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Christmas
Food |
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There’s
no place like home come Christmastime. But barring
that, we go for the next best thing – friends
gathered over a burp-worthy spread we remember from
back home. Our columnist Dr. Romy Protacio, now a
resident of Seattle, recalls the dishes that made
the traditional Noche Buena table of his youth. Elsewhere
in this issue, Luna Siy waxes philosophic about how
cultural influences have come to bear on the way we
celebrate the season and how repasts have evolved
through the years (sushi alongside the traditional
hamon, anyone?).
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What
seems important, especially for kababayans abroad,
is to recreate the Yuletide flavors they grew up with
and to share them with others – lovely for those
with similar recollections, or, even more satisfying,
with newfound friends from their adopted countries
who they’d like to impress with the galantina
they learned from mom. |
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Ham |
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Noche Buena won’t be the
same without a huge serving of Christmas hams. As
in nobody ever goes by this midnight of Christmas
get-together without biting into one of the Pinoy’s
favorite hams—Majestic, Excellente, or Hok Shiu.
But since the days are calling for a little bit of
austerity, serving your very own home-made ham can
still be an equally delightful treat.
Since
ham-making usually involves a tedious process, we
scoured the web for the easiest, cheapest, and most
convenient way to make your own ham. We found this
recipe in wikihow.com and added a little bit of our
own.
—RC
Ingredients:
• Fully-cooked ham
• Canned pineapple
• Light brown sugar
How
To:
• Buy a fully-cooked smoked ham. These are often
found in the refrigerated section of the store, usually
near bacon, sausage, and lunchmeats. Canned ham is
great too -- it's not quite as pretty, but very tasty!
• Place in a broiler pan (with sides about two
inches tall). For extra convenience, buy a disposable
pan.
• Make a series of slices across the top of
the ham about 2 inches deep and one inch apart.
• Take a can of pineapple rings and cut them
in half, turning each ring into two half-circles.
Fit the cut ends into the slits you've cut in the
ham. You should see the half rings curving into the
ham.
• Pour pineapple juice over the top of the ham.
• Sprinkle the ham with light brown sugar.
• Cover loosely with foil (i.e. not touching
the ham). Prop the foil with toothpicks if needed.
• Bake the ham for 20 minutes per pound at 325
degrees. Remember to pre-heat the oven first before
putting the ham. Afterwards, remove foil to let the
ham brown for the last 20-30 minutes of the cooking
process. Let sit for about 10 minutes before serving. |
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Bibingka
and Puto Bumbong |
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From among all the food we crave
for during Christmastime, the Bibingka is said to
be the most Pinoy of ‘em all. Nothing else completes
the Simbang Gabi than a piece of Bibingka and its
partner in crime, the Puto Bumbong, right after hearing
the pre-sunrise mass. But since the Bibingka has managed
to penetrate the all-year-round market, only one name
comes to mind upon mentioning Bibingka—Ferino’s!
—RC
How
to Make Bibingka the Ferino Way
(From thetheoreticalcook.blogspot.com)
Procedure (As far as my eyes can see)
1) Assemble the ingredients.
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Red eggs/Itlog na pula
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Galapong
2) Pour the galapong over the banana leaf inside the
clay pot.
3) Scrape the red egg and place it in the galapong
mixture in the clay pot.
4) Cover the pot with the contraption containing the
live coals so that the bibingka is heated from above
and below. (Called ‘bibingkera’, another
one of the Chinese legacies to Filipino cuisine)
5) After x number of minutes, the bibingka should
be cooked. Don’t leave the bibingka in the stove
too long.
6) Serve! |
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Queso
De Bola |
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A
friend said that his mom, a resident of California,
had just asked him to ship her a red, waxy ball of
queso de bola from the Philippines. No, let me rephrase
that: a wheel of queso imported from the Netherlands,
bought from a Philippine grocery and shipped to the
U.S.A. What, no Edam in CA? But traditionalists like
their queso just so. Meaning, hard, flaky, aromatic
and one of two brands: Marca Piña or Pato.
In the last few years, however, local companies like
Magnolia have begun to bring out their own quesos
during the season at less prohibitive prices. But
purists will balk at how the upstarts taste and feel
like modified cheddar.
– CR
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Hot
Chocolate |
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I could never get the hang of one
of my Mom’s comfort foods: Antonio Pueo Spanish
chocolate poured on a plateful of rice and paired
with daing or tuyo. But gimme a pan de sal stuffed
with Excelente ham and queso de bola and I will happily
dunk it in a cup of the thick, frothy brew. This is
best on Christmas morning (tennish at the earliest)
together with the leavings of the Noche Buena table.
For best results, use a batirol – a tall carafe
or jug with a separate batidol, a mallet-like utensil
made of wood that resembles a tenderizer. With the
choco poured into the carafe, whisking it with a batidol
will ensure a comforting, foamy cup. – CR
Mum’s
Spanish Chocolate
Use only cacao tableas. For every cup of chocolate,
allot two tableas.
4
cacao tableas (pure if you can get them, or those
mixed with sugar)
Optional: milk, sugar
5 cups water
Crush tableas until they are fine. Transfer to a pot
with a lid. Pour five cups of water into the pot.
Bring to a boil. When mixture bubbles to the top of
the pot, turn fire to its lowest and simmer, covered,
for 20 minutes. Ladle chocolate into a batirol and
whisk with a batidol until frothy. If you like, add
sugar or milk for each cup before whisking. |
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Castañas
and the fruits of the season |
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Only
old-timers will remember how the smell of roasting
chestnuts in those large circular aluminum stirred
by oar-like ladles meant Pasko na talaga. Not these
days. Thanks to the free flow of goods, chestnuts
and fruits like grapes, apples and pears – once
plentiful only during the season – can be had
year-round. SM Supermarket even repacks grapes in
small affordable trays of around 100 grams for less
than P30. Juicy Fuji apples go for P10 each and you
can buy pears for P5 apiece. |
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Chicken
Relleno |
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If Kanos have their turkey, Pinoys
have their chicken relleno. Served only during handaan
or special occasions like Christmas, the stuffed chicken
is mabusisi gawin and relies on pricey ingredients
to bring out its full frontal flavor. It can be served
hot or cold and leftovers keep well. Which makes it
an excellent sandwich-filler and an impressive post-Christmas
repast to serve tardy guests. Julie Gutierrez, a friend
for many years, makes one of the best rellenos we’ve
tasted. Confessing that she is “not a good cook,”
she says she learned the basics through Nora Daza’s
classic cookbook, Let’s Cook with Nora, largely
to impress her father-in-law and because she found
herself stuck with too much leftover ham and cheese
her relatives had sent from the States. Her relleno
was a hit and 12 years later, has become a Noche Buena
tradition. In fact, she says, “One friend even
asked for the recipe kasi daw pagdating sa chicken,
fried chicken lang ang gusto ng mga kids niya.
She was surprised na nagustuhan ng mga anak niya ‘yong
relleno ko. Kaya nagpaturo siya sa akin.
But since mabusisi nga ang procedure, nagpapaluto
na rin lang siya sa akin. Pati ‘yong iba
kong niregaluhan nag-order na rin sa akin.”
Over the years, she’s tweaked the original recipe
“according to my family’s taste buds thru
trial and error,” she says. “ I remember
ang original recipe ni Nora is with olives but since
hindi mahilig sa olives ang family ko, di ko na sinasama
ang olives sa ingredients ko. Ang secret
ko, no short-changing when it comes to
ingredients kasi pag nagluluto ako, kasama na rin
‘yong para sa family ko.” Here then is
Julie’s recipe in her own words.
Julie’s
Relleno
1 deboned chicken, about 1 1/2 to 2 kilos. I used
to debone the chicken myself but I found out that
in the market, you can request them to debone the
chicken for a minimal fee. Dati P10 lang, last year
P40 na per chicken ha.
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp calamansi juice
1/2 ground pork
1/4 k cooked ham, chopped finely to blend with the
ground pork
4 pcs vienna sausage, chopped finely
1/4 c pickle relish
2 hard boiled eggs, halved
3 raw eggs
1/2 c grated cheese
1/2 c raisins
2 tbsp tomato catsup
2 tbsp flour for binding
salt and pepper to taste
Butter for basting
It’s
hard to describe how I do it; suffice it to say that
I do it thru the asshole!
1. While chopping the ingredients, marinate
the deboned chicken in soy sauce and calamansi juice.
2. After chopping the ingredients, mix them
all together (ground pork, ham. sausage, pickle relish,
raisins, cheese, catsup). I mix them with my hand
para thorough ang pag-mix.
3. Finally, add the binders – flour and
raw eggs. Then mix thoroughly again.
4. Taste test: fry about a spoonful of
the mixture in oil and taste it. Kung okay na
ang timpla sa taste buds mo, then proceed to the stuffing.
Kung kulang pa sa salt or pepper or pickles (usually
these are the ones that I check) then do the necessary
adjustments.
5. Now you’re ready to stuff your chicken.
Lay the chicken on a big plate or a chopping board
and half stuff it with the ground pork mixture.
Arrange the 4 halves of hard-boiled eggs in the chicken.
Spread them evenly inside the chicken.
Then continue stuffing.
6. Closing up. Use a new sewing needle
and white thread. Soap and wash the needle and
thread thoroughly. Note: There are times na
nagkakabutas ang skin ng chicken during the deboning
procedure, you have to sew these up (sursihan) even
before stuffing the chicken, otherwise lalabas ang
stuffing sa mga butas. If the skin on the neck part
is too long, cut it short and then tie it up para
hindi rin lumabas ang stuffing doon.
Finally, close up the main hole. As I have told
you, I use the asshole as my main opening. Sometimes,
the market people debone the chicken thru the back
part. Wherever your main opening is, you have
to sew it up with needle and thread. Tip: Do not overstuff
the chicken has the tendency to expand because of
the heat and if it is overstuffed, it will burst or
erupt.
7. Baste the stuffed chicken with butter.
8. Wrap the stuffed chicken in aluminum foil
and bake it in the oven for 1 1/2 - 2 hours at 350
degrees F. After baking for about 45 minutes,
check to make sure the browning is even. If
you need to turn over the chicken, do so. After about
15-30 minutes more, turn the chicken upside down and
return to oven with the foil opened up.
9. Save the drippings for making the gravy.
10. For the gravy, melt butter in a separate pan,
add flour then the drippings. Add a little chicken
stock (or broth). Add a little soy sauce for
color. Add salt and pepper to taste.
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Kakanin |
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According
to author Reynaldo Alejandro in his book, The Food
of the Philippines: Authentic Recipes from the Pearl
of the Orient, when the Spaniards came to the Philippines,
Christmas, which became a new feast for the Filipinos,
coincided with the rice harvest. Thus, it “came
to feature not only the myriad native rice cakes,
but also ensaymadas (brioche-like cakes buttered,
sugared and cheese-sprinkled) to dip in hot thick
chocolate, and the apples, oranges, chestnuts and
walnuts of European Christmases,” he wrote.
“Even the Mexican corn tamal turned Filipino,
becoming rice-based tamales wrapped in banana leaves.”
Thus, the bibingka and puto bumbong served after the
dawn masses and for many others like my old kapit-bahay,
the bowl of lugaw or rice porridge she shares with
the neighborhood. |
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Hotdogs?
Yes, hotdogs! |
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Our
managing editor Rona Co and our creative director
Ray Cruz remember plenty of hotdogs on their Christmas
table. “Kasi maraming tinapay kaya maraming
hotdog?” Rona surmises. Or ito lang ang gustong
kainin ng kids pag Pasko, we speculate. But they are
not alone. I asked my daughter’s boyfriend what
they traditionally serve during Christmas eve and
he replied, “Hotdogs.” |
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| by
Ces Rodriguez and Ronalisa Co |
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