Too much time

What does a guy do on a Monday but he does not need to go to work yet does not have anywhere to go as most shops are closed?

It is ironic that I have this dilemma of having so much time to kill that I don't know what to make of it. I already used up the first two days of the long weekend doing house chores - cleaning, doing some laundry, pressing my office clothes. I even thrown out some old junks. I didn't want to spend the last day doing some more chores.

I decided to do something different and cook some pinoy kakanin using whatever ingredients that is available.

I started scouring around the kitchen and the first thing I saw was malagkit (glutinous rice). First thought was to make biko so I started looking for coconut milk and I found a can on top of the fridge. The other ingredients (sugar and vanilla) are not a problem as these are readily available.

I was about to get going with it but I paused. While looking for the vanilla, I saw a pack of Ricoa breakfast cocoa on the shelf. Then it struck - what goes best with sikwate?

Para sa mga bisaya, puto maya. Wala nay lain.

I haven't done this before so I surf for a suitable recipe from the internet. I chose one from wanderlust sha as she is a Bisdak like me. I used the same ingredients (listed below) and followed the steps she suggested - even the bit like making latik from the coconut milk.

• 2 cups glutinous rice
• 4 cups coconut milk
• 1 cup sugar
• ginger (an inch or so)

And in just a few minutes, I am back in the palengke in Bankerohan in Davao - enjoying my puto maya with my sikwate.


It turned out really good. And it was simpler and did not take so much time to make compared to biko. My only disappointment is I forgot to put some tapol to give it a purple color. It would have been more authentic.

Maybe next time.

Longsilog in Belfast

I can't really explain but I woke up today having a craving for longsilog. Somehow, my usual breakfast of oatmeal porridge cannot seem to satisfy my hunger. My mouth is watery the whole day that I did not have any other choice but to address it

Being an OFW, one issue of having these type of craving is the unavailability of such food. Most of the time, the only recourse a Pinoy abroad has is to try to make his own. So I did following the recipe I got from pinoycook with some tweak.

Ingredients:

• 500 g. of ground pork (choose those with some fat content)
  
• 3 tbsps. of finely minced garlic
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 tbsps. of tomato paste (adjust for desired sourness)
  
• 2 tbsps. of rice vinegar
• 2 tbsps. of soy paste
• 1 tsp. of salt
• 1 tsp. of ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. of paprika
• 1 tsp. of garlic powder
  
• 4 tbsps. of dark brown sugar (adjust for desired sweetness)
  
• 1 tbsp. of fine unsweetened bread crumbs
• 1 egg, beaten

Mix thoroughly all the ingredients in a deep dish. To test the taste, fry a small bit of the mixture in hot oil. Adjust the taste appropriately to get the taste right. Form the mixture into using cling wrap (original instructions suggest using wax paper). Place the some of the mixture and roll the plastic to form a log ensuring that all gaps are filled. Then twist each end. Once all of the mixture is wrapped, put them in the freezer.

A few hours after, I have my longsilog. Eating it is quite satisfying. But you know, there is something better than this. Nothing beats the burp you get after eating this garlicky meal.