Filipino Dishes

My wife's director was having a party at her house. My wife also mentioned to her that I was a good cook, so I felt that I needed to impress her with my skills. She is Filipino, so I made pork rib adobo and maja blanca. The pork rib adobo is very easy to make, and I've added some of my twists to shorten the time. The maja blanca is a traditional favorite among Filipino families, and I heard that it's not something people would make everyday; it's a special dessert.


Pork Rib Adobo

Ingredients
2-2.5 lb pork ribs, sawed in half and cut into individual ribs
1 C (8 oz can) unsweetened pineapple juice
2 bay leaves
1/4 C light soy sauce
6 peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp white vinegar
1 C water
2 tsp corn starch
1/4 C brown sugar
2 Tbsp ketchup
5 Tbsp dark soy sauce


Method

1. Fill a large pot with water, enough to cover the ribs. Bring to a boil then add the ribs. Bring to a boil again and then simmer 5 minutes. Remove the ribs, and clean out the pot.

2. Put ribs back into the pot. Add the garlic, pineapple juice, bay leaves, peppercorns, vinegar, and light soy sauce to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about45 minutes. Make sure to stir the pot halfway through to make sure all the meat absorbs the flavor.

3. Remove the ribs from the pot, and turn up the heat to high to reduce the liquid. Mix the corn starch with 4 Tbsp water. When liquid is reduced by half, add the corn starch slurry, brown sugar, ketchup and dark soy sauce. Continue to stir until sauce has thickened. Taste and season. Put the ribs back into the sauce to coat, and then place onto serving dish.


Maja Blanca

Ingredients
1/2 C coconut milk
1 C rice flour
1 C sugar
1/2 C corn starch
3-4 Tbsp sweet corn kernels
4 C fresh coconut milk or water
1/4 diced young coconut meat (or grated coconut, optional)*
*1 young coconut will yeald 2 cups coconut water and 1/4 C coconut meat. If you use the coconut water, the dessert will be somewhat transluscent (see picture). If you use coconut milk, the dessert will be white.


Method
Prepare the Latik in advance
1. Pour coconut milk into a saucepan and bring to a boil for 1 hour. Wait until the oil separates and a brown precipitate forms. This brown precipitate is called Latik. Drain the Latik from the oil and set aside. (Optional: Spread Latik on parchment paper. Drizzle a little coconut oil over the Latik and sprinkle some sugar to sweeten it up a bit.)

2. Grease a 13-inch rectangular dish with the coconut oil (prepared above). Set aside.

3. In a medium-sized pot, blend rice flour, sugar, corn starch, sweet corn kernel, coconut meat, and coconut milk or water.

4. Start to boil over medium heat. When it starts to bubble, reduce heat to low and stir with a wooden spoon constantly to prevent lumps. Wait until mixture is clear to opaque after 5-7 minutes.

5. Pour the hot mixture into prepared dish and allow to set. Sprinkle Latik over the set mixture, and let it cool before serving.


Enjoy,

TH