String Beans Adobo (Adobong Sitaw)
Topic: Vegetables
Whenever I buy string beans, the first thing that comes to my mind is adodo because this is my husband's favorite. I always cooked it with chicken or beef but last night was different, I cooked it with tuna mackerel. That was my first time to cook it that way and the result was satisfying, good for non-meat eaters.

Ingredients:
1 small bunch of string beans (sitaw), cut into 2 inches length)
200 g tuna mackerel, sliced into cubes
1 medium onion, sliced thinly
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. whole peppercorns
1 tsp. vinegar
soy sauce to taste
1 tbsp. oyser sauce
1/2 cup water
3 tbsp. cooking oil



Directions:
1. Heat oil in a skillet, saute garlic until sligthly brown, add onions and stir for few seconds. Add the fish cubes, water, peppercrons, bay leaf, vinegar and few amount of soy sauce. Let it boil, simmer until the liquids are reduced.
2. Add the string beans and soy sauce, simmer until nearly done, then add oyster sauce. Cook for few seconds, then turn off heat. Serve with hard-boiled egg on top.

Spicy Ground Beef Pinakbet
Topic: Vegetables
I am not a big fan of Bagoong that's why whenever I cooked Pinakbet, expect that there will be no Bagoong on it. Bitter melon was also always omitted becasue my hubby didn't like its bitter taste. But last night I was craving for anything bitter and spicy, I don't know why, maybe it's because I was freezing, it's already winter season in Kuwait right now, hence I decided to cook this dish with bitter melon included and some red chilis on it. I didn't include the measurement of the ingredients below because the amount of the vegetables to be used will depend upon individuals own preference, maybe one will like squash so much so he/she will used more squash on it, etc.

Ingredients:
ground beef
squash
okra
eggplant
bitter melon
string beans
red chilis
broth
onion, sliced thinly
ginger, crushed
tomato, sliced
garlic, crushed
fish sauce
soy sauce
oyster sauce
black pepper
1/2 tsp. sugar
salt
3 tbsp. cooking oil

Directions:
1. Sprinkle some salt to the sliced bitter melon, squeeze it until slightly tender, then rinse with water. Drain.
2. Heat oil in a skillet and saute garlic, onions, tomatoes and ginger until the ginger is aromatic.
3. Add the ground beef, stir until the color changes. Add in the squash and broth and simmer until the squash is tender but not soggy of course.
4. Add the remaining vegetables, red chili, soy sauce, fish sauce and sugar. Simmer until the vegetables are cooked. Add the black pepper powder, stir for few seconds.
5. Turn off heat, stir in the oyster sauce. Serve.

See also:
Fish Flakes Pinakbet

Bitter Melon and Carrots
Topic: Vegetables
When I started to eat vegetables, bitter melon was one of the vegetables that out of my list to eat. I hated its taste before. But when my blood pressure dropped to 80 and sometimes 70 during my college days, the doctor advised me to eat some foods that will increase my BP and bitter melon was one of the list. I tried my best to eat it even though I don’t really like its taste, I wanted to swallow it directly without chewing it, lol! Then one day my mother cooked it very nicely with eggs (the first time I ate it was with Pinakbet cooked by my Aunt and I it was very bitter for me), she squeezed the vegetable with many salt and wash it many times, until when she cooked it I didn’t noticed the bitter taste anymore. From that day, I learned to like it and gradually it becomes one of my favorite vegetables. I can eat it now even how bitter it is, I tried it once in Salad and I still like it. By the way my BP is very normal now.

Here in Kuwait, I only cooked this vegetable once in a blue moon, I think, because my hubby is not a big fan of it but he still ate it when I cooked one.

Ingredients:
1 small size bitter melon, thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, thinly sliced
2 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp. fish sauce
1/3 cup broth or more
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 tsp. black pepper powder
? tsp. sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp. cooking oil

Directions:
1. Sprinkle some salt to the sliced bitter melon, squeeze it until slightly tender, then rinse with water. Drain.
2. Saute garlic and onion in hot oil, stir in bitter melon and carrots, add fish sauce and broth. Cook until all the liquids are absorbed by the vegetables.
3. Add black pepper and sugar, season with salt and pepper, stir.
4. Stir in beaten eggs and cook until the eggs are hardened. Serve.

Banana Blossom with Coconut Milk
Topic: Vegetables
I rarely find good quality and fresh banana blossoms here, whenever I buy one, I always noticed that it was already stocked several days ago. I always wanted to make banana blossoms salad because I really miss my mother’s salad way back home but I was always frustrated whenever I opened and tried to slice it and found out that it wasn’t fresh at all. So I have no choice but to cook it over HOT FLAME!

Ingredients:
1 medium banana blossom, sliced
Water
1 large zucchini, sliced
2 cups thick coconut milk
3 cups chicken broth
1 onion, sliced
1 ripe tomato, quartered
2 tbsp. crushed ginger
1 tbsp. fish sauce
1 medium sliced of smoked tuna mackerel
? tsp. sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Put banana blossoms in a pot, add enough water to cover, heat over medium-high and bring to a boil, simmer until tender. Remove from the heat and drain.
2. Return the drained banana blossoms into the pot, add broth, zucchini, onion, ginger, fish sauce and smoked tuna mackerel. Put over medium heat, let it boil. Cook until the zucchini are tender.
3. Add tomato, coconut milk and sugar, season with salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes. Serve.

Stuffed Eggplant
Topic: Vegetables

Ingredients:
1 eggplant (round or big variety), cut into half
2/3 cup ground beef
1 small onion, minced
1/2 tsp. ginger powder
1 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup chopped red capsicum
1 long green pepper, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. olive oil
grated cheese

Directions:
1. Scrape the eggplant's meat with a knife, leave only about half centimeter thick from the skin. Keep the eggplants "boat" aside.
2. Chopped the scraped eggplant's meat.
3. Heat oil in a skillet, saute onion, then add ground beef. Stir until the color change, then add the worcestershire sauce and ginger powder. Mix well.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients except cheese, cook until the eggplants are tender. Remove from heat.
5. Fill the eggplants' "boat" with the cooked mixture until full.
6. Bake in a preheated 250 degree C oven for 20 minutes.
7. Sprinkle grated cheese on top, then bake again for 2 minutes. Serve as a side dish.