Across The Universe

Across The Universe A++

There are very few movies I've seen that stay with me hours after I've watched it, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE is one of them. I was blown away by the awesome, psychedelic, trippy visuals and of course its music. I am a die hard Beatles fan, own almost all of their CDs and their movies Help, A Hard Day's Night, and Yellow Submarine. I have seen Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band movie a gazzilion times ignoring the fact that some of the songs are performed by a group I never ever listen to (The Bee Gees).
Across The Universe, a rock musical drama is the story of a young man from Liverpool, Jude who comes to the United States to find his American father. The movie is set in the 1960s during the growing protests to the Vietnam war featuring the songs of The Beatles sung by the actors. They are all good with the exception of Evan Rachel Wood who is just okay, not bad but not exceptional. I love the different arrangements/interpretations of the songs and how they are used according to the scene, most especially Stawberry Fields Forever which will never be the same the next time I listen to it. 9 minutes into the movie a cheerleader, Prudence played by T.V. Carpio, more on her later, sings a thoughtful I Wanna Hold Your Hand as she looks with longing at the love she would never have, the song has a completely different meaning. The characters in the movie are all named after TB's songs: Jude, Lucy, Max, Sadie, Jo Jo, Prudence. My favorite characters are Sadie, the up and coming rock star, and her love interest JoJo. There are cameos by Joe Cocker (Come Together), Bono (I Am The Walrus), multiple Salma Hayeks, and Eddie Izzard as Mr. Kite. I highly recommend this movie whether you are a Beatles fan or not.

T.V. Carpio as I have guessed is of Filipino descent. She is the daughter of the half-Filipino Hong Kong singer Teresa Carpio who became famous in Asia in the 1970s. I honestly can't remember what Teresa Carpio looks like or what she sounds like. T.V. Carpio as Prudence appears only 3 or 4 times times, she also sings in the beautiful "Because" scene with the other characters and roller skates in Mr. Kites bigtop show. She also has a very good voice, IMHO.

Robert Rodriguez's Puerco Pibil

I make this super delicious dish at least twice a year since I first saw it featured in Robert Rodriguez's 2003 movie ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO with Antonio Banderas as El Mariachi, Salma Hayek, and Johnny Depp. Johnny Depp's character loves this dish, orders it all the time. He deems the pork dish is so good that he has to shoot the cook, and after eating he went to the kitchen and shot the cook. Yeah, it's crazy, but it's Johnny Depp, how can I not like the movie, which is really really good, IMHO. Robert shows how to prepare his recipe in one of the extra features in the DVD, watch it at the bottom of the post.

Puerco Pibil is very versatile. You can have it with plain white rice, or shredded in tortillas with some salsa and avocado, or as taco filling. Good to have while watching Eli kick Tom's butt this coming Sunday, just kidding. I'm not a sports fan and I don't care who wins the super bowl.

Robert Rodriguez's Puerco Pibil
5 pounds pork butt, cut into 2 inch cubes
banana leaves
½ cup orange juice
½ cup vinegar
2 tablespoons salt
juice of 5 lemons
8 cloves garlic
2 habanero peppers, chopped
1 tablespoon tequila
annatto paste: in a coffee grinder finely grind 5 T annatto seeds, 2 tsp cumin, 1 T black peppercorns, 8 pieces allspice, and ½ tsp cloves

• In a blender, blend annatto paste and the rest of the ingredients except banana leaves and pork. In a large bowl mix pork and annatto mixture until pork is evenly coated. Line a deep roasting pan with banana leaves, put the pork mixture and cover with another layer of banana leaves. Cover tightly with tin foil and bake in a 325° F oven for 4 hours.

Here is the video of Robert Rodriguez making Puerco Pibil

How To Cook Adobong Muh-Knock

A friend emailed me this video of a white guy cooking chicken adobo. I wonder if he had a script or he really knows how to speak Tagalog. It's fun to hear a white guy say "sangkuchahin". Adobong muhknock - ang suhrap suhrap. Enjoy!

Pata Tim

 pata tim and steamed baby bokchoy

Pata (pork hocks) Tim and Pato (duck) Tim are Filipino dishes that are similar in taste but cooked in different ways. Pata Tim is stewed in a pot and Pato Tim is steamed. I have never eaten both outside of the Philippines, not in Hong Kong and not here in the US. Filipinos know these are Chinese in origin but from which region is not clear. Some say it's from Guangzhou (Canton), others from Fujian (Fukien). I consulted my cookbook CHINESE REGIONAL COOKING by Deh-Ta Hsiung and the closest and the only entry is from Sichuan, a duck dish called SOY BRAISED DUCK which is first deep fried then steamed for over 2 hours. The ingredients and cooking method are very very similar to Pato Tim. The cooked duck is then served on a bed of blanched seasonal greens much like the Tims I remember eating back in Manila. The following recipe which is my entry to Lasang Pinoy 23: Crock Pot Cooking has all the seasonings from this cookbook. I stewed the pork hocks until the meat is coming off from the bones. Dining on a plateful of the fatty meaty gelatinous pork, baby bokchoy, and steamed rice was like being transported back home. Delicious!

Pata Tim
2 ½ pounds pork hocks
2 T chopped scallions
1 T chopped ginger
¼ C hoi sin sauce
¼ C soy sauce
¼ C dark brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1 C rice wine or sherry
1 C water plus more if needed
baby bokchoy, well cleaned and dried

1. Place all ingredients except bokchoy in a pot and bring to a boil, skim off top.
2. Turn heat to very low, cover and simmer for 3 - 4 hours or until meat is very tender. Once in a while check and add water or sherry if needed. There should be about a cup and half of sauce.
   
3. Steam bokchoy for 3 minutes, set aside, keep warm.
4. Turn heat off and transfer cooked meat into a serving platter.
5. Remove bones and discard. Arrange cooked bokchoy around the meat. Pour the sauce all over the meat.
   
6. Serve with steamed rice.