Pretty Bento

Claire shared me this link about lunch bentos made creatively by a Filipina who is suprisingly not living in Japan. Her entries are so fun to read and her bentos make me envy of her rich imagination. Check it out too and be inspired. When I have time, I plan to raid the 100 yen shop for bento goodies and try to make myself one.

Marriage on Weekends

Last Sunday hubby and I watched the weekend fountain show at the Canal City while sharing a Y103 ice cream on a cold autumn night. That building infront is the Hyatt Hotel, on the second floor is where Hubby took me for an official date and where he proposed his love for me. Charing! He treated me on a Y10,000 tabehoudai dinner, it has the most delicious looking buffet table I have ever seen, too bad I wasn't able to eat well that night because I was so restless. It was a torture looking at the mouthwatering lobster that I was afraid to eat coz hindi ako marunong kumain nun na hindi nakakamay.. hehehe. But I made Dan promise to take me there again on our first year anniversary.. or maybe this Christmas na lang kaya... hmm...

Chinese Again

I miss my friends in Cebu, I mean my friends from my previous company in Cebu, especially now that everyone of us are in different parts of the world (Georgia will soon be in UK, Claire is in the US, Crys and Arlene in Singapore..etc). Which makes it impossible to imagine that one day we are going to gather together like we used to. One thing that we usually do in Cebu was eat at our favorite chinese restaurant, Harbor City of which their Lahug branch we frequently visit. And where we always order their Steamed Rice that used to cost only P30 per bowl..(pila na kaha ni karon?). That is why I suddenly had the craving for it. It's been years since I last had my fill because it is not available at any chinese restaurant in Manila (even here in Japan), it's uniquely from Cebu so when I miss the food in Cebu, it's not their Lechon that first comes to mind, but instead the Harbor City steamed rice!

So I asked Claire for her mom's steamed rice recipe, bought myself a steamer last week but only got to cook it last Sunday morning because I couldn't stop my craving anymore (dili ko buntis oi). I thought, I already have the recipe, then why settle on reminiscing?

I altered the recipe to make use of what we have at home because we haven't gone to the grocery yet, so I had very limited supplies. The recipe calls for a lot of vetsin(which is expected in a chinese recipe), I tried to stay away from it but I couldn't get the kick and spunk I was craving for so I gave in and put a small dash of Maggi Magic Sarap on the sauce.

And this is my first attempt to make Pork Steamed Rice. It's not as brown as the one from Cebu coz I used Japanese Toyo, which I think has less coloring. But overall it tastes close to it. =) My hubby haven't gone to Harbor City so he couldn't really relate to it but he ate 2 servings. Yatta! Thanks Claire for sending recipe! =)

Haay... I miss the chitchats, laughter and fun that used to go with it back then. =)

Pork Steamed Rice

Ingredients:
Cooked Rice
Pork, peeled Shrimp (or Pork lang kung walang shrimp I used dried ebi for garnish)
Green Peas
Onion, minced
Sesame oil
for Sauce:
3 cups water
1/2 Pork Cube
2 tbsp Cornstarch dissolved in water
3 tbsp Toyo
salt and pepper to taste
for Meat:
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp vinegar
garlic
pepper to taste

1. Put the cooked rice on separate bowls that is safe for steaming. Set aside.
2. Mix the ingredients for the meat with the meat and marinate it for 30 minutes.
3. Fry the marinated meat until brown then set aside.
4. To do the sauce, Mix the pork cube with water and Toyo. Saute the onion with butter or sesame oil. Pour in the sauce, simmer. Then add in the dissolved cornstarch while stirring, add in the green peas, and the meat. Simmer again. If it is too malapot, add water and adjust the taste with salt, toyo and pepper. Add a dash of vetsin or Maggi Magic Sarap.
5. Pour it in the bowls of rice. Then Steam for 15 minutes.

Lasagna for the very first Time!

Lasagna ala Juliet, Maila and Ria

One thing I love in this country is that they have a lot of holidays. Yesterday was Grandmother's day or something like that so Juliet, Maila and I had time for a baking fest at their home. We went to the nearest market to buy ingredients for Lasagna and I was assigned to make a list of the ingredients to buy. But bad me got all the recipes we read from the internet all mixed up and ended up buying some stuff that are not in the recipe that we picked. So as not to waste the unneeded ingredients, we opted to make our very own Lasagna recipe.

It was our first time to make a Lasagna because we all grew up without an oven so we just based it according to how we perceive an ideal Lasagna should be. It is like a spaghetti but only it uses a different kind of pasta and arranged in layers. And so we did. Now I know that the distinct smell of Lasagna came from Oregano.

We had lots of fun, we took turns in test-tasting the sauce para walang sisihan. The end result was kind of soggy lasagna which we realized, it was short of flour but it was DELICIOUS! Maila's Japanese boyfriend even said that it tasted like it was cooked in the restaurant and ate half of the pan. Indeed a success. The boys are even clamming for more. Well, iba na talaga when it is made with laughter and love.

After that we baked Banana Cake for dessert which is medyo palpak but I will post the recipe sometime when it has been perfected.

Anyways, here is the recipe of Lasagna ala Juliet, Maila and Ria:

ingredients:

9 pcs 2 inch wide lasagna noodles

3 cups Tomato Sauce

1.5 cups Milk

400 grams ground beef

white onion chopped

Mozarella Cheese

Butter

Oregano

Basil

Garlic Powder

Salt and Pepper

3 tbsp Flour

How to:

Cook the lasagna noodles like spaghetti noodles for 4 minutes. set aside. Mix the tomato sauce and the milk then set aside. saute the ground beef with the onion and set aide. In a separate pan, melt the butter, pour in the mixed tomato sauce w/milk, add in the flour while mixing constantly until it thickens. Add in the ground pork, and oregano, basin, garlic powder and salt and pepper to your taste. I prefer lots of oregano.

Spread thin layer of the sauce on the pan. Then layer it with lasagna noodles, sauce and mozzarella cheese in order. Bake it for 15-20 minutes. Serve hot with a dash of parmesan cheese and love. charing!

Ikot-Ikot

If I am not in the mood to cook for dinner and neither does my hubby, fastfood chains like McDo or Jollibee(ay wala palang joliibee dito), is in the least of our options. Instead, we go to the 4th floor of Yodobashi where our favorite Ikot-Ikot restaurant is located. We call it Ikot-Ikot coz first, we don't know how it is called in Japanese, second the food pass by infront of you through a revolving counter. It's like a walkalator for sushis, maki, french fries, karage(fried chicken), calamares and even desserts, each plate costs Y105 or Y157 for the desserts. Except for beverages which you can get from the vending machine at the entrance. This is the real fastfood. You just grab a seat, chopsticks, wasabe and kikkoman, select from the revolving choices and if your object of desire is not among them or somebody from the other side got to it first, don't fret coz you can just push the intercom infront of you and order from that menu, but you have to know how to read kanji or hiragana or else you just have to make do with what is infront of you. hehe.

So this is our quick fix to our laziness and hunger combined tonight after my hubby's client meeting. And we leave the place never have to be guilty about how much junk of carbo or oil we took in. And because of that I got entitled to eat my favorite ice cream at Lawson for dessert! Yey!

our dinner costs Y945 for two

High School Life

I found these highschool questions from Idel's blog and I thought it's fun reminiscing the good old days...

Who was your best friend?

I have different sets of friends from 1st year to 3rd year. My closest are my barkada since 3rd year which we called TALFAVA. Abbreviations of our last names hehe. One of them, Langga Teves was one of my bridesmaids during my wedding. And Sue used to be my condomate with Georgia.

What kind of car did you drive?

I don't drive and I can't drive until now. But hatid sundo ako sakay ng aming volkswagen even if our house is just 5 minutes away by trisikad.

It’s Friday night. Where were you?

Home kasi strict ang parents and grandparents ko hehe.

Were you considered a flirt?

When I reached 3rd year and started going out(friendly laag lang gud) with the basketball varsity team from the Chinese school, some started labeling our barkada as flirt. Plus I was friends with one of the flirtest girls in school that even my kuya was warning me of not to get influenced by her.

But actually I only flirted with one person for 4 years, and he's not from other school but my seatmate.

Were you in the band, orchestra, or choir?

Ngek no talent on that area.

Were you a nerd?

I wear skinny jeans while ambil or bell bottom was the fad.. but I am not a nerd.

Who was your favorite teacher?

A lot. Mrs. Baldovino my english teacher, I learned a lot from her and I guess she is the reason why even the most stupid student in Ateneo can speak good english. and Mr. Potestas my Math teacher because he is so funny. And Father Reyes in Theology... because he is the most handsome priest I have ever met and until now I couldn't figure out why he calls me "Miss I love you!" maybe he could see the lust in my eyes? hehe

Speaking of teachers, I hate my H.E. teacher Mrs. Misa (may she rest in peace) because she threw a potholder at me when I did not separate the 1st gata from the 2nd for the chicken curry, and I screwed up on the baking class. I threw 1 dozen of eggs in the canal because I did not separate the yellow from the white for the chiffon cake. Heller, I didn't know it was that important to separate the egg! At nilapastangan niya ang unfinished stuffed toy ko kasi mali daw ang paggupit ko.. but after I passed it, I saw my work at the exhibit, it turned out to be one of the best. Ayaw pa kasing maniwala na kaya kong ayusin yun. That is why until now I still keep the stuffed toy, it reminds me not to judge the book until it is finished. hehe!

What was your school mascot?

A blue knight.

Did you go to the Prom?

Of course! We were made to line up and meet our random partner at the stage. While waiting for our turn I had a fight with my barkada Ella and because of that I left her and went to the back of the line. It turned out, she got to be the partner of our crush Angelo Aquino and I had a forgettable partner tsk! It could have been me if I didn't move an inch.

The prom was a blah! but it was fun after because we met up with our boy-friends from the chinese school at The Spam's, the hip disco bar at that time. That was my first time to go out at night with boys!

Did you have a job your senior year?

Nope, i was not allowed to get a job, though I wanted to apply as a summer crew in Jollibee.

Did you go to school with anyone who is now famous?

Juris of MYMP, Jinky of Freestyle who sang the most beautiful Lupang Hinirang during school programs. She should sing it in one of Pacquiao's fight.

Did you go to a senior trip?

Just the senior recollection.

Have you gone to a class reunion?

December last year, we had our first batch reunion. It was fun to see the people you've grown to be with since nursery. Since we are already adults, there were no more social barriers, I even got to talk to the most elusive bachelor in our school for the very first time. And I was able to ask straight to his face the question that I wanted to ask him back then, "kaya ba wala ka pang nagiging girlfriend kasi bakla ka?". Bwehehe ...

Chinese for Dinner

my Chicken Wings with Oyster Sauce

For a balanced meal, I see to it that we have vegetables for dinner because lunch baons are often the quick-to-prepare-meals like fried pork, fried chicken, breaded shrimps..etc. Tonight I had a craving for some chinese meal, some familiar dish that is usually served in our favorite chinese restaurant (saan pa ba?). So I thought of the beef in oyster sauce, but we can't afford beef here in Japan so I settled for what I have in the fridge, chicken wings and brocolli, and found this recipe from my favorite site in the internet which I adjusted to suit my taste. Unlike in Chinese restaurants, this has no added MSG so it's safe and you won't get dizzy after eating. hehe. My hubby and I loved the result of my first oriental main dish, so I am sharing this recipe for you to try. Go! it's as easy as dialing for a Chinese takeout.

Ingredients:

6 Chicken Wings
3 tbsp Soy Sauce
Spring Onions (sa bisaya pa sibuyas dahon)
Ginger (luy-a, the amount depends on how you like ginger on your food)
Brocolli florettes

for the sauce:
3 tbsp Oyster Sauce
1 tbsp Sugar
1/2 tbsp Salt
dash of pepper
1 cup of water

thickener:
dissolve 1 tbsp cornstarch in 2 tbsp of water

Steps:
1. Cut the Chicken in the joints and discard the small parts. (I kept them for the Sotanghon I am planning to make).
2. Wash the Chicken and mix them with the Soy Sauce (for added taste, I sprinked some Lemon Pepper powder). Let it stay for 10-20 minutes.
3. Steam the brocolli for 3-4 minutes then line them on the serving plate. (we don't have a steamer so I just used this metal plate with stand and place inside the caserole with water).
4. Deep fry the chicken then set aside. Since my hubby is so conscious of his oil intake, I drained the oil on the abura paper.
5. On a different pan, (or you can wash the pan where you fried the chicken), heat 2 tbsp of oil, saute the spring onion and the ginger until fragrant.
6. Put in the Chicken and the Oyster sauce mix, cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to about 1/2 cup.
7. Put in the thickener, mix until the sauce thickens, then pour into the serving plate with the brocolli.

I really love to cook! especially now that we have bigger kitchen, affordable kitchen gadgets from the 100 yen shop and of course, someone to cook for. I am hoping that I can post more successful recipes here. Actually, cooking has become my stress reliever, today I couldn't make my JXTA MembershipService code to work, I was breaking my back(literally) for the whole day for nothing. It was such a relief being able to make a successful dish that I was craving for or else, I would have called today officially a bad day.

I am also itching to try my hands on baking, my mouth has been drooling for dessert recipes in the internet that is why I am so excited to use the new oven at Maila's house. I hope to post my first cake or brownie recipe here.