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 July, 2010
Shabu-Shabu at Queens
No doubt this post can not past the pages of Ilonggo Living without getting recognition. Shabu-shabu is a unique way of cooking practiced among Koreans and Japanese, as well. If one get the chance to visit an authentic Korean or Japanese resto, it is easy to recognize they offer shabu-shabu cooking. The presence of a stove built in to the table and a smoke hood over it will ensure one will enjoy shabu-shabu cooking. For us, it was our first and for sure, not the last to enjoy such way of preparing food.
This soup is prepared the healthy way, without the use of cooking oil.
The raw materials are basically vegetables and fish paper. One has the option of adding fish sauce (patis), soy sauce, sesami oil and chili oil.
A huge stainless steel bowl with water and added spices is all that is needed. Once the soup base simmers then one can add the rest of the ingredients.
Rice noodles (sotanghon) is an option for making shabu-shabu.
Double Japanese Treat in NYC
It was a wonderful weekend stay in New York City and, I have to share with you a very exciting unplanned rendezvous at the Japanese restaurants in the said city. It all started a day before at a Korean restaurant at Queens borough having our Korean shabu-shabu lunch. As if it was the culmination of our gastronomic experience in New York but, it was not. The following day, after our tour of Central Park on a sweltering heat, we were invited to a birthday party at a Japanese/Korean restaurant. That was quite an experience as the party was set in a Japanese garden. What a lovely way enjoying Japanese cuisine in an authentic ambiance! Since we were invited by another New Yorker friends to a dinner that same day, we ate with caution so as to leave extra room for another bout of indulgence. To our amazement, we were invited to have dinner at another Japanese restaurant in Long Island, New York. We were overwhelmed by the amount and variety of Japanese foods they served in that restaurant. Nowhere to be experienced in Canada, just to keep the records straight. It was an exciting experience, indeed…. Japanese cuisine at its best! And, what could be more exciting than posting this entry while I am in Seoul, South Korea, in transit for my flight to the Philippines. ENJOY!!!
Kosmos special which includes chicken teriyaki, California rolls and shrimps & vegetable tempura.
They call this Momo special, consisting of salmon teriyaki, syumai deep fried fluke. A very good alternative for the vegetarians.
The birthday party at a Japanese restaurant, specifically in a Japanese garden. What could be more authentic than this!
Yuraku Japanese/Korean restaurant at Queens borough. Thanks to Viron, Ching and family for inviting us. It was a memorable experience.
This one is from Minado Japanese restaurant in Long Island, New York. My New Yorker friends Danny and Christine treated us to this huge Japanese resto. Thanks to both of you!
Seafoods galore, including this fresh oysters and king crab legs.
We had the chance to taste all kinds of sushis, sashimis and rolls but, this one caught my attention.. it is fish eggs! This fish egg sushi is made of salmon roe.
Dinengdeng in New York?
After a grueling eight-hour drive from Hamilton, Ontario to New York City, we arrived early Friday morning. This is my 4th trip to the BIG APPLE and, I look forward meeting old acquaintances and family. No trip to the U.S. is ever complete without eating Filipino foods, U.S.A. version that is! Such as dinengdeng, an Ilocano version of our laswa, and, because it is Friday today, I promised myself to go meatless. I hope everyone is alright with the idea. Let’s check out my my “dream deningding“.
Now, you see what I mean. This one is loaded with different local veggies, namely: saluyot, baby zuchinni, lima beans and bungon. Who would have guessed that the "sagpaw" is canned mackerel?
Everyone would agree that this is a sumptuous dinengdeng. My Ilocano friends and readers will totally agree to that!
Baby Bangus (Milkfish)
Bangus or milkfish is one of my favorite fishes and, most probably every Filipino from around the world! Before the advent of boneless or deboned bangus, consuming this kind of fish requires skill to dodge fish bones from lounging into one’s throat. A very uncomfortable predicament. Now a days, boneless bangus are available worldwide, be it in daing form or relyeno format. Bangus are now spawned in fishponds at a larger scale in the Philippines, Taiwan and Indonesia.
Obviously, I like baby bangus as one can virtually eat everything, including its head!
To make the whole baby bangus or milkfish crunchy, one has to deep fry it. Nothing is wasted when this fish is cooked this way.
To make baby bangus more palatable, one can prepare fresh tomato salad. Now that summer is here, fresh field tomatoes are abundant at your local market. One has to add to sliced tomatoes the following: red onion, chives and ginger, then drizzle it up with fish sauce or patis. Get your rice ready!
Side Dishes
Most of my food posts here in Ilonggo Living are main dishes embellished with all the “bells and whistles” to make it more appealing. How about side dishes? True enough, that is why they are called side dishes because they, as the name suggests, have minor role to play with. But for me, I look at side dishes as complimentary with the main course. In the realm of culinary, some side dishes can stand alone as a main dish, at times. And vice versa. It will all depend on “who-what” they are around with, so to speak! Let us check out some of the side dishes.
A perfect example is the Gulai Paku. This can be a main dish or as side dish with rice and fish. The last time we have this, it was treated as main dish.
Another example is liempo or pork belly crunchy or lechon kawali. It can have a dual role of being a main dish or a side dish. As you like it!
Adobong takway and bittermelon salad. More of being side dishes than main one.
Dimsum at North Park, Makati
North Park Makati is a Chinese Dim Sum Restaurant that offers simple dishes at a budget price. It is one of the many restaurants that dots Makati Avenue. Make no mistake when I say budget meals which at times associated with cheap- tasting foods. Not so with North Park! The foods they serve are truly authentic Chinese and exquisitely delicious. Their dim sum entries are varied and sumptuous. Let’s go check it out now!
Their sio mai is simply delicious.
This entree caught my attention because of the name. It is called Cantonese lechon sitting on jasmine garlic rice.
Interestingly enough, this dish is called tofu and fish combo in a sauce.
Ginataang Kasag
My recent trip to the Philippines afforded me to savor favorite foods such as GINATAANG KASAG. It has been a while since I tasted kasag, a kind of crab. It differs from the alimango as the shell is covered with spots and more langky-looking and a very slight difference in flavor. When cooked by itself, with no other ingredients, one can surely differentiate the flavors between kasag and alimango. Nevertheless, today’s dish will surely fire up some salivary glands. Furthermore, with gata or coconut milk, every food tastes good!
This dish is so loaded with different vegetables that will make one salivate.
Fresh tambo or bamboo shoots are abundant in the Philippines. In contrast, here in North America, one is lucky if he/she can have them twice in a row in a span of 1 year! Otherwise, we contend ourselves using canned labong.
Saluyot or tugabang (jute) sold by the bundle. This is freshly uprooted from the farm.
Takway or taro root runners is an optional ingredient. It is slimy when cooked together with the saluyot. I tried to eat as much of this stuff as it is a rarity item in Canada.
Grilled Salmon with an Oriental Twist
July 13, 2010
It seem unthinkable to have fresh salmon fillet or salmon steak for that matter, available in the Philippines. To my surprise my nephew’s wifes’ relative cooked up salmon steak with an Oriental twist. His version of grilled salmon steak is something out of the ordinary compared to the way we dress up salmon here. It really did caught my attention and I was not able to resist getting some few shots of it. After devouring the salmon fillet, I have an hour or two to relax before my scheduled flight back to Canada 12 days ago. Thanks to my nephew Popot and wife Judith, and family of Paranaque for bonding time with his family, albeit it was short. The dinner was sumptuous and a healthy one.
One quick glance, it looks like a regular salmon fillet with mixed vegetables garnishing. But, if one pay close attention to it, there are some unusual garnishing surrounding the fish.
Who would have guessed that the cook adorned the salmon with slices of century eggs!
Those black round thingy are slices of century eggs, which I had blogged about just last year.
Native Delicacies Surprise!
July 11, 2010
Indulging on native delicacies is always in my itinerary every time I go home to the Philippines. Somehow, I got this longing for them that needs to be satisfied constantly. And, now a days, one can have them not just during market days or, from ladies (manuglibod) calling out every afternoon but, ANYTIME at the grocery stores! My “radar” for native delicacies is quite accurate and sensitive that, I can spot them within the vicinity (no matter what). Check it out!
Ibos, puto of different kinds & suman latik from the afternoon manuglibod.
Of all the three, suman latik is my favourite. It is so, as I cannot get them here in Canada. Whereas, puto and suman or ibos are quite abundant here. The sweet and moist latik (coconut jam) seats on top of the bland suman like a jewel on a crown!
An array of native delicacies at the Jaro Public Market during Thursday tienda day. One can fill their eyes (and their stomach, as well) of different varieties of kakanins or native delicacies. Here, one can find different kinds of puto, alupi and suman or ibos in Ilonggo.
Baye-baye, pichi-pichi, cassava cakes and puto kochinta occupies the next bila-o.
This shot I was able to get it from the inside of a grocery store in Makati (with permission). A bit more formal, with different kinds of suman one can choose from.
A bonus of nilagang (boiled) kamote or sweet potato, saba (banana) and sweet corn are also available.
Piping hot boiled peanuts is within easy reach.
Tinolang Bisayang Manok
July 9, 2010
In the past decade, North Americans were trying to revive the value of free running chicken in the culinary scene. I suspected, it has something to do with the exquisite flavor of free-running chicken compared to the ones that are cooped. Well, not in Iloilo, where local people there has been using native chicken or Bisayang manok in their cooking since time immemorial. We have not lost that discerning palate for native chicken. Furthermore, I was lucky enough to savor the Tinolang Bisayang Manok prepared by my sister-in-law last January and again, few weeks ago.
Tinolang Bisaya na Manok (Native Chicken Stew). One of my favorites especially prepared the Ilonggo style with lemongrass and malungay leaves.
The star of the show, Bisaya na manok (native chicken). Popular among Ilonggos, this chicken is more flavorful that the cooped chicken. Albeit, the meat is tougher so, one has to cook it longer or pressure-cook it.
Green papaya or cooking papaya is always added to tinolang manok. One might noticed that the papaya my sister-in-law used in her latest cooking was half ripe.
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