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Hello all. Although this Typepad incarnation of my blog has served me fantastically well for the past 6 years(!), I've finally decided to update and redesign the whole thing and move on over to Wordpress. My new blog can be...
Movie trailers are great in that they provide movie-goers a whiff of things to come. Give a movie studio two minutes, and they'll cram the best parts of their upcoming 2-hour Rom-Com-Mystery-Psycho-Thriller-DocuDrama-Kung-Fu-Vampire-vs-Zombie-epic into that trailer and hope it's enough to...
When you have the foresight to store any leftover steamed rice in your refrigerator, you've got plenty of fried rice fodder for the next morning. Cold leftover rice is ideal for turning into fried rice since the rice grains can...
Well, it's finally done. My debut cookbook entitled The Adobo Road Cookbook: A Filipino Food Journey—From Food Blog, To Food Truck, and Beyond is done and now available for preorder! After developing over 100 recipes (99 made the cut), shooting...
Wow. Is it December already? I barely get a chance to breathe and there goes November and Thanksgiving! Anyways, I just wanted to quickly check in (you know, before December's over) and give a little plug to the current issue...
Between the years of 1565-1815, Spain transported goods between Mexico and the Philippines (two of Spain's colonies) via the Manila-Acapulco Galleons. These giant wooden ships traveled across the Pacific from Manila to Acapulco only once or twice a year. Once...
The Chinese influence on Filipino cuisine is perhaps most evident in the Philippines' vast array of noodle dishes known as Pancit. Pancit Miki, Pancit Molo, Pancit Palabok—all Filipino noodle dishes, and all of Chinese origin. And although Pancit Molo is...
I didn't know it until I started writing this particular post, but 5 years ago, I wrote about how I first learned to make the Filipino vegetable stew known as Pinakbet. In that old post, I boldly proclaimed that Pinakbet...
Since turning in my cookbook manuscript to my editor a few months back, things, for the most part, have been relatively quiet. As a first-time author, I'm learning that there's a lot of waiting involved in the publishing process. But...
Whether you eat tofu on the regular or not, chances are that you've never considered actually making the bean curd from scratch. I mean, who the hell makes tofu from scratch, right? And why would you want to make tofu...
I've never been too big on after-dinner liqueurs or digestifs--my post meal tipple is usually a continuation of what I'd already been drinking during the meal (grab another beer, or mix another cocktail). But lately I've taken to sipping that...
The Filipino sour soup known as Sinigang can contain any variety of meats, poultry and seafood, and is typically studded with a variety of local vegetables. Depending on the region of the Philippines, a range of native fruits can be...
Whoever said, "Too much of a good thing is never good at all," has probably never been to a wedding with an open bar, has not found a go-to all-you-can-eat sushi joint, nor has ever had Chicken and 40 Cloves...
Golden. Not Burnt. Just about a year ago, I ended one brief (yet exciting) chapter in my life to focus on something entirely different--writing my first cookbook. Although there were other major factors that pulled me away from the road...
Take a peek into most any Filipino's pantry and you are just as likely to spy a can of corned beef as you are a bottle of fish sauce, banana ketchup, or vinegar. Because the Philippines was an American colony...
OK, so I've been gone for a little bit haven't I? But my apparent winter hibernation from this space (and from twitter, and from the actual world outside my home, or outside the public library [yes, i still go to...
***UPDATE 12/20/11: "Boy, that escalated quickly." Thank you all so much for showing such great interest in this cookbook! I'm thrilled with the overwhelming responses in just a short amount of time. I won't be able to choose everyone to...
As someone who sometimes celebrates Thankgiving sans turkey [insert GASP here], I'm always looking for new and different ways to incorporate said bird into my recipes around this time of year. Recently, while trying out different Filipino empanada recipes for...
I know what you're thinking. WTF? Offal and bile soup?!!! Yes, that is perhaps the most unappetizing description of a soup ever known to man. I mean, it's got "awful bile" in the title. But I didn't know how else...
Photo courtesy of Claude Tayag To American audiences, Claude Tayag may best be known as Anthony Bourdain's Pampangan host and tour guide in the Philippines episode of No Reservations. But Claude Tayag is more than just a tour guide. Tayag...
Aside from the occasional homemade ice cream binge, or the very rare instance where I actually bake something, I don't usually make many desserts. It's not that I don't enjoy sweets, it's just that my sweet tooth usually gets vetoed...
Caldereta (or Kaldereta if you're nasty) is an honest to goodness meat stew influenced by both Spain and the United States, but yet remains uniquely Filipino. Caldereta's roots in Spain can be found in its Spanish name (of course), but...
On Saturday September 10, and Sunday September 11, the 20th Anniversary Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture will take place in San Pedro, CA. Although I've participated at FPAC in some capacity (either as an attendee, or as a vendor)...
When we think of rice, we may think of only a few specific varieties. Italian Arborio, Thai Jasmine, and Indian Basmati, for example. But what if I told you there are rice varieties from the Philippines whose aromas, textures, and...
I have this vague childhood memory of a cousin, or an uncle, or someone, bringing my grandparents a freshly caught abalone from who-knows-where. Upon presentation of the abalone, the household of grandparents, aunts, and uncles went absolutely bonkers--like if Ed...
So a Filipino guy, a Japanese guy, and two Chinese guys walk onto a fishing boat... The Japanese guy takes a deep breath of fresh sea air and says, "Looks like a good day for fishin'! Hopefully we can pull...
All photos courtesy of Pleasure Palate This Sunday June 26 from 7-9pm, FilAm ARTS will be hosting an exclusive wine and fine chocolate tasting featuring Filipino-inspired chocolates paired with an exclusive selection of wines. What's that now? Filipino-inspired chocolates? Well,...
No matter the measure of success a person may have, there will inevitably be someone else that may try to negate or trivialize that success. Anything from winning a spelling bee ("Dude, you got lucky. Anyone can spell 'Borborygmus'") to...
David Lebovitz's Perfect Scoop is perhaps one of the most dog-eared and ragged cookbooks on my magic shelf o' cookbooks. And just because this particular cookbook is dedicated to all things ice-cream, that doesn't necessarily mean its use is relegated...
Ever since bringing back a stash of Ilocano Sea Salt from a trip to the Philippines a few years ago, I've been hooked on the salty Filipino crystals. I've used Philppine sea salt in everything savory--from adobos to salads--and believe...
Ah, Sisig! When prepared correctly, nothing quite captures the varied flavors and textures of Filipino cuisine like a sizzling-hot platter of chopped pig's face. It's true. Chewy and crispy, fatty and meaty, sour and spicy--they're all there. Gustatory opposites complementing...
Walk into most any Filipino bakery (in the U.S. and in the P.I.) and you are just as likely to find a display of brightly decorated chiffon cakes as you are to see the plain-jane likes of freshly baked pan...
On most visits to my grandparents' house, I can usually be found in the kitchen, hovering around my grandmother and her two sisters (AKA "The Aunties", AKA my extra grandmas) as they prepare that day's meal. And while many of...
Everything I know about Elvis Presley, I learned from The Honky Tonk Man. Which is to say, I don't really know anything about Elvis Presley. Spending many of my formative years watching professional wrestling has somewhat skewed my world view....
This Friday April 22 is Earth Day. And to celebrate, The Nature Conservancy is encouraging people all around the world to step outside and head to their favorite outdoor spot to enjoy good food in the company of great people....
My childhood was not without its fair share of processed convenience foods. Seeing as both my parents worked, and worked often, the refrigerator and cupboards at our house were usually stocked with enough TV dinners, frozen pizza, frozen waffles, boxed...
It's funny. I've been daydreaming about writing this particular blog post and making this particular announcement since perhaps day one of this blog. Every now and then, for the past four years, I'd catch myself staring off into space, quietly...
This Saturday February 26th, I'll be participating in the Banana 2 Conference at CBS Studios in Los Angeles. The Banana 2 Conference will be an event spotlighting the efforts of Asian American and Pacific Islander bloggers. According to the Banana...
Four Valentine's Days ago, I started writing Burnt Lumpia. Yup. This here Filipino food blog is now four years old. Four years is a long time to be writing anything, let alone to be writing a blog solely about Filipino...
Gambas al Ajillo (sauteed shrimp with garlic) may usually be a staple in Spanish tapas joints, but the same dish is also a popular Filipino bar food (perhaps a takeaway from a couple hundred years of Spanish colonialism, I'm guessing)....
Last Saturday, four Filipino food bloggers were featured on the "Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho" television show on the GMA network in the Philippines. Along with MarketMan of Market Manila, Anton Diaz of Our Awesome Planet, and Lori Baltazar of Dessert...
I've never been grocery shopping with my grandmother, though I imagine such an experience would provide innumerable perks. Aside from helping me pick out the best green papayas for her atchara recipe, or perhaps telling me straighaway which Filipino vinegar...
Aside from baking a couple of fruitcakes, wolfing down some arroz caldo, and scoping out the neighborhood Christmas lights, there's another holiday tradition that gets my insides all warm and fuzzy: Eggnog! I know not everyone is an eggnog enthusiast,...
Every year around this time, a Dutch cheesemaker begins wringing his hands in anticipation of a huge financial windfall. With a high-off-his-rocker smile on his face, the Dutch dairy wizard loads a huge cargo container full of crimson globes--balls of...
It's been said a few times before in this space, but it bears mentioning again: almost anything can be made into a Filipino Adobo. As long as you have a braising liquid consisting of vinegar, soy and/or salt, garlic, bay...
Despite nearly 20 wide-eyed, watery-mouthed, hungry Filipino porkaphiles hacking away at a whole-roasted pig this past Thanksgiving at my grandmother's, there was still plenty of pork to go around after everyone's forks and spoons were laid down. Nope, my family...
I've mentioned in the past how my family gets down on Thanksgiving--my grandmother orders a lechon in addition to cooking a turkey for the big day. This year, however, things were a little different--my grandmother decided to not cook a...
Although my young son (AKA Baby Lumpia) is only 15-months old and is much too young to indulge in candy of any sort, my wife and I made it a priority to dress the little guy up for Halloween this...
In case any (or probably all) of you haven't been checking in to my other website, I figured I'd share this video with everyone here. The video features some background information about the origins of my latest business venture: The...
Wow. Long time, no blog eh? Although I've been in blog hibernation for the past few months, I've hardly been sleeping otherwise. I've been on the road and working like a dog (actually, I'm sure dogs don't work as hard...
