Spaghetti Bolognese

One of my favourite dishes - minced beef, tomato paste, chopped onions, garlic and button mushrooms!

Seafood Pizza

This is a seafood pizza. They seem to be quite generous with the toppings. I really enjoy the combination of the flavours of the seafood fused with the tomato paste and cheese.

Spanish Rice

2 tablespoons olive oil (can use up to 1/4 cup) 1 onion, chopped fine 1 garlic clove, minced 2 cups of medium or long-grain white rice 3 cups* chicken stock (or vegetable stock if vegetarian) 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste or 1 cup of diced fresh or cooked tomatoes, strained Pinch of oregano 1 teaspoon salt*Check the instructions on the rice package for the proportions of liquid to rice. They can range from 1:1 to 2:1. If your rice calls for 2 cups of water for every cup of rice, then for this recipe, use 4 cups of stock for 2 cups of rice. In a large skillet brown rice in olive oil, medium/high heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook onion rice mixture, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes, or until onions are softened. In a separate sauce pan bring stock to a simmer. Add tomato sauce, oregano, and salt. Add rice to broth. Bring to a simmer. Cover. Lower heat and cook 15-25 minutes, depending on the type of rice and the instructions on the rice package. Turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Serves 4 to 6.

Beef Stew

Serves 6 - 8 Ingredients:2 pounds stewing beef (we also recommend chuck roast or short ribs) 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 3 large onions 2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce (or 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste) 6 medium potatoes, cut to the size of small stones 2 large carrots, cut to the size of bottle corks 5 cloves garlic 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt Thickener: 4 tablespoons flour pinch of sugar 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 cup water Directions:Finely mince the garlic and half of one of the onions. Heat the cooking oil in a large pot. Add the garlic and onions and brown. Add the beef and salt and sautee until beef is thoroughly browned. Add tomato sauce and enough water to cover the beef. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer covered, until meat is tender - a half an hour longer (longer for short ribs). Meanwhile, cut the remaining onions into wedges (six to an onion). Add the potatoes to the pot and again bring to a boil. Replace the lid and simmer another half hour. Add carrots and cook 15 minutes; add the onions; simmer another 15 minutes. Mix the thickener ingredients in a small bowl. Make sure to get all the lumps out. Bring the stew back up to a boil. Add thickener, stirring constantly until well combined. Simmer another 10 minutes. Serve on plates over steaming hot white rice.

Turkey Chili

2 cups chopped onion 4 garlic cloves, chopped fine 1 cup chopped green pepper 1/4 cup olive oil 2 (35 oz) cans stewed tomatoes, crushed 2 (15 oz) cans kidney beans, drained 2 Tbsp tomato paste 3/4 cup chicken or turkey stock 2 Tbsp chili powder (or up to 4 Tbsp if you like it really hot) 1 Tbsp ground cumin 1 Tbsp dried hot red pepper flakes 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 Tbsp salt, plus more if desired to taste 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 3 to 4 cups of shredded, cooked turkey meat Sugar Shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onion, sour cream for optional garnish. 1 In a large, 8-quart, thick-bottom pot, cook the onion and green pepper over medium high heat, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for a minute or two more. Add a bit more olive oil if needed. 2 Add tomatoes, tomato paste, stock. beans, oregano, salt, pepper, and cooked turkey meat. Bring mixture to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, for an hour. 3 Salt to taste. Add 1 to 3 teaspoons of sugar to take the edge of the acidity of the tomatoes if desired. The chili may be made in advance and chilled for 2 days, or frozen for 2 months. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onion, and or sour cream. Serve alone, over rice, or with corn bread. Makes about 12 cups. Serves 8.

pochero

The pochero is a classic Filipino stew which combines as many kinds of meat . While the classic pochero is red due to the tomato paste, the Cebu Pochero is similar to the “bulalo” (marrow in the bone of the beef shank) but with a corn cob added in the stew. When in Cebu, order it at the Abuhan where there are two branches, Abuhan 1 and Abuhan Dos. Abuhan Dos is at F. Ramos, near the Fuente-Osmeña Circle. In Manila, one can get a taste of the Cebu Pochero in Jun Jun’s Cebu Lechon Restaurant at The Fort, Taguig beside Bec’s Cafe.

Enchiladas

Grapeseed oil (or another high smoke-point oil such as peanut or canola oil) 12 corn tortillas 1 medium onion, chopped 1 clove of garlic, minced 1 cup of salsa (Mild prepared salsa or make your own using cooked or canned tomatoes, roasted green chiles, onions, cilantro, oil and vinegar. Do not use salsa made with fresh, uncooked tomatoes for this dish.) 3 Tbsp of tomato paste 1 cup water 1 cup of canned crushed tomatoes (preferably fire roasted) Olive oil 1 lb of jack cheese, mild cheddar or longhorn or any mild yellow cheese, grated A handful of cilantro 1 cup of sour cream Half a head of iceberg lettuce 1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 2 In a large fry pan at high heat add 3 Tbsp of grapeseed oil. Add a tortilla to the pan. Cook for 2-3 seconds, lift up the tortilla with a spatula, add another tortilla underneath. Cook for 2-3 seconds, lift again, both tortillas, and add another tortilla underneath. Repeat the process with all the tortillas, adding a little more oil if needed. This way you can brown and soften the tortillas without using a lot of fat. You do this process to develop the flavor of the tortillas. As the tortillas brown a little, remove from the pan one by one to rest on a paper towel, which absorbs any excess fat. 2 Sauté up the chopped onion and garlic, then turn off the heat. Add 1 cup of salsa. Dissolve 3 Tbsp of tomato paste into 1 cup of water, add to pan. Add 1 cup of crushed fire roasted canned tomatoes. Taste. If the sauce tastes too vinegary, add a teaspoon of sugar. 3 Put some olive oil on the bottom of a large casserole pan. Take a tortilla, cover 2/3 of it lightly with the shredded cheese, then roll up the tortilla and place it in the casserole pan. Continue until all tortillas are filled and rolled. Add sauce to the top of the tortillas in the the casserole pan. Make sure all are covered with the sauce. If not, add a little water. Cover the whole thing with the rest of the grated cheese. Put the casserole in the oven for 10 minutes or until the cheese melts. 4 Garnish with cilantro and sour cream. Serve with sliced iceberg lettuce that has been dressed only with vinegar and salt. See Perfect Guacamole for a great guacamole avocado side dish. Serves 4.

Pulled Pork Sandwich

1 large onion, chopped 6 garlic cloves, peeled 1 pickled jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped 2 teaspoons of Chipotle chile powder (Shillings brand makes one) 1 Tbsp tomato paste 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard 3/4 cup distilled white vinegar 1 bay leaf 1 teaspoon paprika 1/3 cup ketchup 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce 1/4 cup light brown sugar 3 lbs of pork butt, trimmed of excess fat Hamburger buns 1 Purée all of the sauce ingredients (everything except the bay leaf, the pork and the buns) in a blender until smooth. 2 Put sauce, bay leaf, and pork into a large pot and add 1 quart of water. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer, covered, turning frequently, for 2 hours or until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork. 3 Remove from heat and cool pork in the sauce. When cool, remove the pork from the sauuce and shred into small pieces. Set aside. 4 Reduce the sauce by two thirds. Add the pork back to the sauce. Serve hot over open-face hamburger buns. Serves 6 to 8.

Crab Bisque

Stock ingredients: 4-6 cups crab shells 1/2 cup dry white wine 1 large yellow onion, sliced or chopped 1 carrot, roughly sliced or chopped 1 celery stalk, roughly sliced or chopped 2 Tbsp tomato paste 2 sprigs of thyme Several sprigs parsley 1 bay leaf 10-15 whole peppercorns 2 teaspoons salt Soup ingredients: 2 Tbsp butter, unsalted 1/3 cup shallots, chopped 3/4 cup dry white wine 4 cups of shellfish stock ¼ cup white rice 2 Tbsp tomato paste 1 ¼ lb or more of cooked crabmeat 1 ¼ cup heavy cream ½ teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper Making the stock Before making the bisque, you'll need to make the shellfish stock (see these instructions for details and photos). 1 Break crab shells into smaller pieces by putting in a sealed, thick plastic bag and either rolling with a rolling pin or hitting with a meat hammer to crush. Don't crush too small. You can even skip this step if you want, if your shell pieces are already well broken up. Put in a large stock pot and cover with an inch (but no more than an inch) of water. 2 Put the stove temperature on medium high and slowly heat the shells in the water. As soon as you see that little bubbles are starting to come up to the surface, reduce the heat to medium. Do not let it boil. You want to maintain the temperature at just below a simmer, where the bubbles just occasionally come up to the surface. Do not stir the shells. Stirring will muddy up the stock. As the bubbles come up to the surface a film of foam will develop on the surface. Use a large slotted spoon to skim away this foam. Let the shells cook like this for about an hour; skim the foam every few minutes. The foam comes from shells releasing impurities as their temperature increases. 3 Put the thyme, bay leaves, and parsley in cheese cloth. Secure with kitchen string to make a bouquet garni. 4 Once the stock has stopped releasing foam, you can add the wine, onions, carrots, celery, tomato paste, herb bouquet garni, and peppercorns. Bring to a low simmer and reduce heat so that the stock continues to simmer, but not boil, for 30 minutes. If more foam comes to the surface, skim it off. Add salt and remove from heat. 5 Dampen a few layers of cheesecloth and place over a large, fine mesh strainer, over a large pot or bowl. Pour the stock into the strainer. Discard the solids. Either use the stock right away, or cool for future use. If you aren't going to use in a couple of days, freeze (remember to leave some head room at the top of your freezer container for the liquid to expand as it freezes.) Makes 2-3 quarts. Reserve 4 cups for the crab bisque, refrigerate or freeze the rest. Making the bisque Now on to the bisque... 6 In a large, 4 or 6 quart saucepan, melt butter on medium heat, add the shallots and cook gently until translucent, about 5 minutes. 7 Add the wine, stock, white rice, and tomato paste. Raise the heat and bring to a simmer; reduce heat to continue to simmer until rice is completely cooked, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for several minutes. 8 Add about two thirds of the crab meat to the soup. Working in batches, ladle the soup into a blender and purée until completely smooth. Return puréed soup back to soup pan. 9 Add cream and gently heat soup until it is hot enough for serving. Add the remaining one third of the crab meat. Add salt and cayenne pepper to taste (about ½ teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne). Serves 4.

Arroz Con Pollo

Chicken 3 Tbsp olive oil 1 broiler-fryer chicken, about 2 1/2-3 pounds, cut into serving pieces, or 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of chicken thighs or breasts, bone-in, with skin on, rinsed and patted dry 1/2 cup of flour for dredging Salt Freshly ground black pepper Paprika Rice 2 tablespoons olive oil (can use up to 1/4 cup) 1 medium yellow onion, chopped 1 garlic clove, minced 2 cups of medium or long-grain white rice 3 cups* chicken stock 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste or 1 cup of diced fresh or cooked tomatoes, strained Pinch of oregano 1 teaspoon salt*Check the instructions on the rice package for the proportions of liquid to rice. They can range from 1:1 to 2:1. If your rice calls for 2 cups of water for every cup of rice, then for this recipe, use 4 cups of stock for 2 cups of rice. Directions 1 Heat 3 Tbsp olive oil in a large skillet (a skillet that has a cover) on medium high heat. Put the flour in a wide bowl, mix in a generous sprinkling of salt, pepper, and paprika. Dredge the chicken pieces lightly in the flour mixture and put in the pan to brown. (You can skip the flour dredging part if you want. It just makes a nicer coating for the chicken.) Cook a few minutes on each side, just enough so that the chicken has browned. Use a slotted spoon to remove from pan and set aside. 2 Add the rice to the pan to brown. Add a little more olive oil if necessary. Stir first to coat the rice with the olive oil in the pan. Then don't stir too much or you will prevent it from browning. Let it brown and then stir a little to let more of it brown. Then add the onion and garlic. Cook the onion, garlic and rice mixture, stirring frequently, until the onions have softened, about 4 minutes. 3 Place the chicken pieces, skin-side up, on top of the rice. In a separate bowl, mix together the stock, tomato, salt, and oregano. Pour the stock mixture over the rice and chicken. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and cover. Let cook for 20-25 minutes, depending on the type of rice and the instructions on the rice package, until the rice and chicken are done. Fluff the rice with a fork. If you want you can sprinkle with some peas. Add more salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4-6.