Our Mom's Garlic Beef Tapa

Tapa has become famous since tapsilog (tapa + sinangag + itlog) became a hit. The way my mom makes her tapa is a secret, in fact some family friends even from abroad would call her up to get the recipe once they get to taste it.

Here's my version as to how I duplicate the same.  What makes it different is that it isn't your usual sweet-flavored beef but more of a salty-garlicky kind.

Cafe' Mocha

Saw this ground coffee from Lipa in the supermarket and tried to make café’ mocha using it as base for the espresso.  It turned out fantastic! 

For making the espresso, I used my portable Starbucks  French Press.  This can be a very useful kitchen tool especially if you need a quick caffeine-fix.

Nilagang Baboy

Nilaga is a traditional Filipino food.  There are many ways to cook nilaga as much as the many variations of the meat used for this dish such that ingredients vary when chicken is used as compared to beef or pork.

This version of pork nilaga is from Southern Tagalog, provinces like Batangas, Laguna and Mindoro use saba instead of potato or gabi or kamote.  Petchay tagalog is also used instead of cabbage (repolyo in Filipino) or Chinese petchay.

Silly Me!

Sorry dear readers,  I forgot to enable the jump breaks in my previous posts.  Please revisit my posts and click the "Continue Reading" button to read the rest of the article.  Feel free to give your comments and suggestions and I'll do my best to immediately answer your questions as well.

thanks for dropping by!

Humba (Braised Pork Hock)

Pork hocks or pork shanks or what we call Pata in Filipino, are from the pig’s leg or foreleg between the knee and the ankle. This is a tough meat as it is a part of a “work” muscle, and it takes time to make it fork tender thru boiling or braising. Other popular pork hock dishes are Crispy Pata and Nilaga.

Here’s my recipe for Humba…

Minatamis na Saba

Saging na Saba is how Filipinos call the Plantain Banana.  This type of banana is usually cooked instead of being eaten raw.  In Mindoro, the most popular way to cook saba is called "Sinulbot"  or what we are all familiar as Banana Que.

Minatamis na Saba is one easy way to prepare a merienda or dessert.

Burrito

Burrito is a complete meal by itself. A favorite of hubby and we are always on the lookout for the best burrito joint.

Burritos can either use beef, chicken or veggies for filling.  There's also breakfast burrito.

I use chicken most of the time since it's difficult to find good beef in Calapan.

Enchilada Sauce

Prepared enchilada sauce will last for 7-10 days in the fridge as long as you keep them properly in a sterilized bottle.  It's so easy to make and you can use it for your tacos, burritos, fajitas or simply use it as a salad dressing.

Tefal Actifry for that Guilt-Free Meals

Isn't it frustrating for those who are on a diet to eat fries and then feel guilty after? Let me share with you a great kitchen equipment that's worth the investment, Tefal's Actifry.

Mexican Rice

At first I thought this was a diffucult dish to prepare such as paella.  Don't be intimidated, its a well loved rice dish by my friends and its always the first thing to be consumed everytime i serve it at home.

Mexican rice is an essential part of a burrito but it can stand alone as it is and it goes well with other mexican fares and barbeques!

Flour Tortilla

Before I got pregant, we were settled in a far away province called Mindoro.  Although we were in Calapan, the city capital, there weren't enough available stuffs and grocery items to buy, so I was forced by circumstance to make my own like breadcrumbs, sour cream, buttermilk, flour tortilla, among others.

One time a friend dropped by our house and caught me sweating with all flour and all while making tortilla from scratch.  Well, that gave him a chance to try my burrito which i intend to share the recipe in a separate post.  Making tortilla entails a quite an effort and patience so you need to put a lot of love in making it. :-)

Friendster Donuts are Hot!

A new twist for donut lovers – Friendster donuts from Krispy Kreme in Lemon Filled Smile and Raspberry Filled Smile flavors. They both bear the new Friendster Smiley green logo on their sugar glazed top.

They’re cute and refreshingly delish, but I still love the simple honey and choco glazed variety.