Arroz a la Cubana

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp. cooking oil 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 onion, diced 1 medium tomato, chopped 1/2 pound ground pork 1/2 pound ground beef 1/4 cup catsup 4 tbsp. raisins 1/2 cup water or chicken broth 1 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. pepper 1 tsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. patis 1 tbsp. chopped canned pimiento 1/3 cup canned mushrooms 1/3 cup canned or frozen sweet peas 1tbsp. minced cilantro 4 cups freshly cooked rice Garnishes: 2 tbsp. oil 2 ripe saba bananas or plantain 4 hard boiled eggs, shelled 1 tsp. paprika

DIRECTION:

1. In a skillet, heat oil on medium heat, sauté garlic, onions and tomato in oil. Add beef, pork, and catsup, sauté until meats are brown.
   
2. Add raisins, 1/2 cup water or broth, salt, pepper, soy sauce and patis. Simmer for 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
   
3. Add pimiento, mushrooms, and peas and continue cooking until peas are done and the mixture is almost dry. Taste and correct seasoning. Transfer mixture to a bowl, garnish with minced cilantro, and set aside.
   
4. Slice bananas diagonally into 1/4-inch slices. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a skillet and fry saba or plantain slices in oil until light brown. Set aside.
   
5. To serve individually: Rinse a 1-cup serving bowl with cold water, pack with cooked rice and invert it in the center of a plate. Bury an egg party in the middle of the rice and sprinkle it with paprika. Arrange about 1/2 cup of meat mixture around one side of the rice and the banana slices on the other side.
   
6. To serve as a main dish: Mound the rice in the middle of a platter, press eggs half way into the rice, sprinkle rice and eggs with paprika. Surround rice with sautéed meat, arrange banana slices on top of meat mixture as a garnish.

Preparation and cooking time: 60 minutes Serves: 4

Asian Paella

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup shrimps, peeled 1 cup small scallops, fresh 2 tbsp. soy sauce 2 tbsp. grated ginger 2 tbsp. vegetable oil 1 Chinese sausage, sliced into thin rounds 3 garlic cloves, chopped 1 medium onion, chopped 2 chicken breasts, skinned, boned and diced 1 red pepper, seeded and diced 1 tsp. chili garlic sauce

1 tsp. salt 1/2 ground pepper 2 cups raw jasmine rice 2 cups chicken stock 2 tbsp. fish sauce 4 tbsp. patis 4 tbsp. tomato paste 1 dozen mussels or clams, scrubbed 1 cup bean sprouts 3 stalks green onions, slivered 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

DIRECTION:

1. Marinade shrimps and scallops in soy sauce and 1 tsp. ginger. Set aside to be used as topping later along with mussels.
   
2. Heat oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. Stir, fry sausage, add onion, garlic, and remaining ginger, sauté for two minutes or until onions are soft. Add chicken and red pepper and sauté for 2 minutes more. Stir in chili-garlic sauce, season with salt and pepper.
   
3. Stir rice into sausage mixture, sauté for 1 minute. Combine chicken stock with patis and tomato paste, stir into rice, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook covered for 25 minutes.
   
4. Arrange shrimps, scallops and mussels atop rice. Pour marinade over them. Cover and cook on medium low heat for 10 minutes or until seafood is cooked and rice is tender. If mussels are not available, use 1 can (3 oz.) smoked oysters in place of clams to garnish paella just before serving.
   
5. Remove from heat, sprinkle with bean sprouts, green onions, and chopped cilantro. Cover and let stand 10 minutes.
   
6. Stir everything together and serve from skillet. Serve with a green salad with ginger sesame oil dressing.

Preparation and cooking time: 1 hour and 45 minutes Serves: 6

Rice Noodle

INGREDIENTS:

1 tbsp. oil 1 tsp. salt 1/2 cup dry fine egg noodles

1 cup raw long grain rice 2-1/2 cups chicken stock 1 tbsp. butter

DIRECTION:

1. Use a medium size heavy saucepan because the water may spill over when it boils; the rice also doubles in bulk when cooked.
2. Heat oil in saucepan, add noodles and stir until brown. (If you want to brown an entire package of noodles for future use, spread them in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Brown in a 350ºF oven for about 7 minutes. Let cook to room temperature. This will keep for several months in an air-tight container.)
3. Add rice to noodles in a saucepan, stir in butter, lower heat to lowest level, cover tightly, and cook about 15 to 20 minutes more on low heat, or until liquid has completely evaporated. Do not open lid to peek at the rice during this time.
4. Fluff the rice with a fork before serving.

Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Sinangag (Filipino Fried Rice)

INGREDIENTS:

5 cups of cooked cold rice or leftover rice (do not use hot freshly cooked rice) 1 tbsp. oil

1 tsp. salt 3 garlic cloves, minced or 1 small onion, chopped fine, about 3 tbsp.

DIRECTION:

1. Freshly cooked rice becomes pasty when fried so cold rice is often used. Crumble rice so grains are not packed together. heat skillet over medium heat, add salt to oil, fry garlic in hot oil until light brown. (If using onion instead of garlic, cook onion until golden before adding rice.)
2. Add rice, stir fry, scraping the bottom every now and then to prevent scorching, until the rice ahs colored slightly. Serve hot.

Variation: 1/2 cup or more of the following or a mixture of any of them may be added to the browned garlic and cooked until done before adding the rice: diced cooked pork, ham, chinese sausage, shrimps, flaked cooked chicken meat, crabmeat, etc. or use 1 tbsp. soy sauce in place of 1 tsp. salt for brown fried rice. Garnish with chopped green onions, thin strips of omelet or top each serving with a sunny side fried egg. Serve with slices of fresh tomato and cucumber.

Preparation and cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 – 6

Classic Spanish Paella

The Philippines has maintained a close relationship with Spain, which helped to shape today’s eating practices of the Filipinos. Paella is Catalan word meaning frying pan and referring to the large pan where the rice was cooked.

This recipe follows the traditional Spanish preparation. Different kinds of paella may be made using other ingredients such as fish, shellfish, meat, vegetables, or even mix paella, which blends in one recipe all the other kinds (meat, vegetables, fish, and shellfish).

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup of rice 3 garlic cloves 1 onion, chopped 1 tomato, chopped 1 lb. pork loin ribs 1 small chicken cut up

1/2 cup peas 1/2 cup chopped green beans 1 pinch saffron 1 tsp. salt olive oil water (enough to double the quantity of the rice)

DIRECTION:

1. Sauté the meat (ribs and chicken) in a paella (typical metal pan, round, and flat) with some oil.
2. When the meat is browned, add the chopped onions, peas, beans, whole garlic cloves, and, last the chopped tomato.
3. Add the water to the mixture and bring to a boil.
4. Add the rice and put on high heat.
5. After a few minutes, add the saffron and rice. The rice must cook on medium heat for about 20 minutes uncovered until all the water has been absorbed.
6. Once ready, cover the paella with a cotton cloth, let it sit for 5 minutes and then serve.