Curacha

Curacha reminds me of Jozhil,ang babaing walang pahinga(a woman without rest),QL/Filex certified Miss Curacha,2008 and KP's most active member awardee and Rozana Roces for the movie with the same title, playing the role of a dancer,a woman without rest.But there is one curacha that is truly mouth watering and hard to resist.

 
Curacha-A local Chavacano name given to this sea crab species that is uniquely found in the waters around Zamboanga, and no where else in the world. It is popularly described as a high bred crustacean, with crossbreed characteristics of a large sea crab and the big spiny lobster. Thus, it is unusually large [reddish-pink in color] for a hybrid crab and quite meaty, and oh so delicious! A special Zamboanga City treat. 

Cooking Instructions:

Steam or boil in plain water, until cooked to desired level. Curacha is best experienced in its natural exotic flavor, cooked minimally so as to preserve its original taste.If you care to add a touch of local flavor to it, mix in some lemongrass and about 3-5 cups of coconut milk to sauce, and boil until done. Sauce topping could be enhanced with ginger, grated coconut meat, sea salt, pepper, red chillis, and choice vegetables.
Serve with: Steamed rice and fresh Latu (seaweed/sea grapes) or salad.

 
Why don't you share your favorite recipes or your towns very own dish and we might try it in our house one of these days.

Food Trip

Filipino's are known to be food lovers kahit saang bansa pa mapunta.We will try every food that is new to our sight regardless of the price kaya naman kabi kabila ang mga kainan sa iba't ibang sulok ng Pilipinas at kulang ang isang department store kung walang fast food area na punung puno lagi ng tao. Sa dami nga nila ay di mo na malaman kung ano ang pipiliin. Nung buntis ako sa panganay ko, madalas kong puntahan sa kahit anong fast food center sa mga mall ay Goto King's special arrozcaldo with lumpiang prito. Ewan ko ba sarap na sarap talaga ako don na sasabawan ko pa ng pinaghalong tamis at asim ng suka at toyo ng lumpia sauce. At kapansin pansin na di nawawala ang magkalabang Jollibee at Mc Donald kahit saang lugar ay talaga naming puno palagi. Mahal na ang franchise nila! magkano na kaya ngayon?

I like Jollibee more than Mc Donald. I love their crispy chicken joy, palabok and hotdog sandwich. But here in Qatar whenever I crave for hamburger I go for Mc Donald's fillet o'fish meal or cheese burger with french fries and small soda

When it comes to fried chicken,Max's is the best for me plus their fresh lumpia. Paano kaya nila niluluto yon?simple lang pero sarap to the bones.

Masarap din daw ang Mary brown with gravy but I haven't tasted it yet.
Kenny Roger's has its chicken and ribs with side dishes na pwede na rin if you feel like eating affordable American foods.
Chowking has a wide variety of good tasting Chinese food but don't try it here in Qatar because their taste and servings are not as good as in the Philippines.
KFC,  pwede na kung type mo kumain ng friend chicken with gravy on the side. Dito kasi sa Qatar, no gravies kaya parang bitin ang kain so magtyaga ka na lang sa ketchup.

Pizza Hut for home delivery. Kapag tinatamad naman akong mgaluto.They have super supreme and lasagna with garlic bread for me and hubby, hawaiian pizza and spicy chicken wings naman for my son.
More than 3 years na rin pala kong di umuuwi ng Pinas, .last time I went back home ay nung kunin ko ang anak ko and I stayed there for 1 month. And of course, vacation is not complete without visiting these fastfoods and restaurants. Unahin ko na ang

Henlins for their siomai na may masarap na chili sauce, syempre di ko makakalimutan yan kahit pa nakatayo lang ako sa gilid gilid.
Pancake House for plain and flavored pancakes and waffles for breakfast .
Dencio's with their best selling sisig, ,crispy pata ,sinugba , bulalo and grilled foods.


At heto pa :
Gerry's Grill - pinoy food na kung saan lahat ay gusto mong orderin at unahin mo na ang sisig crispy pata, tuna belly, pinaputok na tilapia dahil talaga naming masarap.
Dads Eat All You Can -Kung malakas ka naman kumain at kaya pa ng budget, sulit ang tyan at bulsa mo, lalo na at mahilig ka sa inihaw, try their boneless wagon wheel steak, stuffed squid, giant shrimps, lengua, paella at marami pang iba.Casa Ilongga -  the best ang La Paz Batchoy ever.
Barrio Fiesta - kare-kare and crispy pata at meron din silang eat all you can.
Goldilocks – ensaymada, dinuguan matching with puto pao
Red Ribbon – cakes and pastries.
Panciteria - Pancit Malabon sa bilao...
Lumpia House - fish balls, tempura, squid balls
Ice cream Castle – halo halo
Greenwich- lasagna with garlic bread and pizza.
Wendys- iced tea and burger and garden sensations salad.

Anu ano pa ba? Kung isa isahin natin ang ma fastfood and restaurants sa atin ay talaga nga namang masasabi nating mahilig talaga sa pagkain ang mga Pinoy

Dictionary of Street Food

I am an OFW for 11 years now, I left Philippines in 1999 to work in a Military hospital in Saudi Arabia and then to Qatar in 2003. Being an OFW, there are a lot of things to do in order to survive, like cooking your own food, doing the laundry which we don't usually do back home. We have our loving mother or housemaid who takes care of everything for us. Cooking is not an easy job but we have to do everyday. But even if we do know how to cook, we still miss our mothers home cook meal and our old time favorite street foods.

I really miss the street food back home such as green manggo, singkamas with shrimp paste, fish ball with sauce and of course the balut from the vendors that walking down the street at night. I still remember the sweetness of the freshly cooked banana cue and crunchy turon outside of our neighbor's house in Pasay during my childhood days. When I was in college, me and my friends would buy adobong mani at cornick na binudburan ng mantikang may sili on our way home. Those were the days with the street food. Anyway, here is the list of street food that I found thru internet with unknown writer .Whoever you are, thank you for the compilation you had made.

Dictionary of Philippine street food ...

Abnoy - unhatched incubated duck egg or bugok which is mixed with flour and water and cooked like pancakes

Adidas - chicken feet, marinated and grilled or cooked adobo style

Arroz caldo - rice porridge or congee cooked with chicken and kasubha; see also Lugaw

Atay - grilled chicken liver

Baga - pig’s or cow’s lungs grilled or deep-fried and served with barbeque condiments

Balat ng manok - see Chicken skin and Chicharon manok

Balun-balunan - grilled chicken gizzard

Balut - hard-boiled duck egg with fetus

Banana cue - deep-fried saba (banana) covered with caramelized brown sugar

Barbeque - marinated pork or chicken pieces grilled on skewers

Batchoy - miki noodle soup garnishedwith pork innards (liver, kidney and heart), chicharon (pork skin cracklings), chicken breast, vegetables and topped with a raw egg; origin traced to La Paz, Iloilo
Betamax - curdled chicken or pork blood, cubed and grilled
Bibingka - glutinous rice flour pancakes grilled with charcoal above and below in a special clay pot
Biko (also Bico) - glutinous rice cake with grated coconut topping
Binatog - boiled white corn kernels, sugar, grated coconut and milk
Bopis - minced pig’s heart and lungs sauteed with garlic and onion and seasoned with laurel, oregano, bell pepper and vinegar
Botsi - chicken esophagus, deep-fried or grilled
Calamares - deep-fried squid in batter
Calamay (also Kalamay) - glutinous rice cakes; varieties all over the country
Camote cue - deep-fried camote (sweet potato) covered with caramelized brown sugar
Carioca (also Karyoka, Karioka) - deep-fried glutinous rice flour cakes served on skewers
Cheese sticks - deep-fried cheese wrapped in lumpia (spring roll) wrapper
Chicharon baboy - pork skin cracklings, made from pork rind boiled and seasoned, sun-dried and deep-fried
Chicharon bituka - pork or chicken intestine boiled, seasoned and deep-fried
Chicharon bulaklak - pork omentum boiled, seasoned and deep-fried
Chicharon manok - chicken skin cracklings
Chicken balls - balls made with chicken meat, deep fried and served in skewers with a sweet, sour or spicy sauce
Chicken skin - chicken skin battered and deep fried
Cutchinta - see Kutsinta
Day-old chicks - literally day-old chicks deep-fried to a crisp, served with sauce or vinegar
Empanada (Batac) - pork longganiza, egg and grated green papaya in a rice flour shell, deep-fried and served with vinegar
Fishballs - balls made with fish meat, most often from pollock, deep fried and served in skewers with a sweet, sour or spicy sauce
Goto - rice porridge or congee cooked with beef tripe
Halo-halo - translated as “a mix of many things” or “an assortment,” it is a dessert topped with shaved ice that may contain sweetened saba (banana), camote, macapuno (young coconut), kaong, nata de coco, pinipig (rice crispies), gulaman (agar), sago (tapioca balls), brown and white beans, garbanzos, ube (purple yam), and leche flan (creme brulee), with milk and sugar
Helmet - grilled chicken head
Hepalog (also Toknonong) - hard-boiled duck eggs dipped in orange batter and deep-fried
Isaw - collective term for different types of grilled chicken and pork innards; varieties include isaw manok, isaw baboy, atay, goto, botsi, balun-balunan, and tenga ng baboy
Isaw baboy - grilled or deep-fried pork intestines on a skewer, served with sweet, sour or spicy sauce
Isaw manok (aslo IUD) - grilled or deep-fried chicken intestines on a skewer, served with sweet, sour or spicy sauce; also referred to as IUD because it resembles an intra-uterine device
Iskrambol (also Scrambol) - frostees; shaved ice, diced gulaman, sago and condensed milk
IUD - see Isaw manok
Kakanin - collective term for snacks made with kanin (rice), particularly malagkit (glutinous) rice; varieties include puto, kutsinta, calamay, sapin-sapin, suman, palitaw, biko or sinukmani, and espasol among many others
Kalamay - see Kalamay
Kamote cue - see Camote cue
Kikiam - the special ones are made of ground pork and vegetables wrapped in bean curd sheets, deep-fried and served with sweet, sour or spicy sauce; those in the street are seafood-based, usually made of fish meat and cuttlefish
Kudil - deep-fried pork skin
Kutsinta - steamed bahaw (boiled rice) with lye and brown sugar; has a gelatinous consistency
Kwek kwek - see Quek quek
Lomi - noodle soup made with thick fresh egg noodles or lomi
Langoniza - pork sausage grilled or fried on a skewer
Lugaw - rice porridge or congee; varieties include arroz caldo (with chicken and kasubha) and goto (with beef tripe)
Lumpia - spring rolls; varieties include lumpiang basa; lumpiang hubad - fresh spring rolls wothout the wrapper; lumpiang prito; lumpiang sariwa - fresh srping rolls; lumpiang shanghai; lumpiang ubod; and turon
Mais - boiled sweet corn seasoned with salt, butter or margarine
Mais con yelo - sweet corn, milk and sugar topped with shaved ice
Mami - noodle soup
Manggang hilaw - green mango served with bagoong (shrimp paste)
Mani - peanuts either boiled, roasted or deep-fried and seasoned with garlic and salt
Maruya - banana fritters
Nilupak - mashed kamoteng kahoy (cassava) or kamote (sweet potato) with brown sugar and served with butter or margarine
Palitaw - glutinous rice flour pancakes topped with grated young coconut, sugar and roasted sesame seeds
Panara - deep-fried crab and grated green papaya empanda sold in Pampanga during Christmas season
Pancit - noodles; varieties are batchoy (Iloilo) - see Batchoy; batil patung (Tuguegarao) - local noodles topped with hot dogs, chicharon, ground meat, fried egg, and vegetables; pancit bihon; pancit canton - a kind of pancit guisado flavored with ginger and soy sauce; pancit guisado, pancit habhab (Lucban) - sautéed miki noodles served on and eaten straight from banana leaf sans utensils; pancit lomi - see Lomi; pansit luglog (Pampanga and Tagalog Region) - it has a distinct orange shrimp-achuete sauce and is topped with chicharon, tinapa, wansoy and shrimp; pancit malabon (Malabon) - made with thick rice noodles tossed in shrimp-achuete oil topped with shelled oysters, squid rings, suaje or hipong puti and wansoy; pancit molo (Iloilo) - clear chicken broth with wonton, garlic and crushed chorizo; pancit palabok; pancit puti (Manila); and pancit sotanghon among many others
Pandesal (also Pan de sal) - breakfast roll; rounded bread
Pares - translated as “pair,” means the pairing of rice with beef; beef pares is characterized by very tender meat, usually with a lot of litid (ligaments)
Penoy - hard-boiled duck egg without fetus
Proven - hard portion of chicken entrails that is either marinated and grilled, battered and fried or cooked adobo style
Pusit - squid grilled on skewer
Puto - steamed rice cake
Puto bumbong - purple glutinous rice snack cooked in a special steamer
Quikiam - see Kikiam
Quek quek (also Toknanay) - hard boiled chicken eggs dipped in orange batter and deep-fried; also used for quail eggs but some say the correct term for the quail egg version is tokneneng; the balut version is sometimes referred to as hepalog
Sapin-sapin - layered glutinous rice and coconut milk cake usually topped with grated coconut and latik (residue from coconut oil extraction); different flavor per layer such as ube (purple yam), macapuno (young coconut), kutsinta and langka (jackfruit)
Scrambol - see Iskrambol
Sinukmani - see Biko
Siomai - steamed pork dumplings
Siopao - steamed pork buns
Sisig - roasted pig’s head, chicken liver, onions and chili, chopped and flavored with calamansi served on a hot metal plate
Sorbetes (also Dirty ice cream) - street ice cream made with local fruits and ingredients; common flavors include ube (purple yam), mango, avocado, queso (cheese), chocolate, langka (jackfruit), buko or macapuno (coconut); strawberry is common in Baguio City
Squid balls - balls made with squid or cuttlefish meat, deep fried and served in skewers with a sweet, sour or spicy sauce
Suman - glutinous rice snack steamed in banana or coconut leaves; varieties include binagol (Leyte) made with glutinous rice, gabi (taro), coconut milk and chocolate; budbod sa kabog (Tanjay, Negros Oriental) which uses millet instead of glutinous rice; Taho - bean curd snack topped with arnibal (liquefied raw sugar similar to molasses) and sago (tapioca balls)
Tenga ng baboy (also Walkman) - marinated pig’s ears grilled on skewers; see also Kudil
Toknanay - see Quek quek
Tokneneng - hard boiled quail eggs dipped in orange batter and deep-fried; also called kwek kwek by others
Toknonong - see Hepalog
Tupig (also Itemtem) - glutinous rice, grated mature coconut, coconut milk and molasses rolled in banana leaves and grilled; varieties in Pangasinan, Ilocos Norte (Batac) and Isabela
Turon - saba (banana) with with sugar and sometimes langka (jackfruit) wrapped in lumpia (spring roll) wrapper and deep-fried
Walkman - see Tenga ng Baboy