Like The Tomato
Nothing here but my musings about daily life, books, anime, and food.
Since Chris and I found Filcuisine, we knew we would be back! This place was a drive for us. So we only get to think about visiting the place if we would be in the area. Well, it happened last weekend. We needed to get some stuff at HMart and this restaurant was in the same complex. Anyway, this was the third time we went here. The second time, we didn’t get to dine in. They were so busy at that time. But luckily, this weekend, we got there right as they opened.
We got new dishes this time around, except for the laing. Because we just loved that dish.
First Order: Crispy Pata. It was between this dish and Lechon Kawali. But I wanted more in a serving so I went with crispy pata. This was a roasted, then deep-fried pork hock. This was served with white rice. And this dish came with two dipping sauces – a spicy soy/vinegar with crushed garlic and Thai chili, and the lechon sauce. It was so good. And I think, Chris and I eating this dish made it look so good that the table next to us ordered it as well after asking the server what we were having. The skin was so crispy that we heard every crunch as we bite into it. Anything fried was a comfort for me. And this definitely hit the spot. It was what I needed.
Second Order: Ginisang Munggo. This was sauteed mung beans with pork chicharon and spinach. I was not expecting much really. I knew I wanted to try it out because we have not had this in years. And yeah, it was good. Really good. We had this white rice. Oh god. Yeah, I need to learn how to cook this. I really do.
Third Order: Beef Tapa Fried Rice. I wanted to try this because I ordered Tapsilog the second time we went here. And it was good. So I said, I loved the marinate they use for their tapa so I was definitely going to order the fried rice. This was fried rice with minced beef tapa, mixed veggies, and egg, flavored with sweet tapa seasoning. I know I said that the ginisang munggo and the laing matched well with the white rice. But having those dishes with this fried rice, elevated them. This was good. The servicing was huge so we were eating this fried rice the whole weekend.
And yes, we did have leftovers for all these dishes including the laing. So we were just going ham on Filipino food the whole weekend. And I loved it. We also got a dessert to take home called leche flan. OHMYGOD. It was definitely not good for me, but it was really good. It was creamy, it was the right sweetness, right consistency. It was really good. I wished we got two of them. And yes, we would be going back. I want to be a regular at that place. The server recognized us! And we’ve only been there three times!
Since I moved here 5-ish years ago, one of the main complaints I had was that there were no Filipino sit-down restaurants around me. And there was just no way I would be driving South in traffic to get to one. Sure, you would think I would not be craving Filipino food. I mean, you would think that I can just cook the dishes myself. However, there are some dishes that I have no idea how to cook. Or I have looked at the recipes online already and I just have not the courage to try cooking yet.
Imagine my happiness when I saw this restaurant, Filcuisine, during a grocery shopping trip one weekend. I just have to try it out. Because the last time I was at a sit-down Filipino restaurant was when I visited SoCal a few months ago. So I tried this restaurant out with my roommate and we couldn’t be anymore happier.
First Order: Crispy Sizzling Sisig. This was made with morsels of savory roasted pork, with onions, jalapenos, and citrus juice, topped with freshly cracked egg, and served on a sizzling hot plate. This dish was always a staple for me when I go to a Filipino restaurant. Let me tell you, this was so good. I definitely prefer this sisig over the dish served at a popular Filipino chain restaurant. I would come back for this over and over.
Second Order: Crispy Kare Kare. This version of the classic kare kare was made with crispy lechon kawali slices paired with the classic kare kare peanut sauce, and of course, veggies. It definitely looked attractively good. And I was tempted to eat some, but I had to restrain myself. I am allergic to some of the ingredients in this dish, as well as the bagoong (shrimp paste) that you eat this dish with. I would have to take my roommate’s word for this. She said she loved it. I watched her eat this nonstop during our lunch, I’d say it was really good. And yes, I am currently researching how to make this dish Roma-proof. Because I miss eating this one.
Third Order: Pork Adobo Fried Rice. It was fried rice, with chunks of pork adobo, egg, and green onions. This fried rice was flavored with savory adobo seasoning. It was good. I mean, my favorite Filipino dish was adobo. So no surprise that I would like this fried rice. And I also forgot to take a picture of this one. Fail on my part. Let’s just say that I was too hungry and I just wanted to dig in.
Fourth Order: Laing. This dish was made of taro leaves simmered in coconut milk. For me and my roommate, this was the star of that lunch. We could not stop eating this. It was that good. Very rarely that I see this dish served at Filipino restaurants, I do not know why. I do not understand it. Regardless, this was the dish that we had to physically tell ourselves to stop eating because we wanted to take home some leftovers. And yes, I also want to learn how to make this dish at home.
The serving size I got for all the dishes were regular sizes. Pretty decent sharing portions, and we still had leftovers after. So we got to enjoy the dishes for dinner at home. Were we in a food coma after? Yeah, a major one. Would we come back? Hell yeah, we would. It was just about making sure to go there right when they open or after the lunch rush. Because the place could get really crowded. I mean, the food was really good, and the demand was high, so I was not surprised that this place was poppin’!
This was long overdue. I visited SoCal in late February to early March this year. So, this post had been super delayed. No excuse just going through some pictures on my phone and found some snapshots I got from a brunch!
The 411: I have a best friend from the Philippines, we’ve been friends since elementary. Sure we might not be as active in keeping up and talking to each other. But he moved to SoCal right after I moved to the PNW, so we kind of missed our chance to actually hang out. The last time I saw him in person was during my brother’s wedding back in the Philippines back in 2014. So it has been a long while. Anyway, I knew I had to see him during my visit to SoCal. I shot him a message the morning after I arrived, and we set the date for when we would have this catch-up thing.
Don decided on the places that we went to since he was from there and I have not been in the area for almost five years. The first thing that we realized was that we were practically neighbors! Flashback to when we were in elementary and high school. His house back in the Philippines was within walking distance from my house. My parents’ house was less than five minutes drive from his house. So that was nice. Like, back in the day.
Anyway, for brunch, he chose Urban Island. From the get-go, he introduced this place as some kind of fusion Fil-Am restaurant. We went there on a weekday and it was raining. You heard that right, it was raining in SoCal when I visited. And just the timing of our visit to the restaurant, the place was not packed. Thank god, cause the restaurant shares a plaza with this huge Asian market. Imagine if we went there over the weekend, that plaza would be packed.
We ordered warm pandesal with ube butter for starters. Dude, that ube butter was the star of the show. It was so good. I know it was just butter, but damn, that ube flavor elevated this butter to new heights.
Another one we ordered was the FOB Fries. Basically, fries with pork belly sisig, rooster sauce, pico de Gallo, topped with a fried egg. Not going to lie, these fries hit differently. Just look at this as the FIlipino version of loaded fries. It was good, but I would prefer this with alcohol. I mean, the dish was under the category Pulutan on their menu so I would not be surprised if this dish matches well with San Mig.
I ordered the classic Tortang Talong. Classic dish. It was a roasted whole eggplant omelet, with ground longganisa, gouda cheese, served over fried garlic rice. You could also get this with hashbrowns. I had the tortang talong with just regular ground pork/beef but never with longganisa. Having it with ground longganisa slapped. The little surprise though was the gouda cheese. It did kind of elevated the dish a little bit. But I could also do without it. This dish was better with hot sauce. And yes, I am thinking of recreating it since it was so good.
Don ordered a Barkada Bowl. So it has bacon, pork belly, topped with longganisa gravy, cheddar cheese, fried egg and scallions, served over fried rice. You could also substitute fried garlic rice with hashbrowns. He swore by this, I would take his word for it. I was not able to taste it since I had my own food to eat.
Food was good. I would describe it as Filipino food with a twist – well, definitely, a Fil-Am fusion. I appreciated the little things they did to elevate some Filipino food faves. This place was definitely more for people, Filipinos to be exact, who have more of an adventurous palate. My mom didn’t like the place as much, but then again, she liked her Filipino food traditional. I enjoyed my time here because I was with my best friend and we had some good conversations between us. Would I come back again when I visit SoCal? Definitely. I would go back at night though, cause I really would like to try their pulutan with some alcohol.
Because the weather has been cold-ish here, well it has been fluctuating, so I decided to just cook arroz caldo. This is a Filipino chicken porridge dish. I don’t remember my mom ever cooking this for me when I was young, but we had a neighbor who sold this in the neighborhood in the afternoons. This dish was definitely perfect for chilly weather, but I also love having this when I am feeling under the weather.
I make mine pretty simple. I used chicken thighs for the protein, but you can also add some hard-boiled eggs. Then, of course, the staples → onion, garlic, and ginger. I also used some roasted chicken base for added chicken flavor. I added some fish sauce to taste. And the star of the show – jasmine rice.
I sauteed the onions, garlic, and ginger first. Then I added the chicken thighs and let them brown for a little bit. After that, I added about maybe 6 to 7 cups of water. I waited for it to boil then I added about 7 teaspoons of the roasted chicken base. I also added the washed jasmine rice at this time too. Then it was just a waiting game at this point until the rice was cooked. I added some fish sauce of course to lift it up a little bit. And then it was done!
It was satisfying. It was definitely something that I needed at this time since I was not feeling my best as of late. Definitely comforting.
I’ve been wanting to make this dish for quite some time. tried maybe a couple of times in the past but for some reason, I cannot get the taste right. It always end up tasting like another Filipino dish called mechado. For years, I did not want to even try learning how to cook this again. When I go to the Filipino store close to my apartment, I just buy cooked beef caldereta if they have it that day.
Anyway, beef caldereta is a hearty Filipino beef dish simmered in spicy tomato sauce with potatoes, carrots, and bell pepper. Very simple to cook, but like I said, I was having trouble with it. Before, I cooked it by taste, this time I decided to follow a recipe just to get started (Spicy Beef Caldereta by Kawaling Pinoy).
I used pretty much what was listed except for olives. I was never a fan of olives. From my experience, olives tend to overpower other flavors. So I decided not to use it in this dish. But I did use onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots, bell peppers, Thai chili, liver spread, tomato sauce, tomato paste, cheddar cheese, and salt and pepper. However, I did not follow the measurements exactly. I tend to cook by feel and taste, so I never follow recipes to the exact measurements. I pretty much followed the steps on the recipe except #1. I went straight to sautéing the onions and garlic. But the recipe itself acted as a guide for me this time.
For the first actual try, I thought I did decently. Chris liked it. I appreciated the heat from the Thai chili, I used 4 reds and 6 greens. Surprisingly it turned out pretty good considering the recipe called for 10 red Thai chilis. I wanted to start moderately on the spiciness. But at least 4:6 was a good ratio for my taste. The flavors were better the next day, like any Filipino stew dish.
However, I was not satisfied. It was not the caldereta that I grew up in. I would need to tweak the recipe a bit to make it my own. I was looking for a full-bodied flavor that I was not able to recreate this time around. Chris added some fish sauce while eating it. It gave it a good flavor. But I was thinking of cooking the beef with soy sauce first before adding the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and water next time. See if that helps the flavor a bit. Maybe it would make the dish closer to how my mom’s side of the family cooks it.
I have always enjoyed homecooked meals. Growing up, family dinner has been a staple in our household. Gathering around an oval table, my mom sitting at the head of it, with my brother and I on each side. We sit at that table at a specific time of the night – I would like to say 7 pm, and my mom would check in – what happened during the day, etc. Menudo is often on that table to share.
What exactly is menudo? The one the I grew up with is the Filipino version, I only realized that there is a Mexican version when I moved here in the US. The Filipino version of menudo is a tomato based pork stew, with liver, potatoes, carrots and raisins – at least this is how my mother makes it. And I still make it that way – sometimes. I have learned to change it to cater to someone who doesn’t like having the actual liver in the dish, or just omitting the liver entirely. Sometimes I add raisins, sometimes I do not. It really just depends. But regardless of how I cook it, it makes me feel at home – though for the most part, I eat alone.
What I love about this dish? It’s easy to make. It’s quick and it cooks in one pot. The ingredients are definitely accessible and inexpensive. One pot can last up to a week and the dish is even more delicious once it’s been sitting for a day or two – the flavors really come out. And it’s a perfect with steamed white rice – I love my steamed white rice.
What I used? Pork shoulder, Filipino red hotdogs, potatoes, carrots, onion, raisins, soy sauce, peppercorns, laurel leaves, and tomato sauce.
How I did it? In a large pot, I sautéed the onions in a little bit olive oil. I just sweat the onions, at least until it releases its aroma. Then I put the pork in. I add a little bit of soy sauce and cook it until it evaporates a little bit. This is when I add the tomato sauce, and the rest of ingredients. I let it boil in medium heat, then let it simmer in low heat for about an hour or so. I like my pork super tender and the veggies on the softer side (almost mushy), so until I get the right texture I want, I will just let this dish simmer in low heat. I occasionally stir and do a taste test. This is when I add a little bit of salt and pepper. Once it’s done, I serve this on top of freshly steamed white rice.
I would definitely like to make this without soy sauce one day – I am allergic to soy. But for now, I like the flavor soy sauce gives to it. Also, the goal is to make this with fresh tomatoes. I would like to not use tomato sauce in a can anymore. In time…you know, when I’m not so lazy.