Laswa Recipe

Laswa, an Ilonggo food, is one of my favorite veggie soup dishes. This is what I eat when I need a break from pork and chicken. When eaten together with either fried fish or tuyo (bulad), it feels like heaven and brings back memories of home. Plus it is very easy to prepare, and most of all, healthy and cheap. 

Try it and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 kg shrimp or 1/2 cup kalkag
• squash, cubed
• okra
• string beans
• any of these leaves: saluyot/alugbati/malunggay/kulitis
• other backyard vegetables you like to add (eggplant, talbos ng kalabasa, patola, etc.)
• 2 medium tomatoes, sliced
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 5 pcs garlic, crushed
• 5 cups water
• salt & pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Boil water in the cooking pot.
2. Add the garlic, onion and tomato. Cook for 3 minutes
3. Add the shrimp. Cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add the vegetables except the leaves. Cover and cook for 5 to 7 minutes.
5. Add the leaves and cook for 2 minutes.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Serve with rice and fried fish/tuyo.

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Ensaladang Dilis (Balingon)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried dilis
• 4 mediums size tomatoes, sliced
• 2 medium size onions, diced
• 5 tbsp vinegar
• 1 pc lemon/lime or 5 pcs calamansi
• pinch of salt
• cooking oil

Procedure:

1. Fry the dilis until crispy. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine, tomatoes, onions, and fried dilis.
3. Add the vinegar and lemon. Mix.
4. Taste and add salt if needed (since dried dilis is already salty).
5. Serve and enjoy!

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Sinigang na Isda

Ingredients:

• 1 kg Fish of your choice, sliced
• 2 big tomatoes. wedged
• 1 medium size onion, sliced
• 1 medium size ginger, sliced
• 5 pcs green chili
• 1 bunch kangkong
• 1-2 packs sinigang mix
• 1 tbsp fish sauce 
• 6 cups water
• salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Instructions:

1. Heat the cooking pot, add in the sliced tomatoes, onion, and ginger. Mix and put the fish slices on top, and add fish sauce, salt and pepper. This will add flavor to the fish. Cook the fish on its own juices for 5 minutes. ( I heard before, from the talks of the elderly, that this method makes the fish taste better, so I always follow this procedure.)
2. Add water and bring to a boil.
3. Add the green chili. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Add the sinigang mix, taste and add salt if necessary.
5. Add the kangkong. Cover the pot and turn off the heat. Let the residual heat cook the leaves.
6. Serve and enjoy!

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Pork Afritada

Ingredients:

• 1 kg pork, chopped
• 3 medium sized potatoes, sliced
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1 bell pepper, sliced
• 200 g tomato sauce
• 3 pcs bay leaves
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium size onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 cup water
• salt & pepper to taste
• green peas & raisins (optional)

Cooking Instructions:

1. In a pan, brown pork and discard the excess fat. Add in the garlic and onion and saute until the onion is soft.
2. Add the bay leaves, tomato sauce, and water. Simmer until the pork is tender.
3. Add the potatoes, carrots and bell pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes. (Now we always add green peas & raisins to afritada, caldereta, and menudo simply because my husband likes it. You can add these together with the potatoes.)
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve and enjoy!

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Lechon Manok

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken
• 1/4 cup fish sauce
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium size onion, chopped
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp cooking oil
• juice from 1 lemon or 5 calamansi
• 3 stalks lemon grass, tied into a knot

Cooking Procedure:

1. In a large bowl, mix fish sauce, garlic, onion, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp black pepper, sugar, and lemon/calamansi juice.
2. Marinate chicken in the mixture for at least 2 hours (best if overnight and put in fridge).
3. Preheat oven to 200 ⁰C.
4. Dry the chicken, discard the marinade.
5. Rub the chicken cavity with salt and pepper.
6. Mix 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp ground pepper, and 1 tbsp cooking oil. Brush all over the chicken.
7. Stuff the chicken with lemon grass and tie the legs with a cooking twine. 
8. Roast the chicken in the oven using a rotisserie or a baking pan with rack for 1.5 - 2 hours depending on the size.
9. Check if done by poking through the inner thigh. If juices run clear, it's done. Let the chicken rest for about 15 minutes.
10. Serve and enjoy!

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Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 kg chicken, sliced
• 5 tbsp oyster sauce
• juice from 2 lemons
• 1 sachet of seasoning/ginisa mix
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 cup cooking oil

Cooking Procedure:

1. Marinate chicken in oyster sauce, lemon juice, and seasoning mix for 30 minutes.
2. In a mixing bowl, mix  flour, black pepper, garlic powder, and salt.
3. Dry the chicken using paper towel and cover it with the flour mixture.
4. Heat cooking oil in a pan. 
5. Fry the chicken in low heat until the color becomes golden brown (10-15 minutes)
6. Remove the chicken from the pan and let the oil drip.
7. Serve and enjoy!

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Binignit (Ginataang Bilo-Bilo)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup and 5 tbsp glutinous rice flour
• 2 cups coconut milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup sweet potatoes, diced
• 1 cup saba bananas, diced
• 1 cup jackfruit, diced
• 1 cup cooked sago
• 3 tbsp ube halaya (optional)

Cooking procedure:

1. Mix 1/2 cup water to 1 cup glutinous rice flour and form into small balls. Set aside.
2. In a pot, add water, coconut milk and sugar. Bring to a boil.
3. Add the rice balls and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add the sweet potatoes and simmer until softened.
5. Add the saba, jackfruit and cooked sago. 
6. To thicken the mixture, dissolve 5 tbsp of glutinous rice flour in water and add to the pot. You can add more depending on how thick you like.
7. Simmer until thick.
8. Serve and enjoy!

* If you want to add color to the dish, you can add ube halaya or use red sago.

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