Dining in Hangzhou

On June 30 -July 4, I was in Hangzhou to conduct training in Jinhua. Hangzhou food is superb, never the greasy food laden with MSG that is often associated with Chinese cooking. The pictures above are just some of the dishes served at dinner I had with friends in Zhejiang University.

The first picture is a fish dish which is reminiscent of the Thai fried fish with soya bean paste, ginger and chilli. The next one is an eggplant dish sauteed in soybean paste and it is so delicious.

Irresistible Thai desserts

I was again in Bangkok in January and April for a workshop and I had time to sneak to the Chatuchak market. In January, the climate was quite pleasant but when I was there last week, the heat was rather extreme and I would describe it as "biting the skin". As I walked around thirsty and hot, I stumbled on a Thai dessert roadside stall which was just too hard to resist. Reminiscent of the halo-halo in the Philippines, this Thai dessert is also called ruan mitr or tab tim grob (red rubies), depending on the mix of goodies inside. I always like ruan mitr which I often order after a meal at MK restaurants.




































At a field visit in Nakon Nayok province, we were served this sticky rice with coconut milk and banana and taro filling wrapped in banana leaves. The sticky rice part tastes like the Philippine suman but it is the filling that sets it apart. The piece de resistance was the ripe sweet tamarind (see photo below):



Last week, when I was in Bangkok, I had memorable meals, even those cooked in the countryside where we had our focus groups with farmers. Will post some photos in my next post.

Don't blink when you buy in Divisoria streets

Just as I thought I was street smart as far as navigating around Divisoria was concerned, I've been had. A few weeks ago, I was shortchanged when I bought some round onions on Sta. Elena St. The price was cheaper than the supermarket and the round onions were of good quality -- shiny skin, no rotten parts, uniform medium sizes. But when I got home and started to put the onions on our small native basket, I found them to be of larger sizes and three pieces were even peeled. I stared at my purchase in disbelief. How could I buy large onions and choose peeled ones? Then I realized I've been had.

The modus operandi is for the seller to quickly switch the plastic bag of items you bought with another pre-packed bag while your eyes shifted from the weighing scale to your purse. You only discover this when you reach home and remove the contents from the bag.

Lesson learned -- In Divisoria, don't buy from the streets or roadside unless the seller is your suki. If you must, stand close to the weighing scale, keep your eyes on the scale, and grab the items first before handing the payment to the seller. That won't give the seller a chance to switch bags.

Marketman's Lechon Eyeball in Cebu

Photo credit: Marketman's Lechon (www.marketmanila.com)

I've been so remiss in updating this blog as my time was diverted to Devcompage. I've been to Penang, Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City in the past few weeks and I will share with you my food trips to these places in another post. But today, let me tell you about marketmanila's Lechon Eyeball in Cebu City that I had the great pleasure of participating in.

About 50 or so guests attended the marketmanila eyeball, There were three lechons made byMarketman's crew, one using the traditional Cebu style and two using his Accuchon style. Visit his blog for details of the lechon and his journey to a perfect Accuchon. The lechons were excellent and full of flavor that a crushed garlic-chili-vinegar dip was the perfect accompaniment to it. There was also a lot of lechon skin for everyone.

Besides the lechons, Marketman also laid out a tempting spread of several types of native salads -- guso, lato, eggplant, langka, green mango with sauteed bagoong -- crabs, prawns, lechon paksiw, kinilaw nga tangigue, grilled sweet corn, puso (hanging rice), budbud kabug (a suman made of millet, coconut milk and sugar), Mrs. U's silvanas and tocino del cielo, torta, small blueberry cheese cakes, biko, native ice cream and fresh fruits -- mangosteen, mango, pineapple.

Besides the scrumptious food, new friendships were made and a sense of community among kindred Marketman's fans pervaded the eyeball atmosphere. There were VIP guests too who were so unbelievably down-to-earth: Margarita Fores of Cibo fame, Frank Borromeo, the artisan chocolatier from Cebu, Mrs. U, the silvanas queen of Cebu, Joey of 80 Breakfasts, among others. It was a splendid Saturday indeed.

Where to eat in Binondo

When in Binondo, the non-Chinese among us are often left in a quandary on where to eat without being challenged by price and menu choices. Our Chinoy friends who live right on Benavidez St. have long ago tipped us on where they go when the cook is on his day off. Here is a rundown of restaurants and food shops worth visiting.

Hopia. The most popular Binondo street is Ongpin and many would start their food buying spree at Eng Bee Tin for hopia. It seems to be the best-selling hopia in town and it has blazed the trail in making hopia ube, hopia pandan, and many other irresistible goodies. But a best kept secret among hopia connoisseurs is Holland Hopia. While on Ongpin Street, turn right on Nueva St. and walk for about 10 meters. There you will find Holland Hopia. This was the hopia lovers' favorite before Eng Bee Tin entered the scene. I like Holland hopia because it's less sweet than Eng Bee Tin's. Back in Ongpin Street, walk farther until you cross a bridge then turn left on Salazar St. A good landmark is the appliance store at the corner of Salazar and Ongpin streets. At the end of Salazar Street is Diao Eng Chay hopia factory. Besides hopia, Diao Eng Chay sells peanuts with garlic flakes, siopao, and many other delicacies. Cross the street enter Benavides Street where a row of Chinese restaurants await you.

President Restaurant. 746-750 Ongpin St. (near corner Salazar St.). Now under renovation, this could easily be the most upscale resto in Binondo. According to many accounts, most Philippine presidents have dined here, which perhaps explains why it is called President. President Restaurant and Waiying have the same owner but these two are miles apart in price, size of sevings, interiors, and ambiance. At President, there are so many items in the menu which are so scrumptious but our favorites are the white chicken (or Hainanese chicken) and hot prawn salad. The resto serves so many items, including those that are not on the menu. For instance, pancit canton is not on the menu but you can ask the waiter that it's what you want.

However, President Restaurant is closed for renovation.

President Teahouse - 809 Salazar St. Just around the corner from the President Restaurant is this tea house which serves excellent dimsum and noodles. Prices are cheaper than President Restaurant. There's also a pay parking opposite President Teahouse. Next to it, there's a Taiwan food store that you might consider dropping by as it has so many high quality Chinese food items (wife cake, husband cake, moon cake, etc.) that are so exquisitely wrapped, like Japanese stuff. For photos of the facade and goodies of President Teahouse, visit Wanderlust and Wish You Were Here.

Sincerity Restaurant - 497 Nueva St. (now Yuchengco St.) - opposite Trinity (an office supplies store) Order fried chicken, their famous specialty.

Golden Fortune Teahouse - 927 Benavidez St. Great food, newly renovated, comfortable and prices are reasonable. We used to go there quite often to order almond milk with ice, special tripe, beef brisket, mapo tofu and spare ribs, until it was renovated and the renovation took a year.

Wan Chai Restaurant - 918 Benavidez St. (opposite Golden Fortune Teahouse). The resto offers all the traditional Chinese dishes at reasonable prices. Try their dimsum, prawns or crab with sotanghon claypot, mapo tofu, mixed roast platter, and steamed fish head dimsum. As it gives good value for your money, you won't regret it.

Waiying Fastfood. This is one of our favorites. It is air conditioned but it's not for those who want peace and relaxation. But if you consider the food quality and reasonable price as a good tradeoff, then this place might just be for you The prices are very reasonable and the dimsums are so good. You can also take home all sorts of dimsum (siomai, hakaw, beef ball, etc.). Go upstairs (2nd floor) to avoid the chaos of a busy restaurant. When you go to Waiying, don't expect a fancy ambiance but think about the food and price. Based on the number of customers, this seems to be the favorite of the Chinoys. Here is where you will get the best value for money. Waiying sells a wide range of congee, chong fan, vegetables, dessert and drinks. Consider these prices: roast duck/asado rice - P120, roast duck/chicken rice - P120, lemon chicken rice - P100, yingyong rice - P100, steamed minced beef rice - P90, steamed chicken mushroom rice - P90, curry beef brisket rice - P90. For dimsum, here are the prices for 1 order: beef ball - P50, siomai - P55, chiu-chao dumpling - P50, hakaw - P60, kutchai dumpling - P50, vegetable dumpling - P50, etc. For drinks, Hong Kong milk tea - P40, HK milk tea cold - P45.

Hainanese chicken rice at Portico

For Sunday lunch yesterday, my son took me to Portico in Serendra, Fort Bonifacio. Besides its culinary delights, the restaurant's best asset seems to be its interiors -- warm yellow hues on the walls and china, high ceiling, and a glass wall separating the kitchen from the dining area.

My son had chicken extravaganza (P470) and for appetizers, we had spring rolls (P300). I ordered the house specialty which was boxed and had a check mark on its menu -- Hainanese chicken (P410). I was torn between having a fish dish or chicken but since fish was not available, it made my choice easier. The shrimps and salmon spring rolls were yummy and crispy and one order could feed four persons.

I love chicken rice and I've had quite a taste of Thai, Singaporean, Malaysian and Filipino versions. In Singapore, Boon Tong Kee at Balestier Road is a popular destination for foodies. On my last trip to Singapore, I took a cab from my hotel all the way to Boon Tong Kee to try out what was purported to be the best chicken rice in Singapore. It was good but did not measure up to the best chicken rice I had in Bangkok. The chicken stall is at a roadside of Phaholyothin Road opposite the Kasetsart University-Department of Agriculture complex, outside the Maruay Garden Hotel. In Hainanese chicken, there's nothing fancy about the chicken as it is just simmered for 45 minutes or so in boiling water so the piece de resistance is the sauce. That Thai version I love and crave for is served with a unique spicy hot sauce made of preserved yellow beans (tao hoo yee) and chicken soup, a bowl of piping hot chicken soup, and a plate of fluffy jasmine rice cooked in chicken broth, pandan and ginger.

Given this backdrop of chicken rice experiences, the one I had at Portico was an utter disappointment. The pieces of Hainanese chicken were served on a large white square plate. On the plate sat the bowl of rice, chicken soup, ginger and chili sauce. The soup was not gingery at all and it tasted like it was made from a bouillon cube. What made it even more disappointing is the fact that it is featured as the restaurant's special (boxed and checked!).

If like me, you hanker for true Hainanese chicken rice in Metro Manila, don't drive all the way to Serendra. It is a waste of time and gasoline. On a Saturday morning, hie off to the Singaporean food stall in Salcedo Market. The food stall is on the left side from the main entrance to the market, near the roasted calf. An order of chicken rice which costs only P150 comes as a big slab of chicken (drumstick and thigh), a bowl of chicken-flavored rice, ginger sauce, and chili sauce. It is real Hainanese chicken rice that never disappoints your taste buds and gives good value to your money. While at the stall, you can also buy laksa -- a spicy Malaysian noodle dish with spicy coconut milk soup, chicken meat, and prawn. I usually take these goodies home and eat each slowly to savor the flavor of true Hainanese chicken rice.

Beef tapa

The only recipe that I tacked with a magnet on my son's refrigerator door is for beef tapa. It is so yummy and easy to make especially for breakfast that there's hardly any need to buy it in the wet market or supermarket if you're in the Philippines or at Filipino stores if you're overseas. If you aim to eat healthy and do away with preservatives, MSG, etc. the best way is to prepare food from scratch.

I got the recipe from my sister but I tweaked the measurements to make sure my son won't screw it up. Since we hardly use sugar if we can avoid it, we use Splenda instead to give the beef tapa just a hint of sweetness. You can also substitute beef with pork. Try the recipe below and your family will love it. Here's my kitchen-tested recipe:

Beef tapa

1/2 kg sirloin, thinly sliced
2 tbsps vinegar
2 tbsps soy sauce
1/2 tsp white sugar (or 1/2 sachet Splenda)
1/4 tsp black or white pepper poweder (3 shakes)
3 segments garlic (pounded)

Mix all the ingredients and marinate for at least 30 minutes. In a skillet, put 1 tbsp. cooking oil. Stir-fry the marinated sirloin until cooked. Serve hot with steamed rice and sliced fresh tomatoes.