Filipino Food

Back-To-Back Tagaytay Weekend #FoodTrip Part2: Taal Vista Hotel

September 25, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 10 Comments

Have I told you guys how much I love Taal Vista Hotel ?

A week after our dinner date at QiWellness Living, MrC and I escaped for a quick pre-anniversary lunch at Taal Vista. It was a great time to be there because Chef Fernando Aracama was in the house. He was Cafe Veranda’s guest chef on the first weekend of the hotel’s Culinary Gems: A Festival of Filipino Flavors event.

Chef Fernando Aracama with Taal Vista Hotel's Executive Chef Edwin Santos — Chef Fernando Aracama with Taal Vista Hotel’s Executive Chef, Edwin Santos
Photos courtesy of Taal Vista Hotel

We arrived just in time to catch the opening ceremonies. Instead of the usual ribbon cutting, Chef Aracama and Peggy Angeles of SM Hotels and Conventions Corp. (and my seatmate at lunch!) broke a clay pot over an arrangement of fruits and vegetables. I’m not sure if this is symbolic, but if it is, it probably means something nice. Lol.

The boys and I had lunch at Cafe Veranda during our weekend staycation at Taal Vista last year. I was excited to see what the hotel’s Executive Chef, Edwin Santos had prepared, and of course how Chef Aracama’s creations would accent the Filipino food buffet.

As always, Chef Edwin did not disappoint. Everything from the hotel’s signature Lumpiang Ubod to the Brazo de Mercedes were so delicious. Chef Aracama’s Ilonggo creations we also extremely good. I couldn’t get enough of how tasty all of his dishes were. I couldn’t get enough of the Beef Adobo sa Tuba and the Sigarilyas Gising Gising Style.

Sigarilyas Gising Gising Style and Chicken Inasal by Chef Aracama
Photos courtesy of Taal Vista Hotel

Sinanglay na Isda en Papillote by Chef Aracama, and the good chef carving his amazing Porchetta Negrense
Photos courtesy of Taal Vista Hotel

I started my meal off with a plate of assorted appetizers. My favorites among everything I got was Chef Aracama’s Malunggay Dip and Pan Tostado, the Salted Egg Brulee, and the Ginataang Langka Triangle.

Plate #2 was loaded with all of the Aracama dishes that I found interesting – Kalkag Fried Rice, Sinanglay na Isda en Papillote, Chicken Inasal, Beef Adobo sa Tuba and the Sigarilyas Gising Gising Style . I would seriously have gone back for a second helping of the exact same plate if I had the space for it in my stomach.

Plate #2 loaded with Chef Aracama’s specialties

Yes, I had a third plate, but it was a small one. I had forgotten to get Porchetta Negrense during my second round at the buffet, so I took a bite off of MrC’s. It was so good that I of course had to go get a few slices for myself. The husbandry had his with the uber delicious vinegar that they were serving that day, while I opted for the lechon sauce. I was expecting the usual lechon liver sauce, but this one had an extra hint of spice and a bite of sourness to it. Oh my golly, so good. I also had some Dinuguan and Puto, a Filipino meryenda favorite that I can never skip, no matter how full I already am.

I wish that I could have eaten some more but I was just about ready to burst. So, it was time to end things with a selection of sweet desserts. Chef Aracama’s Chocnut Ice Cream was the highlight of my sweet treats. I split a Buko Panna Cotta (also by Chef Aracama) with MrC because I just couldn’t finish one whole on my own. It was one of those non-jello-ish panna cottas, so I was happy. And, I couldn’t say no to Chef Edwin’s Frozen Brazo de Mercedes, because it really is superb.

The promise of an amazing cultural show and excellent Pinoy food is a really great excuse to make the trip up to Tagaytay for a special lunch or dinner meal. Chef Aracama’s weekends at Taal Vista Hotel are over, but there are other celebrity guest chefs lined up who will bring their unique interpretations of Filipino cuisine to Cafe Veranda. Here’s the schedule so you can decide which weekend to visit:

Chef Sau del Rosario – September 27 & 28 (That’s this weekend!)
Chef Babes Austria – October 4, 5, 11 & 12
Chef Edwin Santos – October 18, 19, 26 & 26
Chef Bruce Lim – November 1, 2, 8 & 9 (I am definitely planning a visit on one of his weekends)
Chefs Jackie and Rolando Laudico – November 15, 16, 22 & 23

An amazing cultural show and excellent Pinoy food. What more could you ask for?

THANK YOU so very much, Celine Arenillo and Treena Tecson for having me and MrC over at Taal Vista again. We love celebrating anniversaries and birthdays with you guys hehe! Thanks also to my fun to kwento with seatmate, Peggy Angeles for letting me know which dishes I really ought to try. See you guys (hopefully) this Halloween!

The Culinary Gems Festival of Filipino Flavors continues on until November at Taal Vista Hotel’s Cafe Veranda. Saturday lunch and dinner buffet, and Sunday lunch buffet costs PHP1350 nett per person. For inquiries, you may call +632 917-8225.

TAAL VISTA HOTEL
Kilometer 60, Aguinaldo Highway
Tagaytay City, Philippines
www.taalvistahotel.com

Recipe: Chicken Menudo Made With Love

May 8, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 22 Comments

I went to the kitchen mid-morning to get water, and I saw ingredients laid out. I asked my mom what she was planning to make and she said Chicken Menudo. I stopped her right there and said that I was gonna take care of preparing lunch.

No one, and I mean no one loves menudo in this house more than I do. I believe that the most important ingredient that goes into any successful dish is love. Because I have lotsa love to give for this dish, I knew that it had to be me in that kitchen. I mean, I don’t think that you could look at the finished product and tell me that I’m not right. I know you can’t because the love just totally shows.

It’s actually a really easy recipe to make, and I can say that because to tell you the truth, today was the first time that I ever made menudo. I asked my mom how she used to make it, then I looked for other recipes online. I saw this one, and sort of just combined it with my moms, made a few adjustments on my own, and the rest is tasty history.

I started out with a kilo and a half of cubed chicken breast, plus 1/4 kilo of chicken liver. Even if you don’t like liver, add some. It does wonders for the sauce. Marinate the meat for at least half an hour in soy sauce, vinegar, tomato paste and black pepper.

Chicken pieces that have been chilling in the fridge

While the chicken is marinading, you might want to start sauteing the cubed potatoes and carrots in a little bit of oil. Cook them just enough so that they begin to become tender, but not too much that they get too soft and fall apart in the sauce later on. This significantly cuts the cooking time of the menudo so that you don’t overcook the chicken.

After 30 minutes in the fridge, the chicken is good to go. So you saute garlic and onions in the same pot or wok you used to precook the other veggies. Add in the chicken and the marinade and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until all the pieces are completely cooked. Stir this occasionally.

Lots of garlic and onions – a must for me when cooking

Add carrots, potatoes, bell peppers and peas. Mix, mix. Throw in some red hotdogs, sliced so that they look like coins. This is optional, but in my world menudo makes no sense without hotdogs in it. Then, add the tomato sauce and water. Finally, add 2 tablespoons of sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir up everything in the pot and simmer until the sauce thickens.

Once the sauce is as thick as you like, which is most likely around the time that the chicken liver starts to melt into it, you are done. All you need now is some fluffy steamed rice.

I’m so glad I made a big batch coz that means that we can have this again for lunch tomorrow. Yay!

MrsC's Chicken Menudo

2014-05-08 07:22:18

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Ingredients

1.5 kilos chicken, cubed
1/5 kilo chicken liver
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tbsp white vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 tbsp black pepper
1 onion, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large carrot, cubed
1 large potato, cubed
1 red bell pepper, sliced into squares
1/2 cup green peas
3 jumbo sized red hotdogs, cut into circles
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Cooking oil

Instructions

Combine tomato paste, vinegar, soy sauce and pepper. Pour over chicken cubes and liver, and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Fry cubed potatoes and carrots in a little bit of oil until tender, but still firm.
In the same pot or wok, saute garlic and onions.
Add the marinaded chicken and liver pieces, as well as the marinade. Simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the chicken pieces are completely cooked. Stir occasionally.
Add potatoes, carrots, peas, and bell peppers. After a few minutes, add the hotdog slices.
Pour in the tomato sauce and 1/2 cup of water. Add sugar.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. Then, allow to simmer until the sauce thickens.
Serve menudo over steamed rice.

Notes

You can also opt to add raisins for a little bit of sweetness, but I would rather not have them in this dish.

By MrsC

Adapted from Lucky Mom's Recipe

At Home With MrsC https://blissbysam.com/

I would love to hear how this recipe turns out for you, in case you decide to try making it at home! Hope your family loves it as much as mine did.

Sinigang, the Way My Mom Does It

December 18, 2013 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 5 Comments

My mom is one of those people who “eyeballs” things when she cooks. She hates to measure ingredients, so she bases everything on how the food tastes and smells. Because of this, it’s a bit of a challenge learning how to make her specialty dishes. You either need to watch her and figure out the measurements as you go along, or force her to measure before she adds every ingredient, which actually results in the food not tasting the same. Sounds strange, but I’m sure that if you know someone who cooks the same way my mom does, you would totally understand.

My mom prepares really great, homey dishes that everyone just loves. We always joke that she’s great at making people fat because her food is so good, and well, just take a look at our family photo and you’ll see what I mean. My sister is the only skinny person in this household, and even the usually-skinny MrC is slowly but surely becoming a little more huggable. It’s hard to say no to food that comes out of my mom’s kitchen because she’s really mastered the art of comfort food.

One of the best things to come home to after a long day is a hot bowl of sinigang soup. That’s sour tamarind broth, for those who are unfamiliar with this staple Filipino dish. I recently made a big pot of sinigang with shrimp heads and lots of veggies for my in-laws, but really, my favorite sinigang variant is the pork kind.

For her soup, my mom uses half a kilo of pork, I think she uses thick cuts of liempo (pork belly) or American Ribs from Monterey. She adds lots of kangkong (water spinach), or pechay Tagalog (bokchoy) when my dad requests for it, labanos (radish) and gabi (taro). She also adds some chopped tomatoes for added color and sourness. If you like your sinigang spicy, you can also add green siling haba (finger chili peppers). I prefer my soup to have a bit of a kick, but my mom likes it mild and child-friendly, so we only put a couple of chili peppers in.

The sourness in the soup comes from adding either tamarind, guava or miso. We like to make thing easy for ourselves at home, though, so we use sinigang mix. Mom and I recently discovered how good Maggi Magic Sinigang is, and so we shifted to that from the brand that we used to use. It’s definitely more flavorful than our old mix, and a lot more sour, just the way I like it.

Preparing this hearty dish is easy. Boil the meat in enough water until it’s soft. Add the tomatoes, then the radish and taro.Continue to boil the soup until the vegetables are cooked. Season with sinigang mix, and adjust the saltiness to your liking using patis (fish sauce), then add the chili peppers. At the very last minute, add the kangkong or pechay, turn off the heat and you’re done.

Sinigang is best enjoyed with steamed rice and a cold glass of Coke.

Feeling adventurous? Try preparing your sinigang with lechon manok (roasted chicken) instead of pork. We had that for dinner last night, and it was really good! The soup gets this fabulously yummy, smoky flavor from the chicken. You can also visit the Maggi website for a Bulalo Sinigang recipe, and other yummy dishes that you can easily make at home. Like Maggi on Facebook too, for more recipes and kitchen tips.

Happy eating!

Recipe: Chicken Adobo by MrsC

December 3, 2013 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 3 Comments

One of the things that MrC and I did in preparation for his family’s arrival from the US last October was stock the refrigerator in their condo unit with healthy, home cooked meals. I love to cook, and so I had a great time preparing some of our favorites for them. I was extra excited about being able to feed my dad-in-law with food from my kitchen because he was the one who took the time to teach me how to cook, back when they were still living in Manila.

My whole kitchen experience became even more fun when this bag of goodies from Maggi arrived at my doorstep, literally days before I was to start preparing my cook and freeze meals. Maggi is actually one of those brands that I remember from TV time in my childhood, along with Wok With Yan and Cooking With The Daza’s. Yup, I have loved watching cooking shows for as long as I remember. The noodle soup commercial with Tita Maggi is one of the ads that I remember seeing a lot during those days. Coincidentally, Tita Maggi became Tita Menchu to me, when her daughter became a friend in high school, but that’s another story altogether.

Back to my story. One of the dishes I prepared for the family was a skinless chicken adobo. Now, I will be honest, I love pork adobo more than chicken adobo because I’ve always found it to be tastier. But, now, I think I’ve found a chicken adobo recipe that I really, really like, which is actually a tweaked version of an Adobong Puti recipe from the Maggi website (you can see the orignal recipe here) plus this Kris Aquino recipe and my mom’s good old ever-reliable adobo.

Chicken Adobo

2014-06-12 16:28:18

Serves 6

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Ingredients

1/2 kg chicken leg quarters, separate the thighs from the drumstick and remove all of the skin
1/2 kg chicken breast, cut into 4pcs each and remove all of the skin
2 heads garlic, peeled and smashed
1 medium onion, sliced
1 cup sukang sasa
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
A handful of whole peppercorns
3 bay leaves
1 tbsp brown sugar
Half of the contents of one 50g pack of Maggi Magic Sarap
2 tbsp vegetable oil for frying

Instructions

Place all of the ingredients, EXCEPT the oil, in a pot and bring to a boil. Simmer covered for about an hour, or until chicken is tender. Remove the chicken pieces from the sauce once done.
Continue to boil the sauce until it is reduced by half.
Fry the chicken pieces in a little bit of oil until golden brown.
Return the fried chicken pieces into the reduced sauce and bring to a boil.

Notes

This dish is best served with steamed white rice and a ripe banana or a slice of ripe mango.
I keep the peppercorn and the garlic whole because I love biting into them after they've stewed in the adobo sauce. Super, super yummy!
You can also opt to fry the garlic after the initial boiling period so that it becomes nice and crispy. You should probably chop it up, though, if you plan to do this.

By MrsC

At Home With MrsC https://blissbysam.com/

For more delicious recipes, visit the Maggi Facebook Page and website!

How do you prepare your adobo? 🙂

Cafe Juanita: Pinoy Comfort Food At Its Finest

January 11, 2013 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan Leave a Comment

Last December, started adding Fashion Friday posts to this blog. I really hoped to be able to post an entry every Friday. but unfortunately I don’t go out often enough to have outfit photos taken. So, refusing to give up, I’ve decided to alternate Fashion Friday with Foodtrip Friday! It seems like an extra good idea because I have a bunch of restaurant and recipe posts waiting to be written. Here is the first one, and I’ve decided to do it on Cafe Juanita.

It was a fine afternoon in November. We got together with Ate Baban and Cy for lunch that day, after the little boy’s Family Day Presentation at school. It was a bit difficult deciding where to eat because of all the new options that had just opened at the Molito Lifestyle Complex here in Alabang. In the end, we went for a tried and tested place, Cafe Juanita. I’d already eaten at this restaurant previously with my grandparents. To say that we were satisfied with the food is an understatement. As testament to this, know that my grandfather has requested for Cafe Juanita food to be send to his house many, many times after that first visit.

Meanwhile, it was the first time that my lunch dates were going to try the restaurant, which, if I’m not mistaken, has other branches in Pasig and BGC. We were all in yellow that day because that was Tristan’s class color for their performance.

Juanita-10 — Little Mr C, the only one not in yellow.

I love the decor at Cafe Juanita. It gives the place such a homey feel, and is a perfect complement to the food. The restaurant is spacious enough, and the whole of Molito has ample parking, so it’s definitely not a hassle coming here (at least for us, since we live only a few streets away). I just love how they give you small folding stools for your bag! I always carry a big bag with me, and figuring out where to put it is always a problem for me. Plus, any restaurant with cloth napkins always get bonus points in my book.

Juanita-4 — Long table, perfect for big groups

Lunch with a view? Check out Firelake Grill in Cliffhouse Tagaytay

So, here’s what we ordered. This was basically a repeat of most of the dishes I had here when I ate with my grandparents. I thought it would be best to order stuff I’d already tried, just to make sure that everything was good. So, drinks first. Coffee as usual for Mr C, fresh dalandan juice for me and Ate Baban, and strawberry milkshakes for Cy and Tristan. As usual, the little boy asked to play video games while waiting for the food to arrive. We were pretty pooped from our full morning, so no one objected to his request.

Juanita-5 — Little happy boy playing Star Wars Angry Birds

Juanita-2 — Fresh Dalandan Juice. My favorite! Super refreshing.

As for the food, we ended up with a good mix of dishes, all of which were just really, really, really yummy, from appetizer to dessert. These menu items have proven to be winners twice in a row for me, so I would definitely recommend them to first timers.

Juanita-6 — Crispy Catfish and Green Mango Salad

Juanita-7 — Tom Yum Soup. This is the only dish we ordered that I hadn’t tried before. Upon special request of the Cuyugan siblings. My dad in law makes fantastic Tom Yum.

Juanita-11 — Adobo cooked two ways. The top portion is super crispy adobo flakes. The botom half is really tender and tasty. And the sauce is thick and delicious. Mmmm!

Juanita-13 — Ginataang Gulay (Veggies in Coconut Milk). This one is super yummy. There’s eggplant in there, kangkong (water spinach) and green chilies.

Juanita-12 — And of course, a big bowl of rice.

If you like Pinoy food, you might want to check out Dong Juan in BF.

After all of that food, we still had room for dessert. The sweet treats offered at Cafe Juanita are also Pinoy (Filipino). I’m not a big fan of local desserts, but I do like Turon and Halo Halo. We got the Mini Turon ala Mode and the Crepe Samurai, both which I shared with my grandparents on my first time there.

Juanita-15 — Banana fritters, deep fried and covered in chewy caramel and sesame seeds. Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Looking for a place to have coffee after lunch? Try Le Petit Cheri in Molito

I would recommend Cafe Juanita to anyone looking for really good Filipino home cooking. Mr C and I can’t wait to go back there to try out their other dishes!

Cafe Juanita – THIS ESTABLISHMENT HAS CLOSED
Molito Lifestyle Complex
Alabang, Muntinlupa
+63917 3456568