Piedmont Marinated Eggs
Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes
Stir-fried Egg and Tomato
Oyster Torta
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Curried (Easter) Egg Salad
Taiwanese Stewed Eggs (滷蛋) with Stewed Minced Pork (魯肉 or 肉燥)
Longsilog (Longganisa + Sinangag + Itlog)
Torta (Mexican Sandwich)
Mr. Zheng's Soupy Tomatoes and Eggs with Tofu
Nasi Lemak (Malaysian Coconut Rice Meal with Sambal)
Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg with Pork
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

More eatingclub vancouver Filipino food

Chicken Tinola (Chicken Soup with Green Papaya and Pepper Leaves)

Simple Filipino Meal, Dish #1

[js]
Chicken tinola is one of my all-time favourite dishes. It is one of the dishes that I remember asking our Yaya to make me every once so often during childhood.



It is an extremely simple dish to make. In true minimalist fashion, there are only five ingredients I need to make chicken tinola: chicken, green papaya, chili pepper leaves, ginger, and fish sauce.

Sometimes we can even get away with having no green papaya. The ingredient that makes chicken tinola a chicken tinola is the chili pepper leaves (dahon ng sili).




The picture below has garlic together with the ginger. I usually like just ginger, lots and lots of ginger. I can dispense with the garlic.

Sauté the ginger pieces in a little bit of oil until fragrant. Put the chicken pieces in and sauté. Browning the chicken pieces adds a lot of flavour, but can be skipped if pressed for time or lacking industry.



Here, we just cut up a whole chicken into smaller parts.

I must say that my favourite has to be chicken tinola made with chicken wings though. I find myself not caring much for the meat and prefer picking out the meat from between the bones of the wing. It's that part that makes the whole chicken tinola experience for me. Chicken wing tinola makes for a much more flavourful result, probably because of the fat content in chicken wings.

Add the green papaya pieces, add water, and then season the broth with a little bit of fish sauce and the whole dish is one step close to being done.



Add the chili pepper leaves at the end.



The chili pepper leaves have that distinct greengrassyherby aroma that is the smell of tinola. I'm sure some people would say substitute with spinach or water spinach but it's really not the same.

Without the chili pepper leaves, it's not chicken tinola, merely another chicken soup.



I made a little condiment for the chicken tinola, following this tip from Connie at pinoycook.


left: boiled chicken livers; right: patis (fish sauce), Rufina is a Philippine brand

I boiled chicken livers in a separate pot in some tinola broth until done. Then I took the pieces and mashed it with patis (fish sauce).



Quite tasty and perfect not only with the tinola, but on its own with rice.

Here's the money shot.




Simple Filipino Meal

Dish #1: Chicken Tinola
Dish #2: Oyster Torta
Dish #3: Adobo Kangkong
Dish #4: Baked Tahong


[eatingclub] vancouver Filipino food
Bibingka
Mama's Ampalaya (Bitter Melon)
Faux Kamote-Que
Philippine-Style Chicken "BBQ"
Fried Hasa Hasa (Mackerel)
"Savory" Chicken Wings
Sinamak (Chile-infused Vinegar)
Pan-roasted Halibut w/ Fava Beans, Potato-Onion Cakes & Bagoong Butter Sauce
Bulalo & Bangus: an even simpler Filipino meal
Baked Tahong (Mussels)
Adobo Kangkong (Adobo Water Spinach)
Oyster Torta (Oyster Omelette)
Chicken Tinola (Chicken Soup w/ Green Papaya & Pepper Leaves)
(Chinese) Roast Pork Belly / Lechon
Tilapia wrapped in Banana Leaves
Pork Belly, Two Ways
Chicken Adobo
Embutido
Salabat (Ginger Tea)
Lechon Manok (Philippine Roast Chicken) & Lechon Sauce
"Chinese Adobo" Clams and Oysters
Bistek (Citrus Beef with Caramelized Onions)
Beef Kaldereta (Beef Stew with Bell Peppers)
Atsara (Green Papaya Pickle)
Sardinas na Bangus (Milkfish in the style of Sardines) and Pressure Cooker Fear

Suvai Restaurant

2279 West 41st Vancouver, Vancouver
Tel: 604-261-4900

(May 4, 2008)
Two reviewers: ts and js

[js]
We stopped by at Suvai because we wanted lunch nearby.



[ts]
I was looking at the menus posted outside and saw they had a Spring Lunch 2008 menu, so that clinched the deal.

But alas!

Only the brunch menu was available! I don't really like "brunch" all that much... nor "breakfast" in restaurants, for that matter. I chose more "lunch" type items.

[ts]
I ordered a soup because it was a pumpkin (or squash) and PEAR soup. The soup was very nice, but I didn't really taste the pear. Oh well.

Next was a mushroom, leek, squash strudel. I forget the sauces on the plate. Tasty.

Overall, the execution was good and the dish worked.




left: mushroom, leek & squash strudel, detail; right: smoked herring



[js]
I had the smoked herring and scrambled eggs. It was a well-executed dish. I quite enjoyed the dish, although I don't think it's a dish I'll ever order again. Strange, eh? It's probably just a dish that's not for me.

[ts]
A free crème brulée!



[ts]
Supposedly there was a mix-up with my order; that is, the wrong item was entered so I had to wait a bit for my strudel. Hence, the complimentary dessert.

This was really good. And look at that nice crackly sugar top!

[js]
The creme brulee was very good. I don't usually crave creme brulee, but this one made me happy I had one. This one was one of the better versions I've had in a while.

[ts]
This is good decent fare. We'll try it again for "real" lunch or dinner.

[js]
Suvai is a good restaurant, one that I wouldn't be averse to visiting on a regular basis. It's chef-owner-operated, and the dishes that we ordered shows that the chef cares about the food and works hard on giving the diner good value for the money. It's honest, proper food, executed well.

I hope the restaurant stays for a long time and the neighbourhood supports the chef. Sometimes, it frustrates me to see people flocking to chain restaurants with crappy food and not valuing real, honest-to-goodness, proper food, lovingly slaved over by people who actually care about giving the diner good food instead of just making money. Oh well, that's another rant for another day.

[ts]
Finally, there are more and more choices of restaurants near where we live! Of course, that still won't stop our general indecision and seemingly great difficulty when deciding where to eat.

Lemon Bars

[ts]
Since CSC (our guest baking blogger) is enamored with anything America's Test Kitchen (ATK),she was more than willing to try out new recipes. JS requested these lemon bars because we can't seem to get ourselves to make a lemon tart.

Here's the recipe in a nutshell.

Step 1: Preheat oven and prepare pan.
Step 2 & 3: Make the crust and bake.
Step 4 : Make curd. Whisk eggs/egg yolks with sugar, lemon juice & zest and butter.
Step 5: Strain curd, stir in cream. Pour onto warm crust and bake.

The recipe makes a note that "[it] is important to pour the warm filling over a warm crust when making these intensely flavored bars. This ensures that the filling cooks through evenly."

[csc]
The first time I made these bars, I didn’t really read through the procedure. I figured I could just do them as I read along (which worked fine for the carrot cake, cupcakes and banana breads that I’ve done previously).

So, it was MAD PANIC when I got to Step 4!

I didn’t realize I had to zest and juice 4 lemons while the crust was baking, and do a whole bunch of stuff. Hard to do when your kids are around wanting to “try” and zest and juice and whisk. Good thing I found all the bowls I need and the strainers when I needed them.

The second time I made this, I made sure I had the juice and zest all ready, and the kids were playing outside, so the second time was no-more-panic-Step 4.


left: making the curd; right: lemon bars post-baking

[csc]
JS liked the lemon bars chilled/refrigerated. ATK does not mention anything about refrigerating them, so I don’t know at what temperature the “real, kitchen-tested” lemon bars are supposed to be served.

[ts]
The first batch of lemon bars weren't refrigerated. For the second batch, I insisted that they be refrigerated. That way, the curd would set nicely and be easier to cut.

[js]
I have a weakness for lemon bars. In fact, I have forbidden CSC, as of this writing, to stop making these lemon bars because I end up devouring all of them squares.

The first time CSC made them, I thought the curd on top didn't set right. It was too soft and it became mushy sitting out at room temperature. The too-soft curd did not stop me from eating almost all of the bars though. The crust was all right.

The second time CSC made them, the curd set up beautifully and had proper, proper form. The crust was a little bit too hard, not as flaky as the first time she made them. Again, this didn't stop me from eating all of the lemon bar squares.

When we were down to the last square, and I was savouring it after dinner, my nephew came up to me and asked if he could have the lemon bar. Normally, I would say yes, but this was. The. Last. Lemon bar.

I just smiled at him after his first request. Then he repeated it again and asked if he could have the last lemon bar.

I said, "It's the last lemon bar though."

He kept at it, hovering around me, and was trying to grab at my lemon bar, using his fingers to get at the lemon curd!

I told my persistent nephew, "No, you can't have it, especially if you're just going to eat the top part. Because, what am I going to do with just the bottom?"

I cut a piece of the. last. lemon. bar. and gave it to him.

I told him, "You try this. You have to eat it with the crust."

While he chewed, I told him, "See, it's so much better when you eat them both at the same time. There's the flaky crust and the soft lemon part together. It's more delicious that way."

I ended up giving him about half of the. last. lemon. bar. while I gave my niece about a quarter.


The. Last. Lemon. Bar.

-------
CSC and CSC-collaborated blog posts:
Carrot Cake
Lemon Bars
Cheesecake-Marbled Brownies
Mario's Pine Nut and Ricotta Tart
Pancakes!
Shanghai Potstickers, Faux Siu Mai and "Huo Tyeh" (aka CSC's Chinese Dumplings)
Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Quick and Rice Chocolate Frosting

Grilled(!) Spot Prawn Feast (with chicken and trout)

[js]
'Tis the season for spot prawns!



[js]
We got some spot prawns for the weekend and set about doing them on the grill. We usually steam prawns, but I figure we'd give the grill a try.

Please bear with the pictures. They are quite awful. I really have no photography skills and I'm too lazy to bother to learn.

4:30 on a Sunday and we decided to invite our cousins over to Sunday dinner. We had a chicken waiting in the fridge, some spot prawns, and two fillets of steelhead trout. I figure we'd do something really simple, like roast the chicken, grill the prawns, and grill the trout.

Since it was a warm day, I didn't want to heat up the house by turning the stove or the oven on. I thought I could do everything on the grill, provided I time everything right.

The chicken was simply seasoned with salt and pepper, squirted with lemon juice, and stuffed with some thyme and oregano from the garden. I thought better of putting the chicken on the grill directly, so I used a disposable roasting pan and tried my best to cram everything inside our small grill.



At first, I put the prawns directly on the grill. After putting about half of them on the grill, I started to question the wisdom of it.

What would happen if there was a flare-up?

I would have to pull those prawns out one by one. That didn't seem wise to me so I started putting the prawns in disposable roasting pans, with a little bit of olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper.



Those very dark balls were radicchio. I just put them on the grill as well whole. I figured I was going to remove the outer leaves anyways.

After they've cooked through, I turned down the flames and put them one by one on the grill so they'll just have a little bit of the char. Because, you know, those charred shells just smell so awesome and they are delicious with the sweet flesh of the prawns. Next time, I'll probably get one of those grill baskets and see how well they work.

I also want to get a bigger grill, by the way, because this one has become too small for our needs. There was no time to put the trout on the grill so I just quickly roasted them in the oven with dill, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.

The trout looks a little bit pale -- and pardon that I did not put it on a nice presentation platter, because that's more plates to wash -- but I must say it was perfectly cooked. It was moist and juicy. I liked the acidity of the lemons with the fish.



The chicken was just a smidgen overcooked (about 5 minutes past the optimal cook-time) but even the breast sections were still juicy. In our house, it's common practice to get the chicken a tad overcooked, since other family members are squeamish about seeing any red near the bones. I had a small portion of breast and the flavours were spot-on. I really love roast chicken and simply done like this one is always my favourite. The chicken doesn't look too pretty, but I favour substance over style anytime.

For the grilled prawns, I loved them!

I love the smell, I love the flavours. In fact, grilling the prawns is now my favourite way to have them. There's just something about the flame that accentuates the sweetness of the prawns. The flavours just seem more multi-dimensional to me, compared with simply steaming the prawns. Several of our family members have also professed to liking the prawns better grilled instead of steamed, so next time we have a spot prawn feast, we'll be cooking them up both ways.

I'll be looking for more spot prawn goodness in the coming weeks. The season is almost over so better get the prawns while they're still here.

Spot Prawn Feast (and a couple of lobsters)

[js]
With all interest in eating locally the past couple of years, spot prawns have been pushed into the limelight.

The Chefs' Table Society features the creature, hosting the first ever Spot Prawn Festival last year. They have organized another one this year and the opening salvo was set for a Saturday, the 3rd of May.

We didn't go to Granville Island that Saturday to hobnob with local celebrity chefs. (We didn't go last year either.) It would probably have been very crowded and parking -- our arch-nemesis-es-es -- would have been horrendous. Never the mind: we don't really need a festival to get us excited about spot prawns. We'll get them prawns somehow, some way.

[ts]
I must say, I did something way KEWL-er anyway! But that will reveal itself in time.

[js]
I've been eagerly anticipating the arrival of the spot prawns. There is something to be said for eating seasonally. Seems like there's greater joy in the anticipation and delayed gratification. The ephemerality is also a part of the pleasure. Last year, when it was spot prawn season, we gorged on the prawns until we could gorge no more. The two-month gorging was enough to last us through the year.

We wound up at our local Chinese supermarket the next day on the lookout for spot prawns. When I got there at around 10am, there were five empty tanks.

I peered at these empty tanks. In one tank, there were 3 little puny prawns. In another, there were 4 puny prawns. I was trying very hard to squelch panic at the thought of not having spot prawns. I walked around the store, thinking to myself, trying to get my bearings.

What's going on?
Don't tell me they already sold out of the prawns for today.
But it's early still.
Unless they don't have the prawns.
That's impossible. How can they not have them?
This is where I always buy them.
They must have sold out already. I'm too late.
I should have come yesterday.
It's early still. They can't have sold out already.
All they have are 7 puny prawns.
What am I going to do with that 7?
I might as well not buy any.
Come on, where are the prawns?!?!?!!

Finally, after deciding there's no point spinning my wheels, I asked the people in the seafood department if they are going to have any more prawns coming in that day. My Chinese is paltry so there was a lot of gesturing at the empty tanks.

I was first told more prawns were coming in that afternoon. I started to walk away, rescheduling my day in my head to come back that afternoon, but then there was no time mentioned, so I thought I better make sure what time. I asked the person again and he said about 11 or 12.

Armed with that piece of information, I decided to walk around the supermarket some more and get all of the other items I needed. I figured I'd be back at noon. As I was walking around, the person I asked at the seafood department waved me over.

"Hey, the prawns will be here soon. Maybe 10:30."
"Okay, thanks. I'll just wait for them then." (It was around 10 in the morning.)

After a couple of minutes, he waved again.

"They're here. They're just unloading."
"Okay, thanks!"

Good thing we waited.

After a couple of minutes, they proceeded to dump all of the prawns in the live tanks. Wow, they're all wriggling and a sea -- or a tank -- of beautiful orange.

I asked for seven pounds of the prawns from the counter person and off our merry way we went to enjoy ourselves some spot prawn goodness later that night.

Oh, the lobsters are an afterthought. We just got lobsters because we thought some people might enjoy the lobsters more. But for me, it's all about the prawns.

[ts]
This may be the easiest feast yet.

Our weapon of mass destruction, the massive steamer.


Since we had 7 pounds of prawns, we had to steam them in batches. Good thing the steamer had two levels. We just sprinkled them with a little bit of shiaoxing wine. We also decided to round out this seafood feast by steaming some bok choy.



We couldn't wait for all that batch-cookery to finish, so the lobsters had to forgo the steam and went straight into water. They also had a little bit of shiaoxing wine and ginger in their bath.



Here they are in all their glory.



Of course, I chopped them up and hacked their heads open! Bwahahaha...
Tomalley, anyone?



How to get hot steaming plates and dishes out of the steamer? Why, like this, of course!



I made some soy sauce dipping sauces: one with garlic, chile pepper and cilantro, the other with garlic, chile pepper, green onions and ginger.



There is nothing like steamed prawns. (We still think of these as "shrimp". When we were growing up, prawns were huge. Everything else is shrimp.)

This is almost always how we enjoy shrimp when they're in season. Steamed, they are plump and juicy and very sweet. They don't need anything else!

If you feel so inclined to dip them in sauces, just dunk them in for 30 milliseconds. Please, please, please, please don't overpower their shimp-y goodness.