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Visiting Philippines? Try this dessert

  My #1 Philippine dessert is not traditionally filipino. The day I arrived was grey and wet, yet humid. The traffic was a cluttered mess going from the airport. But the start of an authentic Asian experience. It was in September. I am however not reminiscing about my stay, but the smell of caramalized sugar when I entered the kitchen that following morning. The Philippines have its traditional dessert like Halo-Halo and Buku salad that is both delectable, must try frozen desserts. But it is neither of the two that made an impression on me during my visit to the Philippines. I originally began writing this post to share a great delicacy of my first visit to the Philippines.  Being passed off as a filipino dessert, I soon realised that this is not a filipino dessert but, the filipino version rather. It is still the filipino version I prefer, since I had travelled to Mexico, France and South Africa. My finding is that the filipino version referred to as Leche Flan is tastier,...
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Sizzling Persian Kebab Recipe

 




Sometimes we have to stop for a moment and see the glass as half full instead of half empty.

I have been fortunate enough to travel the world and experience many cultures.  Try food that I thought I would never eat and be forced to learn languages as fast as I could.

It would be faster to list where I haven’t been than cover the countries I have been.  Iran isn’t one of them. Luckily for me I am fortunate enough to have a partner who has a passion for cooking, and does it for an instant gratifying rating.

One of my favourite dishes, as I am a fool for anything prepared on the grill that contains beef, and a bonus when it contains beef as well as lamb.   

They refer to it as Iranian cuisine as well as Persian cuisine , as Iran is formerly known as Persia, in the west. Iran’s cuisine is fused with those of neighbouring countries like Turkish cuisine-baklava, a sweet treat became a favourite of mine when it was shared by a Turkish friend, back when we were in Florida. But- it is another recipe to be shared for another day.

I was first introduced to Iranian cuisine during my stay in the United Kingdom, but what became another all time favourite was something I would never forget and not yet share. Let me just say, whenever I have a chance to visit the United Kingdom, the first thing I do, my first dinner, would be to choose a Turkish fast food outlet above fine dining or hotel dinner.

So when my partner asks me what I think of the idea of having Persian night, I know that it entails sizzling grilled Kebabs, Saffron rice, flame grilled chillies and juice grilled tomatoes. I agree whole heartedly. These kebabs are not just grilled meat, this is a chance for me to have three of my favourite meats, pork, beef and lamb, combined into one mouth watering satisfaction.



Pair it with a pita bread, a spicy chillie (be careful of just how much chillie you enjoy, otherwise you might find yourself hanging onto the bathroom sink, while trying to survive the explosion) and some tzatziki sauce, and I promise you Persian nights is something you will have more regularly. I am not a newbie to chilli in my dish, I was first introduced to whole chillies accompanying my food, three years ago when I first visited the Philippines, and I can honestly say, it is a must. I now grow chillies in my window.

It is not a surprise that the first recipe is a grilled recipe, because like I said I am a fool for anything grilled, but that it is not a dish from my own countries cuisine is somewhat a surprise.

With a little red wine and some Persian music, together with the below recipe, you can easily turn a regular night into a Persian night, by just staying at home. You sure to get some brownie points from your spouse, family and friends.

 


INGREDIENTS

1kg meat - 250grams pork, 250grams lamb, 500grams beef. Choose a fatty pork, you want a little fat in your meat mix to prevent it from being too dry.

1 large white onion

1tspn Paprika

1tspn Turmeric

2tspn Salt ( this one I will say can be adjusted to your taste, my spouse and I feel very different about salt, for me there is always room for a little more, however it can be because I like salt more than I should or because I grew up with generously spiced specialties in my country. So probably for a normal person, my normal is too much)

½ tspn Pepper ( adjust this as you adjust your salt)

2tspns of Red Sumac ( What is Sumac, you might ask. I had no idea, so I added a link)

 

Method

Grate the onion, followed by adding the spices. Add your meat mixture and mix the spices through, thoroughly. Wet your hand with lukewarm water to prevent the meat sticking to your hands. Again make sure the spices is well mixed through with your meat.

Wrap the meat mixture and place it in the fridge, until you are ready to form your kebab.

You can purchase stainless steel barbeque needles as it is perfect for the job, and depending on the occasion will look more professional. For us it was just a private home cooked dinner so we just used unseparated tjopsticks , wooden barbeque sticks are too thin and will slide through your meat.

Place back in the fridge until ready to cook.


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