Tag: main course
Sweet and Sour Cuttlefish Balls
Sweet and Sour Cuttlefish Balls
Fish balls are eaten in pretty much all Asian cultures in various forms. They are mostly eaten in noodle or soup based dishes, but can be eaten as an appetizer or as a main course. For this recipe, I used cuttlefish balls. You can use regular fish, shrimp, lobster, or any other variation. I’m partial to the Dodo brand frozen fish balls: more fish, less filler.The most important thing to remember is to make sure the fish balls are completely defrosted before deep frying. If not, your oil will spatter all over and the fish balls won’t reach the desired crispiness. They will end up absorbing the oil, making them mushy. Once submerged in the oil, they only take 5-6 minutes. Drain them on paper towel. Combine all of the sweet and sour sauce ingredients and cook over medium heat just for a minute. Add the cuttlefish balls back in and coat in the sauce. Garnish with sesame seeds.
Ingredients
- 20 cuttlefish balls defrosted
- vegetable oil for frying
Sweet and Sour Sauce
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tsp sriracha
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp oyster sauce
- 2 tsp vegetable oil
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
Instructions
- Heat up a pot of cooking oil over medium high heat that is deep enough to have the cuttlefish balls completely submerged. Add the cuttlefish balls. Fry for 5-6 minutes until they are crispy.
- Drain on paper towel.
- Heat up 2 tsp of cooking oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add in the ketchup, sugar, sriracha, and oyster sauce. Simmer for just a minute.
- Add the fried cuttlefish balls back into the sauce. Cook for 1 more minute, making sure they are evenly coated in the sauce.
- Garnish with sesame seeds.
Lechon Manok
Lechon Manok
Lechon Manok is a Filipino-style roast chicken. The chicken is marinated in a toyomansi marinade while the cavity is stuffed with lemongrass. Traditionally, the chicken is spit roasted over coals. This recipe is roasted in the oven on a rack for 90 minutes. If you want to create a glaze for the chicken, pour the remaining marinade in a kettle. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 5-7 minutes until the marinade has thickened. Brush the glaze on the chicken every 10 minutes for the last 30 minutes of cooking. Let the chicken rest for 1% minutes before carving.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 4 lb whole chicken
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 stalk lemongrass
Marinade
- 1 cup calamansi juice
- 1/4 cup soy ssuce
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 head garlic minced
- 4 shallots chopped
Instructions
- Mix all of the marinade ingredients together.
- Season the whole chicken with salt and pepper, especially underneath the skin. Place in a gallon sized ziplock bag. Pour the marinade into the bag. Marinate for 8 hours, preferably overnight.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken on a rack on a pan lined in foil. Peel the outside off of the lemongrass. Cut the stalk in half and pound it flat a few times. Stick inside the cavity of the chicken.
- Roast the chicken for 85-90 minutes. Let rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Filipino-Style Spaghetti
Filipino-Style Spaghetti
I have to say, when I first learned about this recipe, I was kind of turned off. Hotdogs in a bolognese sauce??? Banana ketchup??? What high ass would come up with such a thing? I was really curious about how this would taste. So I kept an open mind and prepared it. Hands down this is one of the best spaghetti sauces I’ve ever eaten. The sauce is a lot sweeter than traditional Italian bolognese from the banana ketchup. The hotdogs add a smokey, salty, porkiness that is so necessary to the flavor. Give this recipe a try. Seriously, some of the best comfort food that I’ve had in a long time.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 Filipino hotdogs sliced
- 1 medium onion diced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 1 bell pepper diced
- 1 lb ground beef
- 2 cups tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup tomato paste
- 1 cup banana ketchup
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1 tbsp sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 lb dry spaghetti noodles cooked
Instructions
- Heat up cooking oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Sauté the Filipino hotdogs for 4 minutes. Set aside.
- Sauté the onions, garlic, and bell peppers for 5 minutes.
- Add in the ground beef, breaking up all of the clumps. Brown for 8 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, banana ketchup, beef stock, sugar, salt, and pepper. Simmer covered over medium heat for 30 minutes.
- Add back in the hotdogs. Simmer for another 10 minutes.
