A Different Sort of Laksa

The bowl of soup shown above isn’t the prettiest thing in the world, but let me assure you that it is in the running for one of the most nourishing, most comforting foods ever.

This is laksa – at least, this is how laksa is done in the provinces surrounding Laguna de Bai. Unlike its Nonya namesake in Singapore and Malaysia, coconut milk and fat rice noodles do not come into play in this particular dish. Instead, sotanghon – springy-textured mung bean vermicelli – is cooked in a clear broth with shredded banana blossoms [puso ng saging - lit.: banana heart] with ground pork, onions, and garlic.

This can be served as a first course; the broth is mild yet flavorful, just the right thing to whet your appetite. At our house, though, this is considered more of both a main course or a heavy side dish. The pork, noodles, and shredded banana blossom are fab over a good plate of steamed rice.

Dinner Quick-Fix: Store-bought Meatball Bowl and Mixed Veg

Meatballs on Rice + Mixed Veg = Quick Dinner!

The problem with pulling long hours at work is that sometimes (well, in my case, make that most of the time), one comes home too late to get a proper dinner with the family.  In such times, I will either just go to bed tired and hungry or take the precaution of buying something from a supermarket food stall to eat on the long bus ride home.

And there are times when I actually see something substantial on offer and willingly save it till I get home.

What you see above is an order of Maki-balls (pork meatballs flavored with soy sauce, onion, and a hint of ginger) on rice from the Maki Mi Sushi stall over at the SM Supermarket in Makati.  On its own, it can be rather stodgy and bland, though the sukiyaki-style sauce you can drizzle over it helps cut back on the blandness even for a bit.  (It’s still a better deal than just a sandwich and a soda, though)

When I got home, I was lucky enough to encounter some buttered vegetables – a mix of baby corn, diced carrots, and asparagus – left over from everyone else’s evening meal.  I tossed these into the bowl along with the meatballs, gave it a generous sprinkle of Knorr Liquid Seasoning, made a hot mug of soup from a Campbell’s sachet, and had myself a fine – if a tad lonely – dinner.

Haru Maki: Spring Rolls with a Japanese Accent

Haru Maki from Kitaro

Spring rolls are the sort of dish that seems to be intrinsic to the cuisines of several Asian nations.  Chinese traders over the span of centuries took them to their ports of call.  The locals liked them so much that numerous variations have been built on the basic theme of meat and veg wrapped in rice paper.

Vietnam has its goi cuon, those refreshing summer rolls stuffed with chopped bean vermicelli.  A similar dish, albeit deep-fried, is served in neighboring Thailand.  Singapore has its popiah and the Philippines has both lumpiang gulay (a deep-fried roll filled with a savory mix of mung bean sprouts, slivered green beans, and tofu) and lumpiang ubod (similar to popiah but filled with slivered hearts-of-palm), as well as the meat-filled lumpiang Shanghai.

The Japanese, however, do not seem to have jumped onto the spring roll bandwagon.  Indeed, whenever we speak of Japanese maki, we automatically think of the nori-wrapped rice roll stuffed with raw fish.  This is why I was surprised to encounter haru maki over at Kitaro quite recently.

Haru maki – literally spring [haru] roll in Japanese – can be found on Kitaro’s appetizer menu and is actually worth trying though it does seem incongruous on the sampler of goodies.  These rolls are filled with what appears to be a dry-ish sukiyaki mix: wood-ear mushrooms, bits of shiitake and beef, bean vermicelli, carrots, bits of shrimp, and nori. The appearance of the fried rolls may make you think that these will probably taste like an ersatz version of goi cuon, but when the hint of soy and seaweed hits you, you just know you’re in for an unusual treat.

These are great as an appetizer, particularly when dipped in the chili-spiked soy dip that goes on the side.  It’s also good as a main course; just get a bowl of miso soup and another of rice and you’re all set. 

Blonde Bombshell: The Coffee Junkie’s Milkshake

I confess to doing something I really shouldn’t have done:

I went off the deep end one recent morning and brewed myself a cup of coffee.

Long-time readers of this blog know that I’m not supposed to have any coffee; the caffeine negates much of my mood stabilizer’s benefits. However, what’s a girl supposed to do if she can’t stay awake at work?! (Granted, of course, that work is boring, a regular drudgery…) But the coffee, you see, is the smallest of my sins in this particular context; wait till you hear what I added to it…

This is a sachet of Chocolate Blanco, Pan de Manila’s instant white hot chocolate. It’s a particularly smooth drink, rather sweet with a strong hint of vanilla to it; quite creamy, too, as a matter of fact. So, off it goes into the blender with half a glass of cold milk and the fresh cup of coffee. If you think, however, that this is where the debauchery ends, I’m going to have to disappoint you, because…

…I also threw in a good scoop of good ol’-fashioned Magnolia Vanilla ice cream. Now, if you start complaining about me being the very embodiment of culinary evil, I’ll tell you you’re wrong.

Why?

Hey, if I were really evil, I would have used Selecta Coffee Crumble ice cream instead of plain vanilla! :p

For all you java-mad folks out there, here’s the recipe:

Blonde Bombshell Milkshake

• 1/2 cup cold milk
• 1 cup brewed coffee
• 1 sachet Pan de Manila Chocolate Blanco or 2 tablespoons plain malted milk powder
• 1 scoop vanilla or coffee-flavored ice cream
• 3 ice cubes

Toss all ingredients into a blender and process until completely liquefied and frothy. Pour into a large tumbler. Serves 1.

Oh, and – for once, just this once – I suffered no ill effects from the caffeine. But that’s probably because I used decaf. :p

Torikatsu Kare-don: A Different Approach to Curry Rice

You all know that I’ve been a sucker for Japanese-style curry for the longest time; it’s a dish that I prepare at home quite often.  Strangely enough, though, it’s something I don’t usually order at Japanese restaurants.  I am not sure why this is so, but whenever I do order Japanese curry outside the house, it’s always a toss-up between the curry rice at JiPan or the torikatsu kare-don over at Bento Box shown here.

The torikatsu kare-don is a literal translation of its Japanese name: a breaded and deep-fried chicken cutlet (a thigh fillet in this case) on top of a bowl of fluffy white rice; a sweetish brown curry sauce is poured on top with extra sauce on the side.

If you’re a fan of Thai-style sweet chili sauce or even the sweetish tang of Mang Tomas’s Sarsa ng Litson (commercially available bottled liver sauce for lechon), the sweet curry at Bento Box will suit your tastebuds just fine.  While it does have the usual nuances intrinsic to Japanese curry – hints of cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, and nutmeg – it has a sweetish counterpoint that helps it go down with rice – and a lot of rice, if I may add!  I have an inkling that the sweetness comes from a blend of apples, honey (or possibly brown sugar), and carrots.

The chicken cutlet comes beautifully crisp and is certainly not greasy.  The crunch is a pleasant contrast to the softness of the rice and the gooey texture of the sauce.  At Bento Box, this dish comes garnished with crisp takuan (sweet pickled daikon radish) which adds an element of tart-ish sharpness to one’s meal.