Chicken Curry

What you need:

400g chicken

onion

garlic

salt
ginger

potatoes

red bell pepper

green bell pepper

2 tbsp curry powder

fish sauce (patis)

cooking oil

water

coconut milk

What to do:

• I normally boil the chicken before cooking, just to be sure that the chicken is thoroughly cooked. Previous dishes taught me to do this. Before boiling the chicken, season it with salt. Place the pieces in a pot, cover with enough water then boil. After making certain that the chicken is cooked and soft, remove the chicken from the water and set aside.
• In a cooking pot, heat the oil. Then fry the potatoes. I was taught that vegetables should be separately fried to maintain the "crispiness" in the outside but soft in the inside. Set aside.
• Saute the garlic, onion and ginger.
• Fry the chicken pieces. When the chicken turns light brown, sprinkle the 2 tbsp of curry powder. Spread evenly.
• Pour enough water into the pot and allow to simmer.
• After a few minutes, put the potatoes, and the red and green bell peppers in the pot.
• Season the dish with fish sauce. Then simmer for another 5 minutes.
• Pour in one cup of coconut milk.
• Simmer for another 5 minutes, then serve.

My own version of Penne Alla Arrabiata (Angry Penne Recipe)

Arrabbiata (the Italian word for angry) is a Roman sauce of garlic, tomatoes, and red chili cooked in olive oil. Basil is sometimes used, although the majority of chefs in Italy do not use basil for this recipe. The dish is usually served with pasta and chopped fresh parsleysprinkled on top. (Wikipedia)

I first tried this dish from my landlady. I was curious because this was a different approach to cooking pasta. She told me this is a version of penne alla arrabiata. It was very delicious! The pasta, cooked to perfection, mixed with the tuna and all other spices, was mouth-watering. The kick- the green chilis, added flavor to the whole dish. The following day, I was very excited to cook the same meal.. and viola, I achieved the perfect taste for the recipe! 


Here is the no-sweat, very easy recipe:
What you need:
1 can of tuna (flakes in oil)
cooking oil
tomatoes
onions
garlic
3 pcs long green chilis
salt
400g penne pasta (cooked per package instructions)


What to do:

• Cook the pasta per package instructions. Set aside.
• Saute the garlic, onions, and tomatoes (the more spices, the merrier, the tastier!) and green chilis.
• Put the tuna (with the oil).
• Season with salt to taste. Although in my case, I also used Ginisa Mix, just to be sure :)
• Add the pasta.
• Mix all the ingredients to coat the pasta.
• When all the ingredients have been combined, turn off the heat and serve.

I heart cooking! :)

“Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all.” Harriet van Horne


I do not know how to cook. Don't get me wrong. I know how to do the basic and staple meals- rice, egg, hotdog.. or anything that would only require a frying pan, cooking oil and the meat. When I graduated from highschool, I mastered the corned-beef frying and instant-noodles cooking. There was a phase in college when I get to learn the basics of baking. I tried making three to four cakes and I remembered my brother making fun of all of these cakes.


I told myself that when I get married, I would hire a househelp to cook for my family, since I lack these skills in the kitchen. But alas, lately, I found myself staying in the kitchen longer. My work ends early at 330pm. At around, 3pm, I would browse through the web on recipes for dinner. This is how I spend my last official 30mins at work - googling the web for recipes: nilagang baboy, chicken teriyaki filipino style, binagoongang baboy, and other beef, pork, chicken, fish and vegetables menu.


I would write down the ingredients. Drop off to the nearest grocery store before heading home and start preparing the dish. Everyday, I found myself looking forward to going home and cooking. This even surprised me. I might just be terribly bored here.. or this comes with the age and maturity... whatever the reason is, this desire to cook is here to stay for awhile.


So, my next few entries would be on some of the meals I cooked. And if you have any suggestions on other recipes, I would really love to try them! (note: no oven in the flat, so please send recipes that does not require this).


Bon appetit everyone!