Pancake House: Adobo Sulipan

The good thing about Pancake House is that they are more than just a fancy pancake place, they also offer delectable meals at affordable prices. I hate to sound like a fanboi but I’m pretty sure that many foodies share my sentiments.

Pancake House does not have a lot of offerings in their menu so it would be very possible to try them all out in a span of two weeks. But since I cannot dine in the same place for consecutive weeks (exception: McDonald’s and Burger King), I’ve only tried about half of the menu, the latest of which is the Adobo Sulipan.

Adobo is such a common meal served in households any day of the week so I was in no hurry to order one (or any of its variations). As fate would have it, I have this foodie friend who persuaded me to try the Adobo Sulipan. I could tell that she was willing to bet her life (or her HP DV3) just to prove that the food is as good as she described it. I could have lied and told her I didn’t like it and run off with her HP DV3, but really, the Adobo was so good that I would probably bump it up to number 10 in my Top 10 favorite food list.

Adobo Sulipan is a meal of chicken and pork adobo with pickled kangkong (water spinach), tomatoes, sliced hardboiled eggs and rice. It has large chunks of garlic so you might want to remove them (as I did).  I was not too crazy about the pickled kangkong but it cuts the richness of the adobo. It gives the right amount of sweetness to the salty and garlicky taste of the adobo.

(Apologies, I already took a few bites before I took the pic. I blame hunger.)

Fast Food Faves and time it takes to burn them…oh gawd

Sarah Fuss of Yahoo Food wrote a very interesting yet disturbing article about fast food favorites and the  time it takes to burn the calories in exercise minutes. Granting that the equivalence measurement is correct, I am totally bothered by the suggested workouts that I have to undergo just to burn out the calories. Take the case of a Choco Frosted Dunkin Donut. It certainly is less sinful than, say, a chocolate brownie or a cheesecake, but it packs 230 calories. The recommended exercise: 59 minutes of walking.  If you fancy a slice of large Pizza Hut Hand-Tossed Style Cheese Pizza, then be prepared to endure 39 minutes of  swimming. You get the picture, yeah?

I am not so sure if I should subject myself to such “harsh conditions” but I think I have reached a point in my life wherein I no longer gain weight and I don’t lose them either. It would be nice to find time to exercise but the sheer joy and satisfaction I get from wolfing down a Whopper or two is just priceless. Anyway, in the long run, we’re all dead.

Red Bull Banned in Germany after cocaine test

I am not sure what to make of this headline.

Six German states have told retailers to stop selling Red Bull Cola energy drinks after a test found a trace amount of cocaine.The bans started Friday after a sample test conducted by authorities in North Rhine-Westphalia state found 0.4 micrograms per liter in the drink.

Two things came to mind: a)  junkies will buy more Red Bull; and b) Red Bull junkies will be sent to jail for violation of narcotics law.

But then again, 0.4 micrograms per liter?  Isn’t this an overreaction on the part of the 6 German states?

What’s bothering me is that I suddenly have this urge to hoard all the Red Bull in the nearby 7-11…

Pizza Saved My Life Tonight

I was majorly pissed about a work-related incident that I was mouthing expletives at 120 miles per hour. Truth be told, I rarely cuss, swear, or say bad things, but there are people who just bring out the worst in you. I just can’t shake off the anger inside me so I went shopping. There was no significant change in my mood after buying 2 pairs of pants, a shirt, and 100 grams of mint balls. There’s got to be something that will help make the anger subside…and that something is this…

I <3 Sbarro

Lechon Ahoy!

Lechon is one of the most popular “fiesta” foods in the Philippines.  To the uninitiated, it is a roasted whole pig  – prepared differently depending on which part of the Island you end up partying in.  Cebu (south of the Philippines) is famous for its lechon. In fact, when  Anthony Bourdain visited the place, he only had three words to say about the lechon: “BEST PIG EVER” (watch it here, I’m not kidding!). It’s probably the cholesterol kicking in that made him fall into a gastronomic stupor, but who cares?! It’s not always you get to hear a superlative from Anthony Bourdain.

I have not eaten lechon in years (perhaps 8 years or so). The main reason is that I had to cut down on my pork intake after my bout with hypertension. My friends from Cebu promised to take me lechon-hopping  if and when we get together in Cebu. In my mind I know it will happen but not soon enough, so I went to check out the lechon hotspots in the  area where I live. I found about 5 lechon stalls a few blocks from each other. The 4 stalls only sell whole pigs. The fifth stall has a little restaurant (Lechon Ahoy!) so I ordered the lechon value meal for $4. The meal includes lechon, rice, pancit and iced tea.

As you can see, the portions are for little people. The pancit was salty and soggy so it was a big letdown. The lechon was good but it’s forgettable. Perhaps I had very high expectations given that I have not had a taste in years and the Cebu lechon has been on my mind for some time. Again, the lechon was good but it didn’t quite hit the spot.

Tilapia is Safe To Eat

Marko99 sent a link to the article clarifying that Tilipia is indeed safe to eat. A few months back, there were reports that Tilapia is rich in Omega-6, which was then considered as the BAD fatty acid. Here’s what the experts had to say:

In explaining the specifics of the omega-3 versus omega-6 debate, the researchers note that omega-6s are not only found in fish like tilapia, but vegetable oils, nuts, whole-wheat bread and chicken. They go on to highlight the fact that the American Heart Association and the American Dietetic Association agree that, “omega-6 fatty acids are, like omega-3s, heart-healthy nutrients which should be part of everyone’s diet.”

There. That clears things up. Many of us were led to believe that eating Tilapia is a no-no. I’m one of those who stopped eating Tilapia after I read the reports and then stuffed myself with greasy fast food meals. How idiotic is that?

I’d like to make an apology to the Tiliapia-kind and I promise to put back Tilapia in the family menu. In fact, I’ll have a Tilapia party this weekend! I <3 Tilapia.

Image from:http://www.robdoyle.co.uk/fish.gif

Thanks Marko99 for the heads-up.

My Liquid Chill Pill

Mah homie from work says she’s so cool that she doesn’t need no stinking chill pill.  Fine. She’s a seratonin factory disguised as an office drone like many others I know. I call my chill pill, natural supplements  – because that’s what it says on the label. There are times when the events of the day are too overwhelming that my nerves start to go on overdrive. Not many people understand this, but if not controlled, this can lead to panic attacks or anxiety attacks. Of course, leading a healthy lifestyle and a having a happy fulfilled life can combat such “disorder”. Unfortunately, only aliens can have both, hence, the need for a chill pill.

A chill pill can be a medicine, a hobby, a sport, or anything that helps reduce stress levels caused by life. Whatever floats your boat, man! I have a few on my list and have added one more…..

It’s a clear carbonated flavoured drink. It’s another one of those fancy drinks that has a short product life span. I say this because the they are not advertised and you don’t see them in mass quantities in supermarkets. Plus, if people want carbonated drinks, they go for Coke or Pepsi. But what I like about this drink is that it tastes like lemon water. It’s refereshing and best of all, I like the transparent can. It’s all in the packaging, baby!

5-Minute Chinese Noodles

A friend from work called me up and asked for an alternative for Hoisin sauce. I could have told her to grab a bottle of barbecue sauce but that would be unforgivable. Instead, I told her to mix Oyster sauce, Kikkoman dark soy sauce, sugar, water and cornstarch. I heard silence at the other end. I assumed she just went to get pen and paper to write down the ingredients (though I thought I heard a little snicker here and there. I will never know…).  Perhaps it sounded more like a poison sauce rather than Hoisin. If she reports for work today, I can heave a sigh of relief. I just hope that the 2 other people at her place would be as lucky.

The pseudo Hoisin mixture that I have suggested is actually a normal sauce combination for Chinese cooking. I never paid too much attention at culinary school but I know that Chinese cuisine is so obssessed with balancing the sweet, salty, and spicy. Of course, Chinese cooking is also notoriously known for the liberal use of MSG and fat (mostly from chicken skin). Chinese cuisine is perhaps my least favorite, but my family prefers it over the Euro trash that I prepare for them. That’s why I have perfected the Chinese sauce mixture if and when the occasion calls for it.

That occasion is today. There’s a 1 week old dried egg noodles in the fridge and a can of mushroom in the cupboard. With the Chef Yoji magic Chinese sauce, an instant Chinese Mushroom Noodles was born.

Preparation+ Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Eating Time: 1 minute

Washing the dishes: 10 minutes

*Variation – add Lee Kum Kee Chi Chou Chili Sauce if you want tongue-numbing HOTness. Consequently, the eating time becomes 2.5 minutes.

It’s All in the Beer

I had this urge to make fish and chips after watching Bobby Flay in Youtube.  It was an old episode of Throwdown where Bobby lost to the fish and chips god in New York. Bobby doesn’t win all the time which makes the show very interesting. I like seeing famous (and overrated) chefs get a beating.

It was quite late to go to the fish market to I decided to go to the supermarket. Sometimes, fresh fish can be found in the supermarket, if you know the schedule. Unfortunately, the only fish in the supermarket are not fish and chips material. To cut the story short, I bought chicken breast fillet. I reckoned since I only wanted to create a fish and chips batter, the chicken would be a good substitute.

I’ve always wanted to make a light, fluffy, and crunchy coating for chicken (or fish or pork) but I always fail miserably. The problem was in the batter. I throw in so many things in the batter that the final coating becomes heavy. I tried the tempura batter but it was not crispy. I watched Gordon Ramsay, I watched Jamie Oliver, I watched Bobby Flay, and I watched chefs and ordinary people make the fish and chips batter. Believe it or not, each of them prepare the batter differently.With so many variations, I decided to stick to the basics: — Flour, Cold Water, Salt, Pepper, and BEER.

Beer has been used in cooking so it shouldn’t really be a surprise, but it was the key ingredient that makes the coating light and fluffy and crunchy. It’s perfect for fish, but it works great with chicken as well. You don’t really need to be fancy with the seasoning  but you can go crazy with the dip. I made a mayo-honey-mustard dip because they’re the only ingredients I have on the fridge. It turned out to be a perfect match for the chicken.

Here’s the final product:

My next project will be real FISH and CHIPS…NOT a chicken disguised as a fish….

Maggot Cheese

I am quite adventurous when it comes to food but there are things that can really be so disgusting that putting them in my mouth is out of the question.  If you watch Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre Foods, you’ll have a fairly good idea of how one country’s food can be another’s poison and you’ll know where to draw the line. Zimmern says  there’s a psychological barrier that prevents us from trying out foods that are very different from what we are accustomed to consuming. He has a point, but I need that barrier in certain situations – perhaps in an awkward situation where a host offers me a generous serving of Maggot Cheese on my toast.

I am not a cheese person but I’d try the stinkiest cheese around. However, a tub of cheese with creepy crawly maggots dancing and putting their tails up in the air like they just don’t care….may be a little too much for my stomach to take. There’s just some things that I am not keen on trying. But then again between bungee jumping and the maggot cheese eating, I might be crazy enough to do the latter.

Italian Maggot Cheese or Casu Marzu, as the name suggests, is a maggot-infested cheese that is eaten in Sardinia. Gordon Ramsay featured this in his show, F-Word. Watch it here.

If you are too lazy to watch, then let me summarize:

1. Fresh milk from the sheep is used to make Pecorino cheese

2. Cure for 3 weeks

3. Invite the flies to lay their eggs in the cheese

4. Cheese is left for 2 to 3 months in a dark cool hut to allow the eggs to hatch into larvae

5. Eat

It certainly is not for the usual bunch of foodies and only the most curious would dare subject himself/herself  to the dangers of eating maggots. Would you eat something that eats you back?