#50: Encounter with Evil Labong

Dinner last night was a failure because of the bamboo shoots I bought from SaveMore. I asked the attendant if it was fresh and if the yellowish color is not food coloring. Too lazy to walk to the nearby wet market, I just took his word for it.

Haist! I soaked it in water, drained it, soaked it again, drained it again, squeezed it with a handful of salt, then rinsed again then boiled it in salted water. I probably drained whatever nutrients are left in that sorry bag of bamboo shoots. I cooked it the same day I bought it. Made it into what I believe is a pretty good adobo. But what's that? Has some goat peed in our kitchen? 

Apparently, the torture I gave the bamboo shoots wasn't enough to make it smell decent. I sincerely thought it was tasty despite the pungent smell. So I served my Adobong Labong to my dubious family, which quickly became a disapponted (and disgusted) bunch. It just smelled nasty for them.

So lesson learned: NEVER BUY BAMBOO SHOOTS (or any fresh item for the matter) THAT ARE NOT FRESH.  It's evil. Also, don't buy produce from SaveMore. I have had enough.

A Wedding Message

"Really? You want me to write that?"

Yes, my friend asked me to write a wedding speech for her mother-in-law who is going to speak at the wedding of his son. She said she thought of me because I wrote well.

My dear, being able to write well does not mean I can write a wedding advice that should sound like it came from a marriage veteran. I have only been married for 6 years after all. Well, she insisted. So I prayed, breathed in and mustered all the bits of wisdom that I collected from my mentors, friends and my own experience. I tried my best to make it sound motherly. Read more to see what I actually came up with.

To the Corporate Planet and Back

Hello my food-hugging friends! I apologize for being invisible lately. You see I just went a bit hormonal (haha!) and I kinda got busy with a recent attempt to visit the corporate planet. Read about it here. :-) 


http://anneandlifeingeneral.blogspot.com/2011/08/to-corporate-planet-and-back.html

#32: My Inconvenient Sinigang

The tamarind has a nice profile pic
here in the tropicalfruitnursery. :-)

I was shopping in a supermarket a few days ago when a lady came up to me asking me to try this new and improved tamarind soup mix. It's supposed to be 2-in1 because it has the tamarind powder and "umami" powder that gives this more delicious taste.

#26: My Garlic, My Hero

Thanks to livetoeat-megha.blogspot.com for the picture!

Taking off from the sharp garlic from our pesto recipe, let me share this with you:

"Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” Ezekiel 47:12

#12: Simple Pinakbet (yackety yack part)

Pinakbet was something frowned upon by us three Nicomedes siblings. During our youth, we were carnivores. But learning how to love vegetables come with the wisdom of age. :-D This used to be a non-favorite because one, I was too young to want to eat veggies, and two, too foolish to realize that it is one of the tastiest pinoy vegetable dish ever. You just have to learn the trick to cook it right.

#11: Food Finesse

One of the things that makes my face twitch when in parties or buffets is when people dump 5 different kinds of food on their plate. Yes, even the cake and ice cream beside the menudo and pancit guisado. How can they stand that?

I know people will tell me, but it will all go in your tummy anyway? Why bother separating them in your plate?

C'mon guys. Then if you're gonna run that by me then maybe you should just blend all those in an osterizer and just suck them through a straw.

Enjoying food is an art that takes much care and respect.

#9: Sgt Pepper is Lonely...

...because few understand what peppers are for.

Salt and pepper are soulmates. They are meant to be together in almost every savory dish. Although we know what salt is for, why do you think there is pepper? 

This is my attempt to put together my knowledge, logic, assumptions and articulations to put meaning in these taken-for-granted granules.

#6: My Late Lolos

I trace my interest in cooking from both my grandfathers.

My late maternal lolo (whom we lovingly called "Tata") is a farmer and is also the community chef of our then still provincial Baranggay Bancal in Meycauayan. Whenever there is a wedding or a debut or any occasion in the town, you'll be sure to find him in the front yard with his gigantic stove and equally gigantic talyasi (it's a very big wok, you can even take a bath in it).

2: Disclaimer: What I Am Not and What I Am

Firstly, I am not a culinary arts graduate. I earned my chef-ness in the confines of my own home. But tell you what, I loooooooove food and there's nothing like (shooot! I think the chili con carne I'm stewing is starting to burn it's bottom! *gasp*) Tsk, tsk. See? I'm human.


Secondly, I love food tripping but I have not food tripped extensively because I am not your typical yuppie with lots of cash to burn. I am a striving/starving artist/ entrepreneur who also turned into a wife and mom. Going to all sorts of casual or even fine dining places is difficult to prioritize in my state. But that has an advantage because if some wealthier friend thought of bringing me to a new exciting food place, I am able to appreciate the food better. Ganun kapag patay-gutom di ba? Lahat masarap? Hahahaha! 

1: Training a "Cement-mixer" Eater

I started this blog because of my husband. He has been egging me ever since to write down my kitchen experiments and to write about my food trips. During the first few years, I thought that I haven't really been doing  a lot of successful experiments but after a while, I thought "Hey, I'm getting good at this!"