Beef Stew in Tomato Sauce with Mashed Potatoes

I did this dish when Ondoy hit the Philippines. It was actually the day after I made the braised pork belly dish. This is actually a Filipino recipe that is inspired from the colonization of the Spaniards back in the 18th century. I thought of making this dish because I got some gorgeous thyme at that time and thought of making a stew for it. This pretty similar with the pinoy food they call kaldereta I think. :D

Here are the ingredients.



Look at the thyme, this is the first time I have seen something a thyme this vibrant and this size.



First, heat the pan and throw in some bacon.



When it's a little crisp now with all the fat rendered, sear in the beef! I used brisket in this case. Season it.



When everything is seared, add in carrots, bell peppers and some onions. Sweat those vegetables with the fat. The place should smell good by this time.



Add in some tomato paste.



Mix it and make sure the tomato paste caramelizes.



Add in mushrooms, I used canned in this case.



Add in some white wine.



Add some stock, in my case, I added some frozen stock.



Lastly, add in some thyme and let just simmer until tender, probably 3 hours :D



Now, let's go with the mashed potatoes. I wasn't able to get a lot of pictures with this because I just went automatic :D So I was just able to get a picture of it at the end. Technically, boil some potatoes, then throw them in a food processor, season it and add butter and cream. Pulse pulse pulse!



Serve everything



Opinion

Flavors were really flat. It was as if the flavors didn't merge at all. The whole dish fell apart. It was so bad that it was already the fourth day and it wasn't still finished! However, I have only tasted this dish once during that time when I made this, then, after the fourth day, I tasted it again, and you know what, it was actually better which made me realized that braised food is better to eat it 2-3 days after it was done. It is like marinating it :D anyhow, I will try doing something like this again in the future and will let it sit again for 2-3 days and taste it :D

As for the mashed potatoe, I think its more of a potato puree than a mashed potato. Flavor wise, it's good. It was rich and creamy. Texture, it was gummy.

Serrano Cigar with Mangoes in Red Wine and Cherry Reduction: Amuse-bouche

I very good friend gave me some serrano ham a few weeks back when during my birthday and so often than not, I just eat it as is. Then, I realize that the value of that ham could have been better if I were to do something about it hence, I made a serrano cigar!

This is actually an amuse-bouche. It is something that is served, upon the selection of a chef, in a restaurant as a starter but not an appetizer. It should be small and presentable and it must be bite size. Amuse-bouche are eaten in a single bite, just one bite!

Anyhow, here is the line-up photo.



First, get a saucepan, pour in red wine and some canned cherries with their syrup.



Taste first, if it lacks sweetness, add some sugar, which happened in my case.



Bring to a boil to reduce it.



For the cigar part, cut some celery



Blanch it by putting it in boiling water *picture doesn't look like it is boiling though*



Then give it an ice shock



Lastly, mangoes brunoise. Brunoise is technically super small dices. Which can be seen here.



Then serve it nicely if possible. Mine looked like a phallic symbol lolz. Or, in a different perspective, a tank!



Opinion

First of all, I will never use celeries from China if it was meant to be chopped! It sucked texture wise. Other parts were chewy. It think it had too much cell wall :)). Flavor wise, the celery was good, but it wasn't good for something eaten this way. I bought it cause it was cheap, well, it's china! Next time, I think am just gonna use China celeries for stock making lolz.

I think, it could have been better if the mango and the reduction was placed on top because when I ate it, I wasn't able to get everything. Moreso, I think it was better eaten with a spork *the utensil that is like a spoon and a fork combine?* Serrano ham is serrano ham and that's it. I think this was a bad amuse-bouche :(

The only thing that was good here was the red wine and cherry reduction. I think am gonna use it again for some sort of a glaze. Lastly, I need to practice my brunoise, it was poorly done :(

Banana Fritters with Mango Cream Sauce *Turon*

What I really liked about Filipino food is that I can be more creative about it since am here in the Philippines. I can easily look for Filipino ingredients and give them a twist like my champorado recipe. Because of that, I came up with a new pinoy recipe which is the humble turon or banana fritters. So often than not, banana fritters are fried with a crepe like wrapper with the addition of sugar during the frying part. It gives you this dense sweetness and crunchy texture. In my case, it would be more different. Here is the setup of ingredients.



As you can see, I'll be using a lot of bottled Philippine products as the main sweetener for my banana fritters.

First, cut some bananas.



Next, lay down some wrappers.



Put a slice of banana there.



Then, open a bottle of ube or a purple yam and spread a tablespoon beside the banana.



Then, open a bottle of macapuno or coconut sport strings *I think that's the english translation.* next to the purple yam.



Lastly, fold it. That's technically the main dish prior to cooking it.



Now, let's try making some sauce. The good thing about being in a tropical country, fruits are not only abundant but also of good quality. Furthermore, Philippine mangoes are like the sweetest mangoes in the world! Anyhow, so for the sauce, slice some mangoes.



Get a saucepan and melt some butter.



Add the mangoes in the saucepan. Give it a quick saute.



Then add some rum to add a different kind of sweetness in the dish.



Flambe! Yes, burn it!



Then puree it in a blender.



After which, you transfer it back to the saucepan.



Add some cream in it and give it a quick stir.



That's the sauce. Now, fry some of the wrapped bananas.



Cut them in half and serve it with the sauce.



Opinion

I like this texture much much better than the usual turon. You see, the sugar of the usual turon tend to harden so much that so often than not, there is difficulty in eating it. In this case, it is different because there is a crisp texture on the outside and a very soft and chewy feeling on the inside. This was especially achieved because of the macapuno and the ube.

The sauce was also good. It gave a good contrast of texture with the whole dish. The flavors are better than expected. It was sweet and earthy. Colors were duller than expected. I think it had too much purple ube. Next time, adding more macapuno and lessening the ube would give it a much much better presentation. :D

Chorizo Rice

I was checking our pantry the other day and found some old canned goods. I saw a Pure Foods' Chorizo de Bilbao which was like a year old already. It says that it will expire by November 2009 and thinking that it will expire sooner than later. I decided to do something about it. So often than not, I use this chorizo for making paella, however; I didn't have my oven that time and my paella pan was nowhere to be found. So, I thought of just making this simple chorizo rice dish.

Here are the ingredients.



First, make the tomato sauce. Oh yes friends, we are gonna make a tomato sauce from scratch here. It's flavor is more robust and vibrant. Moreover, it taste's more tomato than the sharp sour taste of commercial packed tomatoes. Anyhow, first, melt some butter.



Then, add some olive oil to give more flavor into it.



Mince some garlic and onions and give them a quick saute here, just sweat them.



Then, deglaze it with some white wine.



Then add some canned tomatoes. I use canned tomatoes because the local tomatoes have different taste. It is actually more refreshing that's why we usually eat it with something salty. The canned ones are different since it came from a tomato producing country and the good thing about their product is that they canned their tomatoes during its peak season and when they are fully riped.



Add some chicken stock into the mixture *mine was a frozen block of chicken stock*. I also added some bay leaf and some thyme. Let it simmer for around 10-20mins to cook out the acidity of the wine and tomatoes plus, to intensify the flavor.



When that is done, put it in a blender and puree it.



Use a chinois and strain the sauce to have a smoother consistency.



Then put it into a saucepan and let it simmer for some more, this time season it.



If you haven't used the Chorizo de Bilbao of Pure Foods, here is a sneak peak.



Yes friends, it is packed in lard! It would be a sin to not use those high cholesterol flavoring into your dish :D That said, get some of its lard and throw it in the pan. When that has heated, put in some chopped chorizo and some chopped bacon.



When they are almost done, remove it from the pan and put in the chicken. Saute and season.



Then, add some cold rice. I use 'dinorado' rice. It is stickier than normal white rice but not that likes of 'malagkit'.



Add in the bacon and chorizo.



Add in the tomato sauce.



Serve



Opinion

Strong bold flavors. This dish will really make you feel Spanishy. What I didn't like about this dish was that I overseasoned it. I think you just have to season the sauce and that would be enough. Moreover, I think the bacon should have been cooked to almost crisped to give it a better texture. Lastly, presentation could have been better. Adding some parsley and lemon wedge as a side could have nailed this dish.