September 2010 Meal #19: Pork & Balatong (Mung Beans)

I rarely make this Filipino dish and is one of my faves to eat when we visit a Filipino restaurant back home in Hawaii.  For Meal #19 I made something called Pork & Balatong (Mung Beans) that tastes good with some hot rice.  I've seen three different kind of packaged mung beans which are available whole, split, or split and peeled.  In this dish I ended up using the split and peeled beans since this is what available at the nearest Asian grocer near me.   Here is the recipe to share with you.

PORK & BALATONG (MUNG BEANS)
Ingredients:
1-2 lbs. pork chuck steak, chopped
2 tbsp. garlic, minced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cup split & peeled mung bean
patis
water
pepper
1 cup chicharon (pork rinds), broken into pieces
1/2 cup dried shrimp

Directions:
Brown pork and garlic with some oil.  Add onions and cook until tender.  Add 4 cups water and mung beans.  Add patis and pepper to your liking.  Add  chicharon and dried shrimp.  Let simmer until beans are cooked through adding more water if needed.  Enjoy!

September 2010 Meal #18: Pot Roast & Veggies Replaced By Beef Curry Stew

Meal #18 was supposed to be Pot Roast and Veggies that I wanted to cook in  the crockpot.  When I gathered my ingredients I realized I was missing some Lipton Onion Soup seasoning.  So at the last minute I decided to make a Beef Curry Stew.  This is actually something that my hubby admittedly makes better than me but after 10 years of watching him make it I figure I can make it just the same.  It actually turned out just as good as he makes it and it's super yummy and easy to make. Sorry again no picture to share.

BEEF CURRY
Ingredients:
2-3 lbs. chuck roast, cut into cubes
2 tbsp. garlic, minced
1 cup carrot, sliced
1 cup celery, chopped
1 1/2 cups potato, cubed
1/2 onion, diced
1/4 cup flour
1 large or 2 small pkgs. S&B curry sauce
shoyu
pepper
water

Directions:
Brown meat with flour, some shoyu, pepper, and some oil.  Add all veggies and cook til semi tender.  Add enough water according to the curry packaging. Break apart curry blocks and add to pot.  Stir until curry has been dissolved.  Let simmer till soup base has thickened and veggies are tender.  Serve over hot rice and enjoy!

September 2010 Meal #17: Miki

Meal #17 which was a Filipino dish called Miki is one of my favorites that I've only learned how to make in the recent years.  I loved eating the Miki that my BFF's mom would make at family gatherings and she would never divulge her recipe.  For some reason I never thought of searching for a recipe online or elsewhere until I happen to stumble upon it on the HECO (Hawaiian Electric Company) website while looking for another recipe.  The recipe I found is really simple and tried it for the first time a few years ago.  I've since then modified it a little to my liking and have become a favorite to make at home. Sorry I forgot to take a pic but will try to remember the next time I make it again.

MIKI
Ingredients:
1 pkg (9 oz) dry udon (wide Japanese noodles)

1/2 lb thinly sliced lean pork
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 lb shrimp, cleaned, shelled, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces*
1 lb chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 tablespoon patis (clear fish sauce)
1 teaspoon achuete (lipstick plant) powder
2 cups hot water
3 cans (14.5 oz size) chicken broth
2 pkg (2 oz size) long rice, soaked in water and drained
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup chopped chives

Directions:
Cook udon noodles according to package directions; drain. In a large wok or sauce pot, brown pork and garlic. Add shrimp, chicken, and patis; stir-fry until shrimp turn pink. Dissolve achuete powder in the hot water; add to wok. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. To wok, add chicken broth and bring to a boil; add cooked noodles, long rice, salt, and pepper. Stirring frequently, cook uncovered for 10 minutes. Add chives just before serving. Serve immediately. Makes 8 servings.
If desired, slivered shiitake mushrooms can be substituted for the shrimp.

September 2010 Meal #16: Shoyu/Sesame Ahi

I haven't eaten or made this particular meal in about 10 years, which means since I've moved away from home in Hawaii.  For Meal #16 I made Seared Ahi w/a Shoyu & Sesame Oil sauce and it turned out as good as it could get.  The only reason I say that is because since we live in Oregon we don't get fresh ahi like we would in Hawaii.  I have to settle for frozen ahi which can be a little pricey.  I found some decent ones at the grocery store that I frequent and it looked really pink for being frozen.  So I decided to experiment with that and made this dish.

SEARED AHI w/ SHOYU & SESAME OIL SAUCE
Ingredients:
2-4 lbs. ahi steaks
1/2 cup green onion, chopped
garlic salt
pepper
shoyu
sesame oil
oil for frying

Directions:
Heat oil in pan.  Season fish with pepper and garlic salt.  Sear on each side for 30 seconds.  Drain on paper towel.  Drizzle with shoyu and sesame oil.  Garnish with green onions.

September 2010 Meal #15: Roast Pork w/Gravy

For Meal #15 I decided to make Roast Pork with Gravy since I hadn't made it in a while.  Really easy to make and doesn't take much effort either.  Here's my easy version that I learned from my dad and mom.

ROAST PORK
Ingredients:
5-6 lbs. boneless pork shoulder or butt
2 tbsp. garlic, ,minced
pepper
garlic salt
water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Massage garlic entirely onto pork. Season with pepper and garlic salt.  Place into 13x9x2 baking pan.  Add about 3/4 water.  Cover tightly with foil.  Bake for 2 hours.  Cool when done and slice into serving pieces.  Serve with pork gravy (I just used packaged gravy).

September 2010 Meal #14: Beef Broccoli

Meal #14 which was Beef Broccoli is really easy to make and in fact I don't know why I don't make this often.  Depending on my mood I make different variations of this with different kinds of sauces.  I sometimes use a packaged beef broccoli sauce or use some Yoshida sauce or make it from scratch.  This particular night though I ended up using a packaged sauce and I unfortunately can't remember what brand I used.  All I remember is that it required to be mixed with some water and shoyu in addition with adding the meat and veggies.  I don't have a picture to share this yummy creation but here is the recipe for what I made.

BEEF BROCCOLI
Ingredients:
2-3 lbs. steak, sliced
2-3 cups broccoli, cut into pieces
1/2 onion, sliced
2 tbsp. garlic, minced
2-3 cups white mushrooms, sliced
2 pkgs. beef broccoli sauce, prepare as directed
oil

Directions:
Brown steak with garlic in oil until meat is cooked.  Add onions and cook til soft.  Add broccoli and mushrooms and cook til semi soft.  Add sauce, stir and let simmer til veggies are tender.

September 2010 Meal #13: Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

This was my first time making gumbo ever and it turned out pretty good.  For Meal #13 I made Chicken and Sausage Gumbo.  I strayed away from making gumbo before since I figured it took too long to make but with this particular recipe it didn't take much time. I found this recipe in the cookbook "Garden of Flowers" which was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Playmate School on Oahu.  I found this cookbook of all places at a Powell's Used Bookstore here in Oregon and never used it til now.  Here's the recipe to share.

CHICKEN & SAUSAGE GUMBO
Ingredients:
1 lb. smoked sausage, cut into 1" slices
4-6 lbs. chicken, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
4 tbsp. oil
1 stick butter
4 tbsp. flour
1 box frozen okra , thawed
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. green onion, chopped
3-4 cups water
1 cup chicken broth
salt, black pepper, & cayenne pepper to taste

Directions:
Make a roux by melting butter in a heavy pot; add olive oil and flour, stirring constantly over medium heat until mixture turns golden brown.  (Will take 10-15 minutes)  Stir in onion, celery, bell pepper, and cook on low heat unit onions are soft.  Stir in garlic and green onions to mixture and cook until soft.  Add water, chicken broth and season to taste.  Bring to boil.  Mix in chicken, sausage, and okra and simmer 1-2 hours.  Serve in soup bowls over rice or by itself.  Some like it thick as stew and others prefer it thin as soup.  To thicken, add more flour and to to thin, add more water.

Here is how it turned out.