World Class Chefs
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Ramilo (Ram) Villaluna
Ram is a budding chef from Iloilo City (Molo). He gained his training in Culinary Arts at the Center for Asian Culinary Studies under food guru Gene Gonzalez, Institute of Culinary Education (formerly Peter Kumpps) in New York. He took up bread making, and he studied food styling under Delores Custer of the Culinary Institute of America. It all started in Antique where his father owned a restaurant many Antiquenos learned to love. He continued the culinary legacy of his father and now, Ram owns a catering business, Cindy\'s Catering. Food is Ram\'s life, seriously speaking. I am short in saying that he is married to the food industry that, he spends most of his time teaching and mentoring at the Department of Culinary Arts at the University of San Agustin in Iloilo. If one cannot find him in the classroom, Ram will be on the road crisscrossing Iloilo and Antique having first hand in the management of his thriving businesses from both provinces. He also has a once-a-week TV show in GMA 7 \"Food Trip\". I met with Ram once before and he exudes perfectionism, the character that will beam him up to the limelight of culinary arts. At present time, Ram is extremely busy in Manila. I believe he is one of the finalists in The National Food Showdown 2010 sponsored by ABS-CBN. We wish you all the luck, Ram! Maybe, after this showdown, Ram will have the opportunity share favorite recipe here at ILONGGO LIVING.
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Archive for June, 2010
Banana BBQ
June 29, 2010
A few days back, I was visiting a relative in Calaparan, Villa, when all of a sudden, a lady was calling out an afternoon treat I have been wanting to reconnect with. Without due hesitation, I called her to show me what she got. It’s one of my favorites, the BANANA BBQ! Nothing beats this afternoon snack as it is cheap and easy to prepare with. Not to mention it is a delicious kind of a snack. Have some!
Now, you see what I mean by an irresistible kind of a snack, especially when eaten just right after its cooked.
The sab-a variety of a banana is the best kind of banana for making banana Q.
A balance of brown sugar springkled while frying the banana is the main secret in preparing them.
Extra-Special Laswa
June 27, 2010
My trip to the Jaro public market last Thursday was an exciting and rewarding since I had the chance to re-connect with the food stuffs I am still fond of. Take for example the lowly lupo. As far as I know, lupo can be only found in the Western Visayas region, for the obvious reason that Ilonggos are the only one who is fond of the said local vegetable. Lupo belongs to the family of spinach and, is usually available in the green variety. I was surprised to see variegated ones (reddish) at the market. So, I asked my sister-in-law to give it a try. True enough, the laswa tasted even more sumptuous with the extra load of local veggies.
I called this LASWA extra-special because it has three kinds of local veggies namely lupo green variety, the red variety of lupo and to give it a slimmy texture, my sister-in-law added fresh tugabang and kalgag. Truly an Ilonggo dish and very refreshing and very healthy.
KALKAG or UGA BALINGON (dried anchovies) are two good alternative panakot or sagpaw for laswa.
The venerated fresh lupo, a local favorite green leafy vegetable. It has been decades since I tasted lupo.
The exciting variety of lupo, the variegated or red one. Flavorwise, they taste like the green ones.
This one made my sister-in-law got so excited as this is the freshest saluyot or tugabang she has seen. So, she decided to add this slimmy saluyot (jote) to the laswa. Not a bad idea at all!
Every Thursday, the Jaro public market is teaming with local produce and delicacies.
Ginataang Bagungon
June 25, 2010
Bagungon, a kind of fresh water snail very popular among Ilonggos. They are usually harvested from ricefields but, over decades, people were successful in breeding them in fishponds. Yesterday, I was able to go to the Jaro public market and buy some local veggies and, of course, the bagungon. My sister-in-law choose the smaller kind and, decided to cook it with gabi (yam) and takway (roots runner) and finish it up with gata or coconut milk. Truly, it was a sumptuous lunch.
GINATAAN NGA BAGUNGON. A sumptuous way of devouring bagungon. Having them is an exercise of one's kissing ability.
The star of the show, bagungon. One has to come early during market day so that one will be able to choose the best kinds.
Fresh gabi (yam) is the next important ingredients of the dish.
My sister-in-law added takway (roots runner of a yam) to make the dish more interesting.
Pamahaw Again!
June 22, 2010
Pamahaw (breakfast in Hiligaynon) is such an exciting meal for me. One will never know what is in store until the food is served at the table. And today, though I am on my emergency trip here in Iloilo, my sister-in-law Bibit demonstrated her expertise in preparing food once again. She just came from the market this morning to procure the best and the freshest foodstuff available. Unfortunately, this is the part I particularly miss in Canada, getting fresh foodstuff for breakfast. Now, check this one out because, this is not your “normal” North American breakfast. I call this SEAFOODS BREAKFAST!
FISH SOUP. It's hard to think of fish for breakfast in the morning, let alone in a soup. This one is tanguegue or blue marlin.
SINABAWAN NGA TANGUEGUE, Ilonggo-style with lots of ripe tomatoes and chilly pepper. How refreshing this is.!
They call this "nylon" shell as the surface markings looks like weaved nylon. Wouldn't one agree? Now, some of my Caucasian friends will find this exaggerated but, it is true! We had seafoods breakfast this morning. It may looked like lunch or dinner but, it is breakfast or pamahaw!
TORTANG LUBO-LUBO. Also known as tabios to some areas here, is dubbed as the smallest fish in the world. Eaten plain or with ketchup, is a pamahaw favourite among Ilonggos.
Chicken on a Stick
June 18, 2010
Nowadays, different Asian foods are readily available at your local grocery stores, including your local Asian stores. They are readily made and easy to cook that one saves a lot of time due to tedious preparation. Take for example Chicken Teriyake. This Japanese food is so popular that they are available in so many forms and presentation. This one caught my chef’s attention as it is on a skewer. All we have to do is to grill it in our BBQ grill and, presto, an instant meal with a flair.
The flavor is so authentic that makes it very appetizing especially for my fuzzy Canadian eaters.
If desired, you can add extra Teriyaki sauce. Voila! An authentic Japanese meal on a hot summmer day.
Pinapaitan
June 16, 2010
Thinking about entrails as to how it is prepared region upon region in the Philippines, PINAPAITAN or it’s close counterpart, NILA-GA come into my mind. These two local cuisines come close to each other that, a single ingredient makes the comparison really close. Without asking, most people knows that pinapaitan is an Ilocano dish made of internal organs (liver, small intestine, tripe and lungs, usually of goat’s origin plus papait (intestinal juice) or apro (bile).
Pinapaitan is a very delicious dish. Ask any Ilocano and you will get a high rating of this kind of stew. It is basically made of entrails of goat or cow and with the stew "apro" or "papait" is added. To mask the stench of the internal organs, they added garlic ginger and spring onion or hot pepper.
My chef added tripe, sliced into strips and added apro (bile). Papait (intestinal juice) can also be used but very tedious to prepare it, not to mention the stench. Usually, when the latter is used (most Ilocano prefers this) the resulting stew has stronger aroma akin to entrails. For the uninitiated connoisseur, I recommend the former, though more bitter but, has less stench.
My chef prepares a modified pinapaitan as she knows my preference.
Ilonggo Foods in Lakewood
June 13, 2010
There were mixed feelings in the air as my visit in Los Angeles drew near its end. Everyone were exuberant and yet, traces of nostalgia peered in my eyes. It’s all about family bonding that just started and, now it will temporarily pause as I head back to Canada. Thank goodness, Ilonggo foods did a perfect job filling in the void of that nostalgic moment. Now, let’s check out what my cousin Beth from LA made for the farewell dinner.
Beth was so proud to let everyone savor her version of PANCIT MOLO. It was indeed, authentic!
Estofadong Dila. Another special dish that she prepared for the very special occasion. Beth knows exactly how to prepare ox tongue so that it will be very tender, flavorful and free from any after taste. This surprised guests as they had no single hint that it's ox tongue.
A very unique chop suey with young corn and pogo eggs.
Chicken Macaroni salad ala Ilonggo style.
Shanghai lumpia
Everyone's favourite, the Cassava cake.
Does this shot looked quite familiar? Mango, sliced them up.
Another load of desserts, piyaya, maja and cassava cake.
Mekeni in San Antonio
June 9, 2010
My venture for Filipino restaurants in the U.S. was just beginning. Somehow, my cousin Dennis is also hooked on foods! Without hesitation, he scooted us today to a Kapampangan restaurant called Mekeni (meaning COME!). The owner is a Chinese married to a Filipina who incidentally, is also have a Filipino store in the area. They practically serve favourite Kapampangan cuisine and other Filipino foods. The ambiance is typical Filipino restaurant, a decent one I would say compared to other similar restaurants. One has the freedom to choose their food combination as this is a “turo-turo” or buffet-style of eating. The owner and the kitchen staff are very friendly and one will feel the welcoming spirit that we expect from Filipinos.
The foods they serve are quite flavorful and one will surely reconnect their Filipino tastebuds.
Seafoods are one of the main features of this restaurant. A variety of dishes are available.
Native desserts are endless! Here puto cochinta, pichi-pichi, dila-dila, biko, cassava cake and ginataan.
Texas Steak! Great Steak!
June 7, 2010
At the moment, I am enjoying my trip here in San Antonio, Texas, inclusive of the Sleep Conference I am in for the next 3 days. This is trip is not just a double treat but, a quadruple one. First, I got the chance to visit Texas, then meet up with my cousin for the very first time and, then have the freedom to savor the best steak in town! My cousin, Dennis of San Antonio, Texas honed at my weakness effortlessly… STEAK! The first hint I gave him instantly rolled us down to Saltgrass Steak House where the ambiance was superlative, the wait guys were as friendly and accommodating as they could be BUT, the most important is the food they serve. I zeroed in quite easily on their specialty 2-inch steak called Blue Cheese Butter Steak which is basically a center cut Fillet Mignon done medium-rare drizzled with blue cheese and butter sauce. My mouth was already watery when my order came in. Check this one out!
Butter Blue Cheese Steak, a center cut Fillet Mignon. This is my first time to eat steak with blue cheese sauce. It was so good that I rated it "the best steak" so far. The sauce was not overpowering, just enough blue cheese flavor blending with the steak. For the price of US$29 it was well worth it!
As I have said, this is my first time to have a steak sauce made of blue cheese and butter. An excellent combination.
My cousin Dennis ordered grilled salmon steak.
Tortilla soup, a very innovative Mexican kind of a soup. Spicy too!
Laswa or Dinengdeng? As You Like it!
June 6, 2010
I would like to remain in the middle between my Ilonggo and Ilocano readers here in Ilonggo Living when it comes to figuring out which native cuisine is the best. I am in a difficult predicament as my chef is an Ilocano and the commentator (yours truly) is an Ilonggo. Over the years, some of my chef’s Ilocano culinary has been “fused” with Ilonggo style of cooking and, vice versa. Depending how one looks at it … ” a half full glass or, a half empty one”. You will be the judge and, you are allowed for your own opinion. But, remember, photos can be deceiving sometimes so, if you ask my opinion, the venerated “taste test” will settle the dispute.
Take for example, the grueling difference between LASWA and DINENGDENG. To some uninitiated eyes (and palate), one could be mistaken easily from the other by either an Ilonggo or Ilocano. Unless, one has truly savored laswa and dinendeng, then it would be difficult to distinguish one from the other. Let alone the different kinds of vegetables used for each dish. As I have mentioned before, the main difference is the soup base. That’s all there is to it! Dinengdeng is bagoong-based (salted fish), whereas, laswa is not. So, if one adds bagoong in laswa then , it becomes dinengdeng. And, vice versa, take the bagoong out from the dinengdeng, then it becomes laswa! I hope I did not confuse you, my dear readers! Let’s have a look at them.
This vegetable can be identified easily by an Ilonggo. O course, it is ALUGBATI... ONLY grown in the Western Visayas region, particularly in Iloilo. It belongs to the spinach family and come into two varieties, the red (above) and the green one. Ilonggo loves alugbati in their laswa or mongo dish.
Alugbati with pasayan (shrimps), a variation of our venerated laswa. Thanks to Jorp of Flavours of Iloilo for lending this photo.
The basic LASWA. The soup base is just plain water mixed with the different local vegetable seasoned with plain salt.
This vegetable can be spotted easily by Ilocanos. It's called bungon or alukon (Birch flowers). They are flowers from a tree that gets harvested in the Ilocos region. My first encounter with alukon was in Baguio and I instantly liked it. It has the flavor and consistency of saluyot (jute). When cooked it becomes slimmy! Here in North America, it's available frozen at your local Asian grocery stores.
Here, the dinendeng looks very sumptuous. One can easily identify the alukon combined with the other local vegetables. Take note that the soup base is made of bagoong, a signature of the Ilocano cooking.
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