My Homemade versus Commercially Prepared Crab Cakes

The other day while shopping at Food Mart I found commercially prepared crab cakes with Cocktail sauce on sale ( see photo above)( $4.99 for 4 cakes). The package says it is made from real crab meat, but if you read the ingredients at the back of the package there are other ingredients that may be considered artificial crab meat or an additive(Crab meat, pollock and or whiting, wheat, soy, milk and Egg)

I have never purchased commercially prepared crab cakes, But I thought I should try it and compared it with my homemade crab cake following the recipe from allrecipes.com. It was not bad but my crab cake made from my favorite recipe definitely taste better. But if you do not feel like cooking, the above commercial crab cake will suffice. The following is one of my favorite recipe for crab cakes from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
1 pound crabmeat, shredded
1 1/2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley salt and pepper to taste
1 egg, large
1 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon ground dry mustard
1 dash hot pepper sauce

Preparation:

1.Preheat oven broiler 400F.

2. Mix together crabmeat, bread crumbs, parsley, salt and pepper.

3. Beat together egg, mayonnaise, hot sauce and mustard. Combine with other ingredients and mix well.

4. Form into patties and place on a lightly greased broiler pan or baking sheet.

5. Broil for 10 to 15 minutes, until lightly brown.

Do You Dislike Filipino Dishes?

Lechon-Roasted Whole Pig-A Fiesta Dish Prepared for Special Occasions.( Birthdays, Receptions, Holiday, etc..)

Have you meet people who hates( maybe dislike is a better word) Philippine cuisine and would not even try it. Some of them are just turn off at the sight of the dish such as the Dinugu-an ( blood pudding) or pigs feet and hocks (Kare-kare) or the smell of the dish (fishy) such as the shrimp paste(bagoong) or dried fish. However, most Pinoy dishes have no fishy smell. I am an Ilonggo and do not like Patis, but most Filipinos from Luzon loves it. My wife loves Patis.

Patis (Fish Sauce) is a pungent-flavored flavoring sauce and condiment made from salted, fermented fish. Patis is frequently used in the Philippines and in other Southeast Asian cooking to add saltiness to dishes. In Southeast Asian cuisines, it is also used as a dip for fish, shrimp, pork, and chicken. I prefer soy sauce, picante sauce or vinegar with garlic instead of Patis.

My encounter of the first person who dislike Filipino food was about 20 years ago while I was attending the wedding of my niece in Iloilo City. This person was from Australia and at that time was married to my niece. At the wedding banquet more than 20 Fiesta Dishes of Ilonggo origin were served. I was observing him not touching any of the dishes except the steam rice and the lechon( roasted pig). Later after the dinner I asked my niece if her husband hated Filipino food and she said yes. She told me he would not even try the dishes she prepared at home. She is now used to it and let him cook his own food at home. My niece said he is an adult and if he starved here in the Philippines, it is no longer her fault. The last time I heard, my niece and this ignoramus Aussie had divorced or separated.

The second person I have meet who does not eat Pinoy dishes was the American husband of my first cousin. This American was born in Missouri but went to college in Illinois. His parents still live in Missouri and I also heard they also dislike Pinoy dishes except for the roasted pig and the desserts. My encounter with my first cousin's husband was during their wedding reception in a Manila Hotel. There were more than a dozen Filipino dishes as well as American and International Dishes. I did not see him eat any Filipino dishes. Later on I asked my first cousin why he does not eat Pinoy dishes. My cousin said he was turned off by the smell of bagoong, the first time he was in the Philippines. From then on he would not even try any Pinoy dish serve to him.

The third person that I know that dislike Filipino dishes is the American husband of Macrine's closed relative. I will not discuss the detail here, because I do not want to be in the dog house with Macrine's relatives. My only regret is that his wife is a good cook and they have a Nanny who also is an expert in cooking Filipino dishes. This is all what I am going to say about this person who does not like Pinoy dishes except for the lechon and some desserts.

However, I have also meet a number of Americans who are married to Macrine's relatives and friends ( both Caucasian and Negro) who loves Pinoy dishes. These persons will try anything even if it is the first time they have seen the dish. These persons normally have other Filipino friends and have travelled to other countries.

So what is Philippine cuisine? Here's what Wikipedia says:

Philippine cuisine (Filipino: Lutuing Pilipino or Pagkaing Pilipino) consists of the food, preparation methods, and eating customs found in the Philippines. The style of cooking and the food associated with it have evolved over many centuries from their Austronesian origins to a mixed cuisine of Malay-Indonesian, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, Mexican and American, in line with the major waves of influence that had enriched the cultures of the archipelago, as well as others adapted to indigenous ingredients and the local palate.

Dishes range from the very simple, like a meal of fried salted fish and rice, to the complex paellas and cocidos created for fiestas of Spanish origin. Popular dishes include: lechón (whole roasted pig), longganisa (Philippine sausage), tapa (cured beef), torta (omelette), adobo (chicken and/or pork braised in garlic, vinegar, oil and soy sauce, or cooked until dry), kaldereta (meat in tomato sauce stew), mechado (larded beef in soy and tomato sauce), puchero (beef in bananas and tomato sauce), afritada (chicken and/or pork simmered in tomato sauce with vegetables), kare-kare (oxtail and vegetables cooked in peanut sauce), pinakbet (kabocha squash, eggplant, beans, okra, and tomato stew flavored with shrimp paste), crispy pata (deep-fried pig's leg), hamonado (pork sweetened in pineapple sauce), sinigang (meat or seafood in sour broth), pancit (noodles), and lumpia (fresh or fried spring rolls).

For details and Recipes of my Favorite Philippine and American dishes read: http://myfavoritepinoydishes.blogspot.com/

Personal Note: I am writing this blog not to embarrass the three men described above, but to at least give the Pinoy dishes a chance by at least tasting it before declaring to the whole world you do not like it or recommending to others not to taste it.

My Own Recipe of Pancit Canton

This is my first time to cook Pancit Canton, although I have already cook Pancit Bihon. I prefer the Bihon noodles because when I was growing up, I did not like the smell of the Canton noodles. However, just recently when we went to the Pinoy store Macrine picked up a package of the Noodles. Here's my own creation, substituting ingredients that I have in my cup board/refrigerator.

1/2 lb medium shrimps, cooked ( shelled and deveined)
1 chicken breast roasted ( Shredded)
3 tbsp. cooking oil
2 med carrot, cut in strips
1 cup shredded cabbage
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms
3 cloves minced garlic
1 medium onion, sliced
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp garlic salt
2 cans chicken broth
1/4 lb peapods ( or snow peas) clean edges and deveined
1 16 oz Pancit canton ( oriental style noodles)
1 hot Portuguese sausage( instead of Chinese sausage) parboiled and sliced thinly

Saute onion and garlic in hot oil. Add the shredded cabbage, garlic salt followed by the carrots and chicken broth. Cooked until cabbage is soft. Add the snow peas and fresh mushrooms and mixed and cooked for 2 minutes. Add soy sauce, the cooked shrimps and chicken breast and additional garlic salt to taste. Lower the heat to moderate and add the noodles. Cook stirring until noodles are done and most of the broth is absorbed. Serve hot, garnished with sliced Linquisa. On the side dish, Patis for my wife and fresh lemon slices( instead of calamansi in the Philippines) for me. Because of my diabetes, I used salt sparingly. So all the dishes I am cooking is not too salty. Enjoy!

A New Recipe-My Banana-Raisins Pancake

I woke up early this morning with the sun shining in our bedroom. It has been raining here in Northern California for the last week with floods, threat of overflowing dam and evacuation of residents. This is a much welcome sun as another storm is expected to hit Northern California tomorrow.

I felt good to see the morning sun and was wondering what I will cook for breakfast this morning when I saw one over rife banana. I have chunks of fresh mangoes in my refrigerator and a box of newly purchased raisins. I was not sure if I had a Pancake Mix. But luck is with me today. I have a Betty Crocker Complete Pancake Mix in my cupboard. Here's my very simple recipe:

1 cup Pancake Mix ( Betty Crocker or Equivalent)
3/4 cup Milk
1 Egg
1/8 cup raisins
1 over rife banana

Mixed all the ingredients: Cooked in Portions of the mix (amount will determine the size of the pancake) in a Skillet with trace amount of cooking oil. I used olive oil today. Serve with butter and pancake syrup. Garnished with fresh mango chunks and blueberries as shown in the photo above.

With freshly brewed coffee from the Philippines ( Baracco brand)-this recipe can qualify for a Good breakfast for all Seasons.

Enjoy!