Sisig

sour and spicy fish sisig, specially good with an ice cold bottle of beer

Sisig, a spicy and sour appetizer made with parts of or a whole pig's head, also made with a variety of meats, fish, and even tofu, is one Filipino dish I have never heard of nor eaten before reading so much about it in several Filipino food blogs. A friend from Los Angeles and I were chatting on the phone yesterday making plans to meet up in the Philippines in the next few months (I haven't decided yet if I'm going). She is a part-time caterer and she mentioned that she cooked for a party of 45 last Christmas and one of the dishes she made was bangus (milkfish) sisig. She gave me a very simple recipe which she says is a bit different from the ones served in Manila restaurants. Her bangus sisig is not crispy because she poaches the fish before mixing with the seasonings. Another friend told me today that her sister who owns a restaurant in Quezon City that serves bangus sisig deep fries the fish before chopping to have a crispy texture. They had me itching to taste this dish and today I made not just the fish sisig but also pork belly sisig. Both are really tasty and I can now understand the popularity of sisig.

The following recipe for the fish sisig is just a guide. You can add more or less soy sauce, calamansi juice, and hot chili peppers to suit your taste. I like mine really spicy and sour.

Milkfish Sisig
2 pounds whole milkfish (or tilapia)
1 T vegetable oil
2 C sweet onions, chopped
birds eye chili peppers, chopped, to taste
2 T soy sauce
¼ C calamansi juice
1 small red onion, finely chopped

• Poach or deep fry fish. Debone and flake, or chop if deep fried. Set aside.
• In a skillet, heat the oil and saute onions until very soft and light brown. Add chopped hot chili peppers and saute for a minute.
• Transfer into a medium bowl. Add soy sauce, calamansi juice, and chopped red onions. Gently mix in the fish. Taste and adjust seasonings.
• Transfer into a serving dish with chopped hot peppers, soy sauce, and calamansi on the side.

The recipe for pork belly sisig is here.

Green Eggs

One of the vendors at the farmer's market sells different colored egg. The shells have shades of green from deep, light, and olive, some are pink-ish, light peach, mottled brown, and of course brown. These eggs have smaller whites than regular eggs and therefore have less protein and their yolks are dark yellow to almost orange. I was told that these eggs are from Ameraucana chickens.

Last week I boiled a few and forgot to time them. I usually cook eggs by letting the water come to a boil, turn the heat off, cover the pan, and leave the eggs for 10 minutes, then I rinse them immediately in very cold water. One of the things I can't stand is boiled eggs with green rings around the yolks. There is no difference in taste but it just looks unappetizing. When I removed the shells I could see the green through the whites. I noticed that the green ring is thicker than normal and I was not repulsed by it because it looks interesting with the contrast of colors, green against yellow and almost orange in the middle making the sliced eggs look like kabocha squash. After a day in the refrigerator the thick green rings disappeared on the remaining few slices of eggs. I wonder if this is true for all eggs, that is, the green ring disappearing after a few days, hmm.

they look like kabocha squash

kabocha squash

Happy New Year!

Have A Happy (And Sweet) New Year!

Fig Charlotte Shooters, Pistachio Sans Rival Cake

Leche Quemada, Spanish Soft Turron and Italian Torrone

Our New Year's Eve 2009 menu is heavy on appetizers and desserts and very little meat.

Appetizers

• Rye And Pumpernickel Squares: Shrimps and Fried Capers, Black Beluga Lentils With Chives and White Cheese, Shirred Eggs with Caviar
• Crostini: Sobrasada and Shaved Manchego, Mayonnaise and Shaved Cucumbers
• Marinated Olives
• Marinated Bocconcini

Main Course

• Broccoli Rabe Tossed In Herbed Oil
• Peppercorn Coated Beef Tenderloin
• Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

Desserts

• Pistachio Sans Rival
• Fig Charlotte Shooters
• Leche Quemada
• Italian Torrones And Spanish Turron
• Calamansi Cupcakes
• Oranges in Red Wine
• Grapes

Drinks

• White Sangria
• Café Brûlot

Flan de Naranja

Have you ever had a baked custard (flan) without milk? Well, I haven't until last week when I made 2 kinds for Christmas dinner, one with the usual fresh whole milk and a second one with clementine orange juice. We bought a large carton of Spanish clementines that are not very sweet, some are slightly bitter. I didn't want to throw them away so I have been juicing them and I peeled, sectioned, and marinated a few pieces in red wine. I will slice and cook the remaining pieces in sugar syrup to garnish cakes. The orange custard is surprisingly very good. Although it is not as creamy and smooth as the milk flan, I love that it is very light, refreshing, and citrus-y. Those who are lactose-intolerant will love this milkless custard. I encourage you to bake one recipe and find out for yourself just how yummy it is.

The recipe is adapted from my cookbook THE FOOD OF SPAIN AND PORTUGAL by Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz.

Flan de Naranja

½ to ¾ cup sugar for caramel

6 whole eggs

¼ cup sugar

2 cup fresh clementine or navel orange juice, strained

1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

6 small ramekins or 1 large flan mold (llanera)

• In a stainless steel skillet, heat the sugar over low heat until golden in color and caramelized. Pour equally among the ramekins. Put ramekins into baking pans with sides that are 2 inches high. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, combine eggs and sugar and beat with a fork until smooth. Add the orange juice and mix until well combined. Strain using a fine mesh into another bowl preferably with spout and handle. Stir in orange zest. Pour into the prepared ramekins. Fill the baking pans with hot water halfway up the sides of ramekins.
• Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until set. Flan will be slightly wiggly, it will firm up when cooled. Cool for 30 minutes on a rack. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate overnight or at least 4 hours.