Day 20: Sinampalukang Manok

I went to the neighborhood grocer today to get some inspiration on what to cook. At the vegetable section, I saw packs of tamarind leaves and there I had my eureka moment. I knew I had to take advantage of the precious find and make Sinampalukang Manok for dinner. It's easy to find sampalok leaves in the provinces; at least one household in every street nurtures a Sampalok tree in their backyard. But in urban Manila, it's certainly not the case. So it's best to take advantage of the ingredient whenever it's available.


Sinampalukang Manok is actually easier to make than, say, sinigang na baboy or hipon, since there is no other ingredient to the dish than the sampalok leaves and the chicken, well, aside from the usual aromatics. So, if you'd like to conserve on energy, Sinampalukang Manok is a great option; plus, it's a real comfort dish.



Saute a sliced onion and three (3) cloves of garlic in tthree (3) tablespoons of oil. Add a whole piece of chicken that's been cut into pieces. After a few minutes, add eight (8) cups of water, a pack of sinigang mix and one (1) chicken bouillon cube. Simmer till almost done. Add the sampalok leaves and simmer for another five miutes.

Day 18: Pinoy Fried Chicken and Ginisang Upo

Before we were introduced to the KFC-style fried chicken, Filipinos had their own idea of what fried chicken should be. I for one enjoyed the tart & salty flavor from my family's style of cooking fried chicken. It certainly has no resemblance in taste and appearance to the breaded fried chicken of today. In fact, no breading is required for this version of fried chicken. And cooking it every once in a while just gives me a mega dose of nostalgia of life way back then.

Here's how:


Cut a whole chicken into several pieces and marinate it for an hour in a mixture of 1/2 cup of soy sauce, 1/2 cup of Calamansi and some pepper to taste. Make sure that the chicken stays in the refrigerator while it marinates so it won't develop any harmful bacteria. Turn the chicken half an hour into the marinating process. After an hour, drain the liquid off and deep fry the chicken in hot oil till it is fully cooked and till the skin turns crispy. It's a bit dark in color because of the soy sauce marinade but I assure you, it's very tasty. It goes well with tomato catsup.


For the vegetable accompaniment, I made ginisang upo. Upo is very similar to a zucchini but it's much bigger in size. In making this dish, peel a whole piece of upo, chop it into bite-size pieces and set it aside. Saute some garlic, onions and tomatoes in a large pan till they release their flavor and aroma. Add 1/4 cup of dried shrimp or Hibe, half a cup of water and the chopped upo. Add some patis and pepper to taste and simmer the upo till it's done.

Day 15: Adobong Manok with Quail Eggs

There are about a million and one recipes on adobo. Every household has its own special recipe that's been handed down from generation to generation. I'm sure that as this blog goes along, I'll be trying several versions. This recipe is a deviation from the traditional garlic, vinegar, soy sauce and meat or fowl mix; I used coconut milk and quail eggs which is not entirely unusual since a lot of families have been maximizing the use of coconut milk which is abundant in these parts. Adobo with Quail eggs and coconut milk is a class of its own and certainly a most welcome twist.

I boil about 24 quail eggs and set them aside. I'll acutally use only about 15 to 18 of the eggs and the remainder is just for snacking. Next, I cut a whole piece of chicken into several pieces and place it in a pot, pour equal parts of soy sauce and vinegar (3/4 cup each), a whole head of garlic or as much garlic as you'd want that's been crushed and peeld, 2 bay leaves, 1 tablespoon of whole peppercorns since we like our adobo a little spicy - besides, by adding coconut cream into the sauce, the spiciness is somehow muted. I simmer the chicken till it's almost cooked and then add half a cup of coconut milk. Once the chicken is cooked, I add the cooked quail eggs and half a cup of coconut cream (kakang gata) to make it really creamy. I just let the pot boil again. Once it boils, I turn off the heat and it's ready to be served.

Day 13: Tinolang Manok

There's nothing as comforting as chicken soup. The Filipino version is called Tinolang Manok. It's another simple recipe that is good with rice. All you need is a whole chicken (about a kilo in weight) that is cut it into several pieces, two (2) medium-sized Chayote's that have been peeled and sliced, two (2) cups of sili leaves, a piece of ginger and an onion that's been sliced, and patis & pepper to taste.

I saute the onions and ginger in a pot with about a tablespoon of oil, then I add the chicken pieces and six cups of water and bring them to a boil. I then add some patis and pepper and simmer the soup for a few minutes. When the chicken is almost cooked, I add the chayote slices and simmer the soup till everything is well cooked. I adjust the seasonings, turn off the heat and add the sili leaves.

Day 5: Chicken Afritada

So we had fish, beef and pork so far. It's chicken this time. Chicken Afritada is a staple viand in most Filipino homes. If you've noticed, I began this blog with stock recipes that I've learned from my elders. This won't last long though since my inventory is quite limited. Suffice it to say that I look forward to trying recipes from other cultures. But for now, it's Chicken Afritada. Here's how:

Saute a chopped onion in oil together with two cloves of garlic. When the aromatics turn translucent, add half a kilo of chicken pieces to the pan just to brown a little. Add a pouch of tomato sauce, a cup of water, about four (4) tablespoons of fish sauce or patis, a teaspoon of sugar and pepper to taste. Simmer for 15 minutes or until the chicken is almost cooked. Add two carrots that are cut into chunks; after a few minutes, add two medium-sized potatoes that are cut approximately the same size as the carrots. When the carrots and potatoes are almost cooked, add a diced green bell pepper and simmer till done. You can adjust the seasonings accordingly.