This is probably one of my favorite dishes from home. One of my father's relatives, Uncle Remy, lives with us and cooks our meals. He makes this dish beautifully and I had this twice already since I moved back to Davao 11 days ago. I'm here temporarily while I wait for the decision on my resident visa application in one of the coldest countries in the world. The decision should be positive but I just don't want to talk about it until I have the permit in my hands.
Farewell lunches and dinners had been made but I'm still here so I'll talk about it when it's time to board the plane.
So back to the dish. It's called ginataang gulay or simply vegetables in coconut milk. The vegetables used in this dish are almost the same as the ones used in pinakbet minus the ampalaya or bittergourd. Squash, string beans, eggplant, okra, and pako (fern), and coconut milk are the main ingredients. Essential ingredients in Filipino cooking are garlic, onions, ginger, and tanglad or lemongrass. Uncle Remy said that tanglad is an important ingredient in dishes which have coconut milk because it gives the dish a really nice aroma.
I don't exactly know how much of each ingredients he used in his cooking but the steps are very simple. Saute the garlic and onion until soft and translucent. Add the coconut milk, ginger, and lemongrass, then let it simmer over low to medium heat. Add the squash first and let it soften for a few minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients. Simmer and cook until the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper.
One comment I received from an Aussie friend who frequently visits the Philippines is that Filipino vegetable dishes, especially homecooked ones, are most of the time overly done. I think I also heard this comment on Indian food from one of my friends I met in Mysore. Well, it shouldn't be. Anyway, I believe it is important that the vegetables are not overly cooked lest it loses its nutritional value.
I'm officially temporarily out of the labor force and I decided spend time on my personal practice while I'm here. So far so good... asanas and pranayama are getting back... hopefully mitahara comes back soon. As I tweeted a couple of days back, with the amount of rice that I've been eating here I don't think I'll be needing it for the next two years. Let's just wait and see.
4 comments:
I'm beginning to like this dish too! I am not too keen on coconut milk based viands but since I shifted my diet to take in more vegetables, I began to re-visit some tastes I didn't care for before.
Yummy... especially with steamed rice.
Hi Jon,
It seems it's not only me who's going through some changes. :) I didn't know you were leaving again for another country. I wish you all the best, of course.
Sayang lang hindi ako nakadaan masyado sa YM Ortigas.
Hi John! Long time no see. Great to find your blog. I'm teaching Ayurveda in Manila on Saturday and have been working on modifying Filipino recipes to be vegetarian... I can refer people to this blog almost directly!! Hope things work out with your trip to Norway. It is cold there, do lots of bhastrika!
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