Atomic Burger Steak

This is the ulam version of the Labuyo Burger which I have previously posted (http://roelskitchen.blogspot.com/2010/09/first-stop-labuyo-burger.html) Again, you can omit the chilies or lessen it to your liking. You can also substitute it with much less spicy chilies like the green chili. It's a party in the tummy when you try this baby. So, let's start cooking!

Atomic Burger Steak
What you'll need:


For the patty:

• 1/2 kilo ground chuck
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 tbsp yellow curry
• 1 tbsp cayenne 
• 2 tbsp red chilies, chopped
• salt & pepper

For the mushroom gravy:

• 4 tbsp flour
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp liquid seasoning
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1/2 cup button mushroom, sliced
• salt & pepper

How to:

1. In a bowl, combine all of the patty ingredients and mix well.
2. Grill or fry in small amount of oil until cooked.
3. In a sauce pan, brown flour in medium high heat and add butter to make a roux.
4. Mix well using a whisk and gradually add the stock and liquid seasoning.
5. Add the mushrooms and simmer for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Top patty with the gravy and serve with rice. Enjoy!

Chili Con Carne

The number one rule in making a chili is never to use any fresh ingredient except for the beef, of course. Using dried herbs and powdered spices have been the key in making the best chili. I, for example, uses siling labuyo in making a chili but I dried them first in the sun. This particular chili recipe has beans. You can use any kind of beans like pinto, kidney, navy, etc. Just make sure that it's well cooked and the texture should compliment the beef. I'll let you in a little secret... Adding dark chocolate or a sprinkle of cocoa powder will boost the flavor up a notch. It may sound odd but it is being done all over the world. Chocolate has been the secret of a great chili. It's up to you if you'll use it or not.

Chili Con Carne
What you'll need:
1/2 kilo ground chuck
11/2 cups red kidney beans, pre-boiled
1/2 cup tomato paste
1 tbsp of each:

• cumin
• cayenne pepper
• chili powder
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• ground cinnamon 
• dark chocolate or unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup dried red chilies
1/2 cup grated monterey jack cheese

How to:

1. Brown meat in a little oil. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
2. Simmer for 1-2 hours in low heat.
3. When it gets a little dry, add a cup of beef broth or water. Continue to simmer.
4. Season with salt and pepper according to taste.
5. Top with cheese and serve. Enjoy!

Beef Asado

This recipe I'm using is the basic of all basic asado recipe. I used to made this in large batches for our small noodle house in Valenzuela. This is what they call "pares" if you top it on garlic rice. Make it saucy and add it to a bowl of noodles, it's beef mami. I love this for the reason that it's so easy to prepare and so delicious on almost everything. Heck, I use to eat with fries. So, here it is...

Beef Asado
What you'll need:
1 kilo beef, cubed and pre-boiled
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 pcs star anise
11/2 cup beef stock
1/2 tsp dried oregano
spring onions, chopped
1/4 cup cornstarch, dissolved in
1/2 cup cold water (slurry)

How to:
1. Combine all ingredients except for the slurry in a medium sauce pan with a lid.
2. Boil and simmer for 20 minutes in medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to even the cooking process.
3. Add the slurry to thicken the sauce.
4 Season with salt and pepper according to taste.
5. Remove from heat and top with spring onions. Serve and enjoy!

Lemon Buttered Chicken

This is Chinese restaurant inspired dish. A local restaurant in our area sell this for P100/half chicken and it doesn't taste anything like the Chinese restaurants are famous for. It's bland and it's hard as a rock after only a few minutes. The best one is made by Boy Ching Woo, also here in Caloocan. They are also famous for their noodles and other entrées. I didn't know at first that buttered chicken actually originated from India. It's loaded with spices and herbs. I haven't actually tried it myself but I will sure do!

Lemon Buttered Chicken
What you'll need:
1/2 kilo chicken breast, filleted
1 cup flour
1/2 stick butter
4 tbsp lemon juice, reserve 1 tsp for the butter sauce
1/2 cup leeks, sliced diagonally (optional)
salt and pepper
oil for frying
lemon slices for garnishing

How to:
1. Marinate chicken in  lemon juice, salt and pepper for at least 4 hours in the fridge.
2. Dredge marinated chicken in flour and fry until golden.
3. In a separate pan, melt butter in low heat. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Add the remaining lemon juice and chicken.
5. Stir fry until chicken is fully coated.
6. Remove from heat and garnish with leeks and lemon slices.
7. Serve and enjoy!

Dynamite Chili Sticks Kaboom!

This lumpia is my own version of what bars and clubs are now selling as cheese sticks but I made a little twist on it. This is for those who like spicy stuff while having their favorite drink. The filling contains three, yes, three kinds of chilies... Jalapeño, red chili and green chili. The dip is up for you to make. I serve this with wasabi/mayo dip. You might not like it that's why I'm giving you the choice. Try it with tomato ketchup, soy sauce and tabasco dip or a simple vinegar dip.

Sorry for the picture. I was kinda drunk when I took
this so I didn't bother with the presentation.

Dynamite Chili Sticks Kaboom!
What you'll need:
20 pcs lumpia wrapper, small
oil for deep frying

For the filling:
20 pcs green chilies, sliced in the middle and seeded
2 tbsp red chilies, finely chopped
1/4 cup jalapeño chilies, finely chopped
4-6 slices sweet ham, sliced into strips
1/2 bar mozzarella cheese, sliced into strips
10 strips honey cured bacon, halved to make 20 strips
2 tbsp parsley

How to:
1. First of all, take the seeds out of the green chilies by slicing from the tip up to the stem. Scrape the seeds out using the handle of a spoon. Make sure you have taken it all out for it is bitter.
2. In a bowl, mix the red and jalapeño together with the chopped parsley.
3. Fill the green chilies with ham, chili mixture and cheese.
4. Wrap one bacon around each chili to make a blanket.
5. Place the bacon-wrapped green chili in a lumpia wrapper and close only the bottom. Let the stem be exposed to look like a wick.
6. Deep-fry until golden brown. Drain in a paper towel.
7. Serve with your choice of dip. Enjoy!

Lumpia Shanghai (Shanghai Spring Rolls)

Another request but this time it's from the love of my life. Lumpiang Shanghai is really easy to make. All you need is to mix all the ingredients together and wrap it in lumpia wrapper. Deep fry and it's done. The only hard part is deciding what to use as an ingredient. I have tried almost every kind of lumpia there is. The filling ranges from pork to chicken to vegetarian and becoming popular is the fish variety due to it's being affordable and it taste good. I'm also including a recipe for the sweet n' sour dip to go along with the lumpia.

Lumpia Shanghai (Shanghai Spring Rolls)
What you'll need:
20-30 pcs lumpia wrappers, small
oil for deep frying

For the filling:
1/2 kilo lean ground pork
1/2 cup carrots, minced
1/2 cup onions, minced
1/4 cup spring onions, chopped
1/4 cup chinese parsley (kinchay), chopped
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste

For the sweet n' sour sauce:
1 cup water
1 tbsp vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp banana ketchup
1 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in
1/4 cup cold water

How to:
1. Mix all filling ingredients in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Test a teaspoonful of the mixture and fry it. Taste it and adjust the taste to your liking. It's better if you started with bland-tasting mixture than end up with a very salty one. That way you can adjust the taste little by little until you are satisfied.
2. Wrap the lumpia by placing about a teaspoonful of the mixture on a piece of lumpia wrapper. Close the sides and roll it to make a stick like spring roll.
3. Deep-fry until golden brown and drain on a paper towel.
4. For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a non-stick sauce pan and mix well.
5. Put it on low heat and let boil. Stir only the sauce after boiling.
6. Remove from heat and serve with the lumpia. Enjoy!

Pata Tim

Okay, this is going to be tough one. Somebody from Japan asks me to add it here, so here it goes. First, you need to do this at least 2 days ahead to attain what you might call "falling off the bones tender". This requires you to use three methods in preparing this dish. One, boiling it to the point where the meat seems to fall right off the bones. Second, marinating it for a day to let the flavors seep into the flesh. Third, is braising the pata to infuse all the flavors and lock it inside. Another trick is to wash and remove all hair fragments from the pata. The procedure is simple but the tasks are the pain. Let's start...

Pata Tim
What you'll need:
1 whole front pork leg (hock), hoof removed
1 bulb garlic, chopped
1 onion, quartered
11/2 tbsp ginger, grated
3-4 pcs star anise
1 pc bay leaf
1/2 tsp peppercorns
8 med shitake mushrooms, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes
1 tsp oregano, dried
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup honey, dark corn syrup or molasses
1 bundle bok choi, ends trimmed
sesame oil
salt to taste
1 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in
1/4 cup water to make a slurry

How to:
1. Clean the pork leg thoroughly. Leave no hairs by torching it or shaving.
2. In a large stock pot, boil the pork leg in water with salt and pepper. Season it well.
3. Boil for 6-7 hours or until pork leg is tender. You can use a pressure cooker if it's available to reduce cooking time. *Tip: Place a banana leaf on the bottom of the pot to prevent it from sticking.
4. While waiting for the pork leg to tenderize, combine all remaining ingredients except for the bok choi and sesame oil in a bowl. Mix well. This will be the marinade.
5. When the pork leg is tender, drain and let cool for an hour.
6. Marinate the pork leg in the mixture. Place in the chiller section of the fridge and marinate for at least a day. Be sure to turn it occasionally to ensure equal distribution of the flavor.
7. After marinating, place the pork leg and marinade with 2 cups of water in a medium stock pot. Let boil but turn down the heat as soon as it boils. We don't want to burn it, we want it to be slowly cooked.
8. Simmer the pork leg for 2-3 hours. Follow the banana leaves tip to prevent it from sticking.
9. Remember to stir occasionally but be careful not to shred the pork leg into pieces. If it gets a little dry, adding a 1/2 cup of water is fine.
10. After braising, carefully place the pork leg in a oven proof dish and place in a convection oven at maximum heat. Cook until the skin/rind gets fluffy.
11. Remove from the oven and transfer the pork leg in a heat proof dish. Steam over simmering water for 30-45 minutes. Pour over the strained sauce but include the shitake mushrooms.
12. Add the bok choi and shitake mushrooms during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Arrange them in the sides.
13. Transfer the Pata Tim in a serving dish and drizzle over 1 tsp of the sesame oil.
14. Serve and enjoy!

Note to Katana: Isn't that easy?