Sisig!

I didn't get the chance to go to Trellis while vacationing in the Philippines back in 2011.... And once in a while I get a craving for this that I learned how to cook it.  Time is what you really need to make this dish as you have to roast the meat slowly in the oven first.  After the pork belly roasts in the oven, technically I could serve that ala-lechon sa hurno.  But when you chop the meat, add garlic, ginger, onions, Thai chili peppers, lemon and calamansi juice (yeah, I have the frozen packets from the Asian store) then viola!  You have sisig.  Mayonnaise optional.

Sisig needs rice!  But I'm trying to re-train my taste buds into having a healthier option that can replace the white rice.  So I had some quinoa for myself, and white rice for B.  And a glass of wine.  Dinner is served.

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Dinner at the Condo.

Grand Rapids, MI

My Own Marinara Sauce

You can't get any more organic than growing your own food.  We got about 10 roma tomatoes the other day, and B asked that I make a sauce.  I must admit, tomato based sauce is something I almost always cheat on: there is always a bottle of marinara in my pantry, and I just add garlic, onions and herbs when I use it.  But I know how to make a tomato-based sauce -- my mom taught me.  It was probably the only dish that I asked her how to make.  I learned how to make the pinoy style spaghetti sauce, but as I grew older, my taste on the sauce changed from the sweet-predominant to tangy-sweet with a zing.

So what's in my sauce?  Measurements in ingredients is only required in baking.  Or maybe that's a common badge of honor for most cooks - the approximation.  And here are the ingredients:

Tomatoes (for this one, roma tomatoes), onions (I only had white), garlic, carrots, bell pepper (I usually use red but we have green bell peppers as part of the harvest!), celery (I happen to have some), white wine (leftover from last night), tomato paste, salt & pepper, brown sugar, ketchup, fresh oregano and basil (again from the garden), dry bay leaf, and for the zing: thai red peppers.

Oh, and did I say I recently got an enameled cast iron dutch oven?  What a way to start using it!  And when everything is incorporated and cooked, I add parmesan reggiano (yes, the real one).

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My kitchen.